Aftermarket decals

[carlos]

Just a quickie for those in the know - as to which are the best, in your opinion.

I've just bought my first sheet - a sheet of assorted 1/72 swastikas.
Ordered from Hannants (fast service BTW) - I had no idea which ones to go for, and plumped for Techmod - I was also eyeing up Aeromaster, but they were out of stock.
I'm quite mpressed with the Techmod decals - they include a very handy reference sheet showing what size to use, and correct positioning, for the major aircraft of the era - decals themselves are very thin, so need to be careful while using them, but they bed down into crevices, and over raised detail very well.

Is this all typical of aftermarket decals? - and if not, which are the best?

thanks.

[MerlinJones]

Back in the day, there was Microscale and Esci. Esci were cheap, but often, you'd get out of register roundels and stuff.
Generally, it has been my experience that modern aftermarket decals are in register, have good colour and opacity and are generally easy to use. Most react well with Microset and Microsol.

As a rule of thumb, if the company you're looking at has a large range of decals, then they'll probably be great decals.
If the range is small, then they may still be great but may have 'quirks', such as the whole sheet being one big decal and you have to cut each one out individually.

For smaller manufacturers, such as JBot and our own Mike Grant, you are talking about modelling enthusiasts who care about their product and their customers and will usually bend over backwards to help you out.

You may see decals on offer on eBay, clearly made by someone at home and put out for sale. making decals isn't that difficult, (apparently), but I have seen some on offer that have very poor resolution/clarity and/or a high degree of pixelisation.

Regards,
Bruce

[BWP]

Just a quickie for those in the know - as to which are the best, in your opinion.

I guess the "smart" answer is the ones that have what you need at a price you can afford.

Is this all typical of aftermarket decals? - and if not, which are the best?

It is unfortunately not typical of all a-m decals to include detailed instructions. Of course how important this is depends on what the decals are for -- if they're "generic" (like your swastika sheet) a sheet of instructions with suggested uses and placement is, in my experience, relatively uncommon. Most manufacturers assume, I guess, that if you're looking for generic stuff you've already done the research about what size you need and so forth.

Sheets providing specific decals for specific subjects usually do better, but not always. Sometimes they only tell you what they used for their research, and suggest that you go look it up!

Quality-wise, in my (limited) experience I've found them to be much the same as each other -- usually thinner, if more fragile, than the decals you find included in most kits.

Personally I prefer those brands that provide detailed colour instructions, although you usually have to pay for the privilege.

[Beowulf Shaeffer]

my only experience is with microscale and fcm and some from an unknown south african maker .....no prob with microscale and the SA ones are brilliant......the fcm looked very very nice, nice instructions but no matter what i tried they always silvered, and were just a tad out of register too .....shame cos the subject matter was very interesting

[Migrant]

Although there are literally dozens of companies producing aftermarket decals, the vast majority of them are printed by the same 6 or 7 companies – Microscale, Aviprint, Cartograf, Fantasy etc. All of them produce very high quality screen-printed sheets. In the last 10 years or so I've only ever had issues with one particular brand which wouldn't conform to even the slightest curvature on the model surface.

[MerlinJones]

I had a similar problem with FCM...whilst the larger decals were fine, the smaller stencils just weren't up to scratch, being slightly out of register and indistinct.

Regards,
Bruce

[Chris]

Aeromaster are the best, but a lot of them are no longer made.

Techmod are a mixed bag, I've had good and bad results with them.

[Viking]

i frequently use AM decals and can recommend Zotz and Aviation Workshop (Model Alliance) stuff; i have never had a problem with them and they cover a wide range. Syhart are a favourite of mine but they are much more complex to use (the older ones are a single decal sheet that you have to cut out and they are very very thin). Linden Hill work well if you want ex Soviet states, Toulouse decals for french subjects (if you can find them). Carpena have been a nightmare for me but maybe others have a better experience while Eaglestrike are good for WW2 stuff. Fightertown have a good name but i have never used them, Blue Rider cover weird and wonderful stuff.

as others have said, there are 100's of manufacturers and the best thing to do is to try the ones that take your fancy

Alan

[MrDyzio]

I've only good experience with Techmod so far. Their decals are always correct color and in register. Film is thin and reacts good with softeners.
ESCI as mentioned above - not a happy choice. Microscale - mixed bag.

[Chuck E]

The ESCI decals seem to fall into two types, so they must have changed supplier somewhere. Some of mine are very matt, brittle and some have colour runs. The others are sharp, good colour and easy to use.

I've never had a problem with A M Decals at all apart from my efforts with some Welsh Models BEA Sheets. Good decals, but the stripes were very brittle and didn't like being slid into place with a wet brush. They look OK now.

[Mikeew]

Fightertown and TwoBobs are superb and always work well.
hannants own brand Xtradecal are also excellent and cover a wide range of subjects.

As Migrant says, most decal companies are printed by a few good printers. Cartograf are probably the best known and trusted. Fantasy printshop are also excellent. they print the Model Alliance sheets AFAIK.
Aeromaster are very good, but do check your refs with some of theirs as they have been nicknamed(in some far flung corners of the modellers internet) Errormaster due to silly mistakes.

[carlos]

Thanks for the insights guys - seems that for an inexperienced A-M user like myself, it's a case of 'suck-it-and-see'.
Have to admit, it was a nice surprise to find a size and position guide included with the Techmod sheet.

TBH though, I don't think I'll ever go to the lengths of buying full sets for specific models - well, not for a while yet anyway, assorted swastikas is probably as much as I'll need for now.