Waterslide Decals and Flat Paint

I know that you're supposed to only apply waterslide decals to gloss paint. But, I have a flat white paint I really like, and I'd like to use it on a particular rocket I'm building. It comes out really smooth (to the touch).

I do know I could apply a flat clear coat over top of gloss paint, but I haven't found one I like as much as this flat white paint. I was thinking I'd try it. The rocket in question is the Estes Cosmic Explorer, which I've built to hold an E motor. I was thinking I might do the stripes in paint rather than decals (I've done this once before), and so if there's a decal problem, the only decal to flake off will be the compass decal in the center of the rocket.



I'm wondering - has anybody gone against the conventional wisdom and used waterslides on flat paint, and if so, was it a disaster, or did it turn out OK?

I did it on my V-2, which is painted flat olive drab above the fin can. The trouble with flat paint is that if the finish is rough enough to not be reflective, its rough enough to only have partial contact with the decals. Basically, only a small percentage of the decal is actually touching the paint, the rest is above the voids between the high spots on the surface. This is why you should use a decal setting solution, like Micro Sol, on the decal once its applied. It essentially cause the decal film to "melt" onto the surface and conform to whatever is under it. This will give the decal much better adhesion, and it'll keep it from looking hazy, which is a sign of air pockets under the film. That is, in turn, what allows it flake off easy.

OTOH, the catch to doing this is that the decal will likely still have a satin sheen to it, which will stand out from the flat surface finish. It also stands out, somewhat from a gloss surface finish. You'll probably have to top coat it with something to flatten the sheen. On my V-2, I coated the whole thing with a satin clear coat. It isn't military correct, per se, but cleans up much better and is less prone to finger prints and holding dirt than a matte clear coat is.

Decal on flat paint:


After top coated with satin clear:

Apply Future to the rocket where the decal goes. Apply decal. Then overcoat with something like Testor's Dull Coat.

Kevin

Daniel:
Flat paints contain a flattening agent (sometimes Talc) to break up the surface film profile. This causes light to refract at many angles and be absorbed by the agent. It is these peaks and valleys that cause the surface to appear non-glossy (Matte or Flat). It is also the reason decals do NOT adhear well, because those peaks and valleys also keep the decal film from conforming to the rough surface trapping air between the decal and surface making the decal background appear whitish. This is called "Silvering".

Now all that said: there are a couple ways to Help soften decals allowing them to better conform to surfaces. This material is call Decal Sol or Decal Set. MicroScale Sol, Testors and/or Model Master Decal Set. These liquids actually desolve the dried decal Clear film which can destroy the decals we are attempting to apply so care must be used during use. This is NOT a solution to every Flat Paint application it only works on semi-Flat or fairly smooth feeling Flat finished paint.

Over the years i've found it is MUCH simpler to paint the model Gloss first, apply the decals then apply a coat of UV Resistant Clear. The Reason we need to use UV Clear is all clear coats by their chemistry will yellow badly in a fairly short amount of time with exposure to UV radiation from sunlight or indoor fluorescents unless the clear has a UV additive. Testors Gloss and Dull coats are the absolute worst yellowing in just a few months if given a lot of sun exposure.
I am particularly pleased with Krylon #1305 Gloss and #1309 matte UV resistant clears. Both have been southern Sun light tested for over 8years now without the slightest tinge of yellowing. I also overcoat the finished model with a coat of NU-Finish polymer which bonds to the painted finish and can be renewed anytime without buildup. This stuff is a liquid polymer not a wax...really good stuff.

kruland said:

Apply Future to the rocket where the decal goes. Apply decal. Then overcoat with something like Testor's Dull Coat.

Kevin

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+1 This. Just use a bit, set the decal into it, blot excess. Works like a charm.

Marc & Kurland:
Just to make sure you are aware. Testor's Gloss and Dull coat's have 0% UV inhibitors, both are the absolute WORST clear coat that can be applied to anything as they will Yellow badly in less then one year. This is especially bad for any model painted with light colors or white.

You will be much better off using no clear coat opting for a coat or two of a good wax or better Nu-Finish then Testors. There are several really good UV matte clear coats out there Krylon 1309 is one! They are more expensive then Testors but UV resistant clears DO NOT yellow.

Micromeister said:

Marc & Kurland:
Just to make sure you are aware. Testor's Gloss and Dull coat's have 0% UV inhibitors, both are the absolute WORST clear coat that can be applied to anything as they will Yellow badly in less then one year. This is especially bad for any model painted with light colors or white.

You will be much better off using no clear coat opting for a coat or two of a good wax or better Nu-Finish then Testors. There are several really good UV matte clear coats out there Krylon 1309 is one! They are more expensive then Testors but UV resistant clears DO NOT yellow.

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I wonder, can you use Krylon clear coat over a non-Krylon paint? I have some Rusto 2X colors I like, but I know it's sometimes a bad idea to mix brands.

lcorinth said:

I wonder, can you use Krylon clear coat over a non-Krylon paint? I have some Rusto 2X colors I like, but I know it's sometimes a bad idea to mix brands.

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Daniel:
Absolutely! I do exactly that all the time, It is important to apply a light "sealing" coat first, allow it to tac up for about 10minutes, then apply a wet final coat.
I've used Krylon UV resistant Clears over, ValSpar, ColorWorks, Duplicolor, Sherwin-Willams, Many Rustoleum series paints and several off-brand rattle can gloss and matte spray paints as well as 1-Shot, Pactra, Model Master and Testors brush on paints with outstanding results.

I also use Krylon Gloss Clear as the top sealing coating on newly Ink-jet or Alps printed decals. ink-jet Decals are always "first sealed" with Krylng 1306 Workable Fixatif (a semi-matte) sealing medium designed to seal Charcoal, pastel, Chalk, Watercolor, oil-pencil and other fine art mediums before the final gloss clear is applied.

PS: At one time I used Testors Dull Coat as a "first seal" on Alps and Ink-jet printed Decals but NO MORE!
About the only thing I use Testors Dull coat for now is to seal masked areas on models before adding second & subsequent color coats. The reason for using a "Matte Clear" for this seal is matte or flat clears out-gas quicker while leaving much less of a paint dam at the tape line then pigmented paints do Just another little trick to making multi color model painting a bit easier.