G’day all,
I’ve just bought a 1/72 Fiat G55 but the decals are very yellow or light brown. I can’t find any replacement decals so I was wondering can i do anything with them to make them usable. The overall condition seems ok.
Cheers
Believe it or not, but sun light will help rid old decals of yellowing. Put the sheet in a clear ziplock bag, then lay it on a window sill or tape it to a window where it will get lots of sunlight. Be ready to leave it there for a while, maybe several weeks. I’ve done this once myself and it worked pretty well, got rid of most of the yellowing. A bigger concern, though, is the condition of the decals themselves once they get that old. Even if they look good on the sheet, I’ve seen them shatter once they hit water. I’d recommend after the sunlight treatment to get a bottle of liquid decal film and paint it over the decals to reinforce them. The same company that makes Microset makes the liquid film, and there may be others out there, too. I bought mine from Squadron. Hope this helps. Good luck on the G.55, I’ve always loved the lines of that airplane.
Thanks Jeff, Will do… and I’ve got some of that decal fix so I’ll let you know how it comes up. Great looking plane, but the Supermodel is pretty sparce with the cockpit, but with the canopy closed won’t see much.
Cheers
This is a foolproof solution that is kind of like a high school science project.
From your salutation I think you’re headed for winter, so hold that thought, but…
Sunlight always cures this problem. Take the decal sheet and tape it up in a southern (no, stupid me, northern window) facing the sun. Leave it there for at least a couple of weeks.
The only danger is if the heat is on [:-^] and the window gets steamy and absorbs the decal, creating your own stained glass window, otherwise in a couple of weeks, no brown.
This won’t harm the decals, but they may be crappy anyways, so I always take a piece I don’t need and test it first in water, at which point it’s an even bet they’ll shatter.
Oh, scan them before you do the step two water test. You then may have an opportunity to print them from a jpeg on a hi resolution printer.
If they shatter, then you can attempt to save them by overcoating the sheet with either Future or Micro Scale Decal Film. Just remember that after this operation you’ll need to cut out each decal carefully around the art because it’s now got a continuous top coat.
Edit: Gee Jeff, two 1/2 wits like us could be a whole brain!