I have a quick question…I have decals from an Italeri Ar 196A model that are glossy on the backing paper. I understand that I need a gloss coat before putting on decals to prevent silvering, but once I put these glossy decals on how can I get them to turn into a flat finish? Will a flat coat on top do the trick or am I out of luck?
A flat coat will really help to tone them down and bring them to the same sheen as the rest of the model. So no, you are not out of luck. Keep in mind you should apply another glosscoat after the decals are on to help blend them in further and to seal them. Then do your weathering and then comes the flat coat.
I usually get by okay just with the flat coat. If it is a flat finish subject, I always do an overall flat overcoat after decaling. I may do that coat before weathering, sometimes after weathering, depending on exactly what types of weathering I will be doing (oil and fluid leaks, for instance, should be somewhat glossy).
Good tip, Don.
This is my plan:
Gloss clearcoat, do decals, flat clearcoat, weather my kit, and finally, a final coat of flat clearcoat. Done.
Use micro mesh cloth and rub the decal paper lightly and the glossiness go away.It will appear foggy when finished .But don’t worry just apply decals normally.