Why does the red "bullseye" on an RAF roundel come as a seperate decal?
Im guessing the best way to apply this pesky little thing is 24 hours or so after the main decal has been fixed?
Comments and advice welcome.

I guess this will let you know what stage Im at with my "comeback" Spitfire

Nigel - I assume you refer to the Class "B" roundel (the large blue circle)? The center for SEAC was Blue not Red.

You shouldn't have to wait 24 hours to apply the second decal, as soon as the first decal is "set" and appears dry you should be able to apply the second with caution. If you choose to wait 24 hours it's okay, but unnescessary in my experience.

Hey Lampie
My Spit was a Hasegawa and I used the decals supplied with the kit. All the roundels were one piece. Of course, as bad as I screwed mine up it's probably a good thing. :-)

Don't make the same mistake I did. As Jean-Luc said.......FUTURE......FUTURE.....FUTURE......

Hey VonCuda!
Mine are the same as the decals in Holdfasts article "decal dilemas".
Excellent reference work for us newbies Mal.You should write a book.
Anyway,apart from the red dots in the middle of the fusalage roundels the decals are on.Looking nice and even,despite the shaky fingers at first
Hopefully in a few days I'll be posting a similar post to yourself. Where did the 20 years go and how good would we be now if hadnt taken the extended breaks
Looking forward to comparing Spitfires.
As the saying goes,,,"you cant,,,,,,," How right Mal is

Hi Nigel!

The explanation is very simple and... technical! Some decal sheets are sometimes offset due to printing limitations. So decal manufacturers found this method to solve the problem! If the center "bullseye" comes as a separate decal, the modeler will be able to center it precisely... if he has good eyes! :-)
This is also often the case for other countries roundels as well as complex decals such as Pin-Ups.
The German Swastika often comes in two pieces for other reasons: they are forbidden in some countries.

Jean-Luc

Thanks Jean-Luc.
That makes perfect sense.I imagine its a similar technique to colour printers/newspapers.4 different layers.cyan magenta yellow and black.
Im happy to report that all the decals seemed to go on fine. Is 3 1/2 hours to fix 9 decals a record ?
24 hours to properly dry and its time for the last coats of future/klear.
A couple of read throughs of oil wash articles and on to the next step.Washing and weathering
The "comeback" Spit is coming together nicely and hopefully I'll finish it before the phone goes and I have to go back on the road.ie work.

Hi again!

Well, yes and no! Yes for the layer technique but No for the Cyan Magenta Yellow and Black colors.
For Newspapers, the CYMK colors are "mixed" together with a pattern technique (if you look close, you can see small dots). On decals, the colors can't be mixed that way. If a decal sheet has 7 different colors, there will be 7 differents layers... and one particular paint for each.
A green color on a newspaper is a mix of Yellow and Blue dots. On a decal sheet the green color is... green paint!
The amount of layers is the reason why it is so complicated to get the decals right and not offset!
I hope my explanation is not too confusing! :-)

Jean-Luc

Nigel, nice to hear your getting on fine. You've had some good explanations for the seperate "bullseye", I have nothing to add.



I wouldn't worry about how long the decals take, as they can make or brake a model. I normally do mine over several sessions, especially when there are lots of them.




WARNING
If you have read my article on oil washes I have found out that rather than using white spirit, Turpintine ( not turpintine substitute is far better. I haven't had the chance to try it, yet, which is why I haven't updated my article. White spirit obviously works but from what I've been told Turpintine flows much much better. As it was Richard Franks (editor MAI) that told me this I believe him.



Told ya
Mal

Hi again Mal.
Thanks for the advice on the washes. I think they will be pretty minimal in 1/72 as the majority of the detail is raised as opposed to panel lines.As long as I can bring out the aileron/elevators/cockpit door etc I'll be happy.
The Spit is now entering the wash/matt varnish/weathering stage and the bits and pieces are waiting to be attached.
The masking tape is sprayed red for cutting into gun port covers,the silver pencil is sharpened,and the pastel chalk is ready to be ground down.
Finishing line in sight and I hope to post pictures of the finished article sometime over the weekend.
I dont remember ever having so much fun making a model when I was a teenager,but maybe thats because I built armour back in those days and now I have seen the "f"light
Even got a nice little kit stash,including a MKIX to keep the MKI company,because as you well know,,,, "you just cant have too many Spitfires"