Estes water slide decals??? Whats the deal?

Working on my new PSII Super big bertha and it came down to decal time. I've used water slides before and I'm not too terrible at it. But somethings up with these decals from Estes with the blue backing. The other decals I'm familiar with only need about a minute before they are slipping right off the backing. These Estes ones barely seem to want to come off after 5 or so mins of soaking. Is this common for Estes decals? I ruined the red stripes because I could just not get them to slide off the backing. For the wording I let them soak for much longer and they sort of came off the backing but it was still really tough. Is there a quality problem? Do these just take a half hour to loosen up? Also, why do they provide a yellow piece of coated paper besides the decals? Its cut to the same shape as the decal sheet. The instructions make no mention of what its for but it comes in every kit that has water slide decals.

Thanks for the info.

Timothy

The yellow sheet is a protective cover sheet I believe.

I'm not prepared to say "common" but I had a similar experience with the decals in the Big Daddy. After a long soak time (don't remember exactly how long, multiple minutes in warm water with a drop of dishwashing soap) they did lay nicely for me. The yellow paper is supposed to be placed over the surface of the decal during packing to protect it during the long trip from Guangzhou to you.

The yellow sheet is just a protector. I usually add a dab of dish soap in the (warm) water. Just soak until they uncurl, regardless of how long it takes. I have a Super Big Bertha decal sheet if you need. I painted mine in '74 livery (like all my others). PM me an address if you want it.

PhlAsh said:

The yellow sheet is just a protector. I usually add a dab of dish soap in the (warm) water. Just soak until they uncurl, regardless of how long it takes. I have a Super Big Bertha decal sheet if you need. I painted mine in '74 livery (like all my others). PM me an address if you want it.

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I appreciate it! However, I went ahead and painted the stripes on which is what I initially ruined. The color of red didn’t exactly match my paint anyway. I think it worked out better all around.

I did end up getting the wording on there which looks pretty good. It was still a hassle compared to other decals I’ve used. When you say “uncurl” do you mean you wait for the backing to straighten out? Or for the actual decal to curl away from the backing then uncurl back down? Because I can’t say that I’ve seen them curl.
I’ll describe my experience and maybe you can pinpoint where I went wrong.

Cut out and place decal in warmish water, no soap. Decal and backing curl instantly then relax after about 30 seconds. The decal is definitely not loose at this point. Wait 5 mins and decal is still barely sliding around. Wait longer(maybe another 5-10 mins) and I think I saw a small portion of the edge curl or release from the backing(could have been because I was messing with it). At this point I did end up forcing it off of the backing and onto the rocket as you’ll be able to see.
When you say curl and relax, does it sound as though I still hadn’t waited long enough? The reason I’m not exactly sure what you’re saying is that with the other decals I’ve used, the backing and decal curl immediately when hitting the water and a few seconds later the whole thing relaxes. 20-30 seconds later the decal slides right off the backing. I never have seen the decal itself curl and relax(with either type) So I guess I’m just confused with the terms being used. I’m starting to think the Estes ones may have to soak for a loooonngggg time to get them off of the backing. Idk.

Warm to hot water.
add a drop (touch your finger to the tip of the bottle and swish) of dish soap.
plop in, larger decals take longer. remember the water has to penetrate thru the blue paper to activate/ release the decal glue.
wet the surface of the model, and carefully slide the decal into position.
dab away excess water, squeegee out any water under it.
Apply decal sol micro sol.. decal setting solution. that is optional but does help. it softens the decal to lay flat & contours to any curves, divot or other imperfections

some (most?) decals don't stick too well to matt paint. And will curl up once dried. you 'can' restick them with a bit of watered down glue on a paintbrush, but takes time & effort (and is frustrating!)

dr wogz said:

Warm to hot water.
add a drop (touch your finger to the tip of the bottle and swish) of dish soap.
plop in, larger decals take longer. remember the water has to penetrate thru the blue paper to activate/ release the decal glue.
wet the surface of the model, and carefully slide the decal into position.
dab away excess water, squeegee out any water under it.
Apply decal sol micro sol.. decal setting solution. that is optional but does help. it softens the decal to lay flat & contours to any curves, divot or other imperfections

some (most?) decals don't stick too well to matt paint. And will curl up once dried. you 'can' restick them with a bit of watered down glue on a paintbrush, but takes time & effort (and is frustrating!)

Click to expand...

Yes, that all sounds about what I’ve been doing but I guess I’m just not waiting long enough for the glue to soften. It just takes 30 times longer with these Estes decals than with others I’ve used. I just need to be patient I guess.

I had problems with one sheet of decals in an Estes Mercury Atlas kit. They were a different material than the other sheets, and never floated loose. I got some corners to lift, and peeled them off.