When I was about to apply the Ultramarines symbol decal to the painted Ultramarines project I had, I did recalled I read about a solution called decal softener sometime ago. Basically if you are applying a decal to flat surface, then its easy and straight forward. But the problem comes in, when the surface which you are going to apply the decal to is not a flat but curve or irregular surface. The decal softener will act an agent that will soften the decal to form the surface of the miniature. And so, I drop by my local modeling shop, and got this Mr Mark Softer decal softener. I will run through some steps on applying decal and the decal softener.
Got my small dip of water ready. Cut out the decal and drop it the water dip. Within a few seconds, the decal is ready to be applied.
A. Using a tweezer, carefully take the decal and lay on the desired position.
B. Carefully slide the decal onto the Space Marine shoulder pad.
C. Carefully position the decal to your desired position.
D. Take some tissue and twist into a sharp roll and drain out the excess water.
E. Apply the Decal Softener, and wait for a few minutes.
F. Using a brush, brush the decal from inside outwards to flatten the decal to the surface (see pict). The excess decal solution will be absorbed by the brush as your bush outward.
And, thats it, the decal is applied. See the picture below, the decal on the left is having excess fold when the decal is applied onto a curve surface. The picture on the right, after applying and brushed with the decal softener, we can see the decal has soften and conform to the curve surface of the miniature.
If you have lots of decals to apply on a curve or irregular surface, this decal softener is really useful. Definitely will make those decal conform nicely to your miniatures or vehicles surfaces. Cheers!
