Waterslide vs. Vinyl Decals

[scotte]

Hey Friends - do any of you feel strongly about waterslide decals vs. vinyl? I'm on the fence whether to invest in a vinyl cutter and would love your input. These are my thoughts as of now - let me know what I'm not thinking of. I'm experimenting with both and will share anything additional I learn along the way as well.

Waterslide Pros:
- Easy and cheap to print at home
- Lightweight and thin

Cons:
- Pain in the rear to prep and apply
- Less durable
- Edge material can look cheap and unprofessional in circumstances (lighting, dirt / soot, etc.)

Vinyl Pros:
- Sturdy
- Very vivid color possible
- Precise lines when using automated cutters
- Easy-ish to apply

Cons:
- Expensive
- Bulky / Heavy
- ???

 

[hcmbanjo]

Waterslide for smaller models. Average LPR size.
Vinyl for larger models. 24" tall and up.

 

[NateB]

I like how waterslide decals blend in better, especially after a few layers of clear coat. They are easy to print at home, but I don't always get great results with my printer.

My mom has a vinyl cutter, but I haven't used it. I need to ask her to borrow it to make some vinyl decals or masks for paint.

 

[Adam3836]

Both are good I gravitate towards vinyl more often .
Either way I have learned to take my time go slow with either vinyl or water lol

 

[Antares JS]

Waterslide for smaller models. Average LPR size.
Vinyl for larger models. 24" tall and up.

Second this. I tend to prefer waterslide as it's easier to adjust them after applying, but above a certain size they become impractical. The problem of waterslides being less durable is easily solved with a layer of clearcoat.

 

[mjennings]

Both have advantages. Vinyl can do things like metallics that waterslides can't, also a cutter can be used to cut paint masks and waterslides with minimal overhang. But cutters are expensive and there is a learning curve. It really comes down to how much you think you'll use it. Also waterslides are weigh less than vinyl and conform to surface irregularities better.

 

[GlenP]

Light colors and white backgrounds on waterslide are not totally opaque, they let some of the rocket color underneath show through. For example, I made a yellow lettered logo and applied it on a blue rocket, it appears green. You can do more complex color gradients and shading with the ink jet printer, vinyls are typically cut one color at a time. Both are good tools to have available for different applications. I think the larger sizes might be difficult for the delicate water slide, vinyl might be easier to apply with the clear transfer tape when you get into larger sizes.

 

[scotte]

Waterslide for smaller models. Average LPR size.
Vinyl for larger models. 24" tall and up.

Fair point about size. The bigger the waterslide decal, the more likely I am to mess it up. And I’ve been messing them up frequently. Unless I get a solid waterslide transfer technique down soon, I’m gonna have to try the vinyl machine.

Thanks a ton for all of the input!

 

[Ez2cDave]

Lettering on larger rockets - Vinyl.
Smaller rockets - Waterslide.
If doing multi-color ( like flags or logos on scale models ) - Waterslide.

Dave F.

 

[Five]

I hate water slide decals. Just by replying to this thread has put me in a bad mood. Nothing personal to the OP, I just hate hate water slide decals

 

[scotte]

I hate water slide decals. Just by replying to this thread has put me in a bad mood. Nothing personal to the OP, I just hate hate water slide decals

None taken friend. I wouldn't be considering spending a few hundred bucks on a vinyl cutter if I wasn't fed up with the waterslide decals.

 

[modeltrains]

I've not attempted to print my own waterslide decals but in over a half century of using commercial production decals on model kits and model trains I have become familiar with and skilled with them.

Mostly what I know about vinyl decals is that a number of large scale, aka garden railway, model railroaders create and use them happily and successfully.
There is a concrete minimum size for making usable vinyl lettering & there are the matters of material thickness and of pliability over fine detail such as rivets, but even so a lot of modelers are creating markings, labels, signs, which otherwise would not be available.

 

[scotte]

Fair point about size. The bigger the waterslide decal, the more likely I am to mess it up. And I’ve been messing them up frequently. Unless I get a solid waterslide transfer technique down soon, I’m gonna have to try the vinyl machine.

Thanks a ton for all of the input!

Welp, I just successfully applied my problem decals with no issue whatsoever. The instructions on the pack of waterslide sheets said to soak for 30-40 seconds. That was working fine on the smaller decals but the larger ones weren't ready in that time. I let them soak for around 2 minutes and they transferred great, no sweat. I also hadn't been wetting the target surface enough I think, which was making it harder for me to fix mistakes on the fly.

I now have another question regarding clear coats on these respective decal types, but I'll start a new post for that.

Never mind. Questions were well covered in the archives.

 

[Antares JS]

I hate water slide decals. Just by replying to this thread has put me in a bad mood. Nothing personal to the OP, I just hate hate water slide decals

I used to hate waterslides as well, but years of experience has taught me how to deal with them properly. You'll get there eventually.

 

[user 35280]

This stuff helps in many situations,
http://www.microscale.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=FINPROD

 

[neil_w]

Printable waterslides can be a pain but they allow full color, high resolution designs, on transparent backgrounds (when applying over light paint, anyway).

 

[Bruce]

Can’t you print on vinyl too?

 

[neil_w]

Yes, although I haven’t heard too many reports of folks doing self-printed vinyl. One brand of printable vinyl I saw said it was not recommended for printers that have a U-shaped paper path (as all my printers have had for years).

 

[hcmbanjo]

Fair point about size. The bigger the waterslide decal, the more likely I am to mess it up. And I’ve been messing them up frequently. Unless I get a solid waterslide transfer technique down soon, I’m gonna have to try the vinyl machine.

Thanks a ton for all of the input!

It helps to wet the area on the rocket body where the decal will be placed - before transferring onto the model.
The film of water under the decal allows it to be slid around before blotting out the air and any water underneath.

Here's some water slide decal tips from my build blog:
https://modelrocketbuilding.blogspot.com/search?q=decal+tips