Custom made decals

[TypeR]

I'm going to start building a B17G Flying Fortress in 1/48. I'd like to build it as a tribute to a B17 that crashed in 1944 about a mile from where I live.
There is a memorial to the crew in the village church.
I'd like to have the relevant markings and nose art on the model. Is there a company that can offer one off decals?

PFA

[Simpo Two]

Somebody on here made me some custom decals a few years ago. It uses a special inkjet and paper.

[Murph7355]

They're not that hard to do yourself if you can find some decent images of the artwork and have rudimentary Photoshop skills.

Decal paper is readily available that goes through an inkjet as noted above. You then spray it with fixative (I've just updated my table football and used Plastikote acrylic sealer) and away you go.

If the nose art you need has white elements then you buy white decal paper, otherwise clear.

I'm pretty sure I have some spare sheets. If you show me the nose art you need I can send you some to try for yourself.

[TypeR]

Murph7355 said:

They're not that hard to do yourself if you can find some decent images of the artwork and have rudimentary Photoshop skills.

Decal paper is readily available that goes through an inkjet as noted above. You then spray it with fixative (I've just updated my table football and used Plastikote acrylic sealer) and away you go.

If the nose art you need has white elements then you buy white decal paper, otherwise clear.

I'm pretty sure I have some spare sheets. If you show me the nose art you need I can send you some to try for yourself.

Thanks Murph, the picture in my original post is of the actual plane, so you can see that the "nose art" is actually plain text in this case.
I've never used Photoshop, but it's never too late to learn!!

[archie456]

Murph7355 said:

If the nose art you need has white elements then you buy white decal paper, otherwise clear.

The downside to using white is you have to be able to cut out the decal to lose the background white around the edges.

Light colours also present a problem for use on a dark background, as they need to be printed on a white background.

As a workaround for this I've printed the decals in reverse on clear paper, then painted over the light colours with white paint.

Once it's sealed you apply it 'upside down' and all is well.

[robemcdonald]

archie456 said:

The downside to using white is you have to be able to cut out the decal to lose the background white around the edges.

Light colours also present a problem for use on a dark background, as they need to be printed on a white background.

As a workaround for this I've printed the decals in reverse on clear paper, then painted over the light colours with white paint.

Once it's sealed you apply it 'upside down' and all is well.

That sounds interesting, but I’m having a bit of trouble picturing the process. Any chance you could do a quick tutorial when you get a minute?