Coloured graphics?

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DianneB
Posts: 733
Joined: Tue Aug 21, 2012 3:05 pm
Location: Manitoba, Canada

Coloured graphics?

Post by DianneB »

Has anybody tried 'water slide' decals on their rolling stock? How do they stand up to the sun and weather?

I'd like to dress up my LE American with some nice scroll-work and fancy lettering in multiple colours, maybe with a satin clear-coat over top for protection but have no idea how long it would last.

{I plan to use cut vinyl lettering for the road name on the tender.)

Any experience?
Eureka.jpg
Cary Stewart
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Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2011 5:54 pm

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by Cary Stewart »

Your photo of the Eureka belongs to Dan Markham and I believe it is stored at the Nevada State Railroad Museum - South in Henderson, NV. It is fully restored to its as delivered appearance from Baldwin in the early 1870s. There are two 2-6-0 Baldwin 3ft gage loco that have also been restored to there original configuration and paint scheme. One, The Glenbrook, is at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City,NV and the other is V&T No 13 which is on display at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, CA. Also at the NSRM is Baldwin built 4-4-0, No.22, Inyo. Do to changes made it is restored to its 1883 appearance but it is in running condition and does run from time to time. Its paint scheme is not quite as elaborate as that of the other three locos. The base color for the earlier vintage engines was a deep wine color and the later ones were more towards a medium dark brown. All were trimmed as you can see in your photo. Do contact the individual museums as I suspect they would be more than happy to aid in your quest for color. Your engine model was derived from an original 4-2-4, The C. P. Huntington by adding a 2nd drive axle. The Huntington is on display at the CSRM in Sacramento, CA.
Best, Cary Stewart
jcbrock
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Joined: Tue May 22, 2012 7:50 pm
Location: Oregon

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by jcbrock »

I think the water slides would hold up fine as long as you put clear coat over them. By themselves with no clear I would think they would not last. Another alternative would be investigating the custom automotive painting scene around Winnipeg and seeing if there were any good pinstripers in the area that could at least do the lining in paint.
John Brock
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DianneB
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Location: Manitoba, Canada

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by DianneB »

Thanks for all the information Cary. There are a number of beautiful 4-4-0s and I have always loved the look of the American class.

Thanks John. I may try the water slide - can't afford hand-painted. Doesn't matter if they have to be replaced every few years. I'd really like to have the vibrant colours.
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chiloquinruss
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Joined: Sun Dec 16, 2007 1:39 am
Location: Chiloquin, Oregon

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by chiloquinruss »

I would give Connie a call or email and outline what you want to do. She is great to work with doing custom graphics and for my money very reasonable. Russ

http://miraclerailroadproducts.com/
FLtenwheeler
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Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 8:47 am
Location: Florida, on the Lake Wales Ridge

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by FLtenwheeler »

Bob Dustin made water slide decals for years. He stopped making them when vinyl became popular.
He still has some decals from previous runs.

I have done 3 colors logos with paint, using paint masks.

Tim
He who dies with the most unfinished projects: Should of put more time into their hobby.
one_inch_railroad
Posts: 86
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 11:20 pm

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by one_inch_railroad »

I have used waterslides for years with no issues. They are much thinner than vinyl although I plan on using vinyl in the near future. I model in 1" scale and lots of times I need small lettering which is too small to do in Vinyl. The other posters are correct you will definitely need to use a clear coat. You will also want to spray on gloss coat before applying the decals so you have a perfectly smooth surface to apply them to. You will then want to clear coat them in dull coat afterward. When applying the dull coat you have to apply it in lots of very very fine coats so it doesn't craze or give it a cloudy look. You will also need to use one that is UV rated for outdoor use otherwise it will turn yellow over time.

This is the UV rated dull coat I use. It works great.

https://www.krylon.ca/products/uvresist ... r-coating/
Cary Stewart
Posts: 542
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2011 5:54 pm

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by Cary Stewart »

One small correction. The name of the owner of the engine in your photo is Dan Markov. Sorry about that.
Cary
rkcarguy
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Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by rkcarguy »

chiloquinruss wrote: Sun Feb 17, 2019 11:25 am I would give Connie a call or email and outline what you want to do. She is great to work with doing custom graphics and for my money very reasonable. Russ

http://miraclerailroadproducts.com/

I've got a couple quotes from Connie. Her website offers a lot of standard paint mask sets for a lot of different loco's and rolling stock. The prices were reasonable and she was quick getting back to me, I just haven't pulled the trigger yet because I'm not sure when I'll be painting my locomotive. The vinyl needs to be "fresh" or otherwise there can be issues getting it to let go of the backing. I had some vinyl paint masks for a race car that sat too long and they weren't usable.
Kevin S
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Joined: Sun Apr 11, 2010 4:11 pm
Location: Rocklin, CA

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by Kevin S »

One thing with water slide decals is that you need something with a white backing otherwise the background color will blend with top color give you a muddled color as opposed to something bright and vibrant. Defiantly apply a clear coat over the water slide decal.
As you can see on my reefer I used a water slide decal for the main logo since it was so many colors, the rest is all paint mask. I sprayed the lettering color first so there was less masking to do. Side note you can also use paint mask for gold leaf sizing.
-Kevin S.
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Andy R
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Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2007 2:18 pm
Location: So. Calif.

Re: Coloured graphics?

Post by Andy R »

I had waterslides on some of my 3/4-in scale locos. They held up about 15 years before I replaced them with paint using vinyl masks from Connie Miracle. I did the same on my 1-1/2-in scale stuff. Paint will outlast the decals.
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