I have been applying the decals to a Tamiya mosquito over the last couple of days. It seems some decals seem to silver up no matter how smooth the surface and how carefully I apply them and in this case they were quite bad despite the use of micro sol and micro set. The aircraft code numbers and smaller stencils all silvered quite badly and on the dark areas of the camo scheme it looked terrible. I was going to paint around the decals with the appropriate background colour to try hide it but decided to try something else first.

I got a brush and applied some more microsol over the decal, then used a stippling action with the brush over the problem areas of the decal. After about 30-40 seconds the silvering started to disappear. It worked on every decal, even the ones I applied three days ago. In fact it might be better to give the decals a full day or two to fully cure before trying this to help prevent damaging the decal.

I don't know if this would work with every manufacturer's decals but if you get the same problem it would be worth giving it a try.

Has anyone else tried this and if so how were the results?

Good Tip Martin - I've used a similar method in several cases myself - for really troubled areas I've used a sharp exacto blade to cut the decal so the micro sol can get underneath.

Hi Martin,

Hey, did you used a short bristled brush? I ask because you mentioned 'stippling' maybe what happened the decals were punctured so to speak by lots of little bristles and this allowed the Microsol to seep in and draw the decal down to the model. Its just a therory..............

Sincerely,
Brian

Thanks Martin. Excellent tip. I´ll give it a try when the problem appears

Thanks for the tip Martin. The thing I have tried in the past is to take tiny little stabs at the silvered part with a sewing needle followed by more micro sol. I also wonder if maybe the brush works like the needle and punctures it, which would probably be a little better than a needle. Anyway, thanks again.
Leon

I used a normal paintbrush and dabbed gently, it was great to see the silvering disappear as I did it.




I have tried the needle technique in the past but never got it perfect. This method worked perfectly, much to my surprise. I agree that it could have been the tips of the bristles puncturing the decal allowing the microsol to get in but there is absolutely no sign of damage to the decal once dried.

Hi Martin

Thanks for the tip - it's a good'un! Did you only apply the MicroSol in the centre of the decal or over the edges too? If it was the latter, it might be that the stippling helps draw the fluid in under the decal and then removes the trapped air.

All the best

Rowan

Reminds me of a trick I use. I have a couple of really fine acupuncture needles that I used to puncture silvered decals. I then brush on decal solvent. It usually fixes the silvering.

Thanks a lot for this tip it will surely come in handy.

If have too many of these nasty silvered decals

I applied the microsol over the entire decal on the smaller ones and over the silvered part of the larger ones. In both cases I applied it across the full width of the decal across the edges.