With inkjet decal paper, even with a clearcoat the cut edges will be exposed to water and may smear. Then you will have to touch up the edges with a sharpie of the same color.
This doesn't happen with laser decal paper. No clearcoat needed because the toner is not water soluble.
I switched from inkjets to laser decal printing and never looked back. Quality and resolution appear just as good to me. No streaking that you can sometimes get with inkjet printers. And if you look around you can get a good color laser printer for the price of a midrange inkjet. A few years ago I needed a new printer anyway, so I ordered this:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FMS1DMX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1Just recently changed the first toner cartridge (black) after four years of moderate use.
And pics of the decals on my Magnum D SR71 build are here:
https://www.rocketryforum.com/threa...-71-blackbird-5349.162308/page-3#post-2301919Also, if you can get a good match of the rocket's base color you can edit the decal background to the color of your basecoat. Then you won't have to cut so precisely around the decal. Graphics editing software includes a color palette where you can adjust the colors to match.
An alternative approach is to do a double decal: White decal paper underlying a clear decal over it. Then the clear areas will show as white. Example here:
https://modelrocketbuilding.blogspot.com/2011/04/starlight-jayhawk-build-part-26-white.htmlOne drawback of laser decals is that they do not appear as glossy as inkjet decals. They have a matte appearance. However a final whole rocket gloss overcoat will alleviate this, which you are probably going to want to do any way to protect the rockets' finish and decals.
Great job on the decal work and great craftsmanship.
Following with interest.