Fantasy Printshop have long been one of the UK's leading decal manufacturers, custom-printing for many top aftermarket producers as well as marketing a wide range of decals themselves. Available under their own banner is a very useful series of generic decal stripes in a wide selection of colours, including fluorescents and metallics (see the full range below).

Two sizes of sheets are available:

Size #1 - .25MM - 8.9MM STRIPES Price: £4.95 per sheet - contains 130 mm long stripes in the following colours:
FP600 - Black
FP601 - White
FP602 - Signal Red
FP603 - Yellow
FP604 - Aircraft Blue (FS 15050)
FP605 - Roundel Blue (FS 15056)
FP606 - Fluorescent Orange
FP607 - British Racing Green
FP608 - Silver
FP609 - Gold
FP610 - Light Aircraft Grey
FP611 - Medium Sea Grey
FP612 - Dark Sea Grey
FP613 - Extra Dark Sea Grey
FP614 - Fluorescent Yellow
FP615 - Fluorescent Red
FP616 - Traffic Yellow

Each sheet contains the following widths:
.25 mm (6 stripes)
.5 mm (6 stripes)
.75 mm (4 stripes)
1.5 mm (4 stripes)
1.9 mm (3 stripes)
3.8 mm (2 stripes)
5 mm (1 stripe)
6.3 mm (1 stripe)
9 mm (1 stripe)

Size #2 - 7MM - 12MM STRIPES Price: £5.95 per sheet - contains 175 mm long stripes in the following colours:
FP620 - Black
FP621 - White
FP622 - Signal Red
FP623 - Dull Red
FP624 - Traffic Yellow
FP625 - Golden Yellow
FP626 - Aircraft Blue (FS 15050)
FP627 - Roundel Blue (FS 15056)
FP628 - Silver
FP629 - Gold
FP630 - Light Aircraft Grey
FP631 - Medium Sea Grey
FP632 - Dark Sea Grey
FP633 - Extra Dark Sea Grey
FP634 - Fluorescent Yellow
FP635 - Fluorescent Orange
FP636 - Fluorescent Red

Each sheet contains the following widths:
7 mm (2 stripes)
8 mm (2 stripes)
9 mm (2 stripes)
10 mm (2 stripes)
11 mm (2 stripes)
12 mm (1 stripe)

The decals themselves are thin and glossy, and are separate items on the sheet with the bare minimum excess carrier film. The colours look good, and the metallics aren't at all grainy, while the fluorescents really pop out.

The possible uses are almost endless, really limited only by your imagination. Obviously, the wider black and grey strips could easily serve as non-slip areas, while the thinner stripes could outline walkways etc. Pin-striping can be a pain to mask, and here decals really come into their own, with the .25 mm stripes being far easier to apply than trying to cut masks so narrow with a consistent width.

Another use which springs instantly to mind is combining stripes to produce, for instance, data-plates and placards, or sections of warning stripes.

Some of the colours have clearly been chosen with aircraft modellers firmly in mind, but the stripes will also be extremely uses in other modelling genres - model railways and cars come straight to mind, along with sci-fi modelling.

Conclusion

Fantasy Printshop's decal stripes will be really useful to modellers in many genres, whether you're applying a colour scheme that isn't otherwise available, or simply looking for a quick and easy alternative to fiddly masking. The quality is excellent and the range of colours is extensive. Decal stripes aren’t something you'll necessarily use every day, but they they offer a very practical alternative to cutting masks for some jobs and definitely warrant a place in your arsenal of tools and accessories. Recommended.

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AEROSCALE