love this question~ I wanted to include this in the video but I thought that wet sanding deserved its own video. But YES wet sanding is very efficient when sanding the clear layers. It makes it more gentle and the sandpaper clogs far far less. The only downside (which is another reason why I didn't include it in the video) is that it can be kind of hard to see what you're sanding when its wet. so it does require some experience in my opinion especially when dealing with such a delicate task. But if you're experienced with wet sanding, it's great! 100% recommend.
@@stebplamo I was going to comment about wet sanding but here it is, good thing you pinned it. I know some JP car modelers use wet sanding on cars to perfect the gloss coat on the model car.
this is what I've been doing for years, but I don't sand. I gloss over the decal, then I spray matte / flat and the results are perfect. Even with the thicker bandai decals. Don't forget the Mark Softener!!
Whoa, this is weird. I recognized the pieces in the little preview clip youtube does from your post on r/gunpla. I hadn't opened the comments there to see you made a tutorial vid. Well, time to watch, lol.
Loved the visuals. Very helpful tutorial. Soooo much extra work to achieve that finish. I always wondered how some people got them so perfectly integrated.
thank you for watching! and yes I think some brands out there are also naturally thin so they don’t stand out even if applied naturally. but if you’re looking at car models there’s a good chance they did something similar to what I’ve just shown~
@@stebplamo love that your videos have voiceover and narration explaining the process. So many videos on youtube are unfortunately silent videos with subtitles, which I personally find very difficult to watch. great breath of fresh air!
@@pixxellieI thought the same regarding no commentary! I love explaining what I do and I love the idea of helping people by explaining everything. I had some doubts about this format but I think I will keep going with it! thank you for your feedback :)
Oh man that looks gorgeous! Nice job and excellent tutorial. I'm so glad you experimented with fewer layers because now I know not to cheap out when doing this. Thank you!
thanks so much for watching! there might be a way to do it with fewer layers but from a bit of research into the Japanese modeling scene all of the instances I’ve seen were done with a lot of layers. I think overall it’s just way safer and consistent
@@leomr1504 I would sand over the entirety of the decal BUT make sure that the main focus is on sanding away the “raised border” that I mentioned in the video.
@@leomr1504 I would test it first. If you’re going for a matte finish at the end 1k is ok I think, but because it’s a lower grit compared to something that you would polish with, it would sand thru the clear quite fast so be careful~
I've seen others do this as well, but rather than such thick layers, the goal was to literally sand down through the decal carrier film to make it level with the surrounding clear they added. Then an additional clear coat after to protect it. It has a few benefits in not filling up details if you need to change or add any additional paint.. and it's less paint and work overall. Seems to get the same results from what I've seen.
I’ve seen that as take as well! but I haven’t been successful with it at all (skill issue perhaps…) If possible I would like that method more too since like you mentioned it’s less clears being sprayed but when trying to sand the film, the actual decal gets sanded away as well at least in my case. so I wanted to share the method and theory that was most consistent for me (very easy but yes it does require lots layers and time to dry)
@@stebplamo Yeah, good point. It might require a lot more skill and care to not screw up the detail.. but.. I like to paint worn out vehicles and stuff with chipped paint and decals.. so just makes it easier for me! ;p
thanks for watching. good to know! is there a specific name for this technique? I called it blending in but I wouldn’t want to confuse anybody watching
This is a super great video!!! The points are presented in detail and explained well, while still being compact in a short, easy to digest amount of time. You’re bringing a lot of fresh techniques and style to the western gunpla youtube scene and I am really looking forward to seeing your channel continue to grow! Thanks for the good content🙏
thank you so much for your kind words. It’s always a very conscious effort to make these videos as compact as possible! can’t wait to make more videos soon :)
very clear, very understandable tutorial. The diagram helped alot in visualizing what is going on. This will be tremendously helpful when applying the decal stickers from HG kits, thank you for bringing to light a way to make those a viable good looking choice instead of the ever popular waterslides (esp when it is hard to find and ship those in my area)
@@kapresmoke5869 hmm I don’t think it would work for those but you can give it a try. I suspect that it would get soaked and peel off very quickly when spraying the clear. A part of why waterslide works (esp with softer applied) is because it’s very strongly adhered to the surface so it’s not easy to peel off.
@@stebplamo I see, so i have to try confirm it myself when it comes to marking/decal stickers. I wont be able to until next year but that's something to look forward to doing. Thanks for the heads up on my misunderstanding
Amazing work bringing this to light! I'm definitely gonna have to use this technique when doing high gloss and candy coats, maybe use the lesser clear coat decal sanding for weathered builds!
Thanks for watching! I still recommend using more coats if you can even if you want the finish to be matte. You can simply spray matte at the end as much as you need it to be~
i would advise buying sanding grit at 2000-10000 just to play it safer Also, don't do this tech nearby joints or area that moves, the paint is thick enough to become 0.1mm plate & cause joint to clog/over tightened
Bro thanks so much for sharing it is a great idea for my builds I am now in the step where I apply ALL the decals but for the emblems looks so nice need to try this one. Cheers
Thanks for the tutorial. I usually avoid gloss overcoat because of the decal. Would you make another video with spray cans top coats and share the results?
sorry could you elaborate on spray can top coat? if you want to use can gloss top coat that's ok too~ and if you want to do a matte finish you can just spray that at the very end
I almost always do matte finishes, so I tend not to notice any decal edges. But if I ever decide to finish a project with a gloss coat, I will try this. I only use vallejo (water-based acrylic) so I would need to be a little more careful.
in my opinion regardless of the finish, any kind of clear coat over a decal will make it at least a little more noticeable. also you can finish your piece using matte coat at the after using this method!
@@stebplamo Maybe it depends on the brand of decals. I always use simp/evo decals and even when looking up close on my most recent project, I can't see the edges even on the big decals. To be fair, I put on a very heavy matte finish on it. There is absolutely no shine on this model even with a flashlight right on it.
@@fattiger6957 Yeah some brands are just naturally thinner or just better at hiding the borders. I use Bandai decals when I can cus I like the emblems but they’re just so thick in comparison
One tip that might help you save a few bucks on those expensive high grit sandpaper: get some dollar-store clone magic-erasers (melamine sponge) to clean out the sandpaper and make them last longer. Also 3M auto grade 800~2000 grit sandpaper is about 25% to 50% cheaper and functions the same as those GSI Creos sandpapers. :)
Hello~ I haven’t tried out 3m auto grade sandpaper but I think I will try it out next time I see it :) I’m a big fan of Tamiya, GSI Creos, and Sankyo Rikaku so far btw
@@stebplamo where I used to live, these brands are either scarce/non-existent or ridiculously expensive, so I had to look for cheap/affordable alternatives for consumables like sandpaper and paint. Most of the alternatives I use for gunpla come from the automotive paint department but YMMV. :) Hope my tips could help you out.
@@emv143 always good to know alternatives, especially affordable ones. thank you :) the melamine sponge trick I haven’t had that much experience with it but I heard good things about it
@@stebplamo no worries! the melamine sponge (mr. clean magic eraser) feels like (to me at least) a 3k or even a 5k grit sandpaper, it usually used to lets say blend 2 paints if the airbrushing gradient is too harsh, but I just use it for cleaning LOL. :)
I had no idea that clear coat could act like this! I want to try it on my Talgeese! Please make that sanding video, I had no idea that the particles could do damage like scratches
You should be wet sanding, it will prevent the sandpaper from clogging up quickly. Also work you way up to a finale grit of 3000 before you do the final clear. That way you can make sure you don't have and fine scratches.
@@Gunpla-Slinger thanks for watching :) please check pinned comment regarding wet sanding ☝️ also yes regarding the final grit to use, 1,500 works for me without scratches after but I have also seen people go up to 6,000 as well. some sandpapers are rougher than others too despite being same grit but due to differing brands. I think it also depends on spray pattern and the thickness of the final clear applied. I wish I could give a concrete number for the grit but I gave an example of what worked for me.
I think the type of finish matters too. If finishing the kit with a matte clear (quite a common finish used for gunpla) the scratches left by a 1,000~1,500 would be extremely negligible. But for a glass pristine finish, I think you’re right it is worth experimenting with higher grits if the scratches remain.
Not alot of people do this because the patience it takes to do it I think the only youtuber i know about this is korean modeller JENIC The guy is DILIGENT
People don't not do this because of impatience or anything, it's because there are 10x easier ways to achieve the same effect, that doesn't result in having a super thick gloss layer.
so on that last example you used a matte clear the entire process or just the last coat? On the red gunpla part you showed, you used a gloss clear coat the entire way? Just looking for finish ideas to try this with because you posted this at such a good time. About to do the water decals and stickers on my Deathscythe Hell EW and I want him to be shiny so I have shined ever part of his armor and don't want the last coat to ruin it.
Hi! I have a few questions. You said you spray 4-5 layers of clear coat and wait for 3 days before you sand it. Does that mean I would have to wait 3 days for each layer? Aka 15 days in total before i can sand it? Or do you spray those multiple coats in one day, then wait for those 3 days before sanding? If so, how long do you wait before applying a new coat? Im asking cuz i havent used clear coat yet. I only have a matte clear coat from a spray can, since i dont own an airbrush. Sorry for the long question!
No problem at all! Very good questions. With lacquer paint I actually spray a ton in a day! Like spray multiple layers in a day. Some manufacturers and modelers don’t recommend it but in my experience it dries very fast and I haven’t had issues with layering within a few minutes. It’s been only an issue when I spray on an already runny piece that isn’t dry to touch yet. What I look for to see when I can layer again is if it is dry to touch. Maybe test on junk parts and spoons to get a feel for it. Also, I wait around 3 days total before sanding over it, maybe even a week if I want to be super safe. But I’ve found that timeframe to work for me without having to wait too long. I would hate having to wait 15 days to sand…
This is pretty cool, I must say. Have you tested this with a flat coat as well? Or would it be better to hit it with clear, sand and then a final spray of flat coat?
Hello~ I recommend using gloss clear throughout the process and using flat clear as the final coat. Flat clear despite how smooth it might look is actually very rough so you would be compounding layers and layers of rough clear layers which could make the entire piece very rough and dusty. That would require sanding the entire piece to potentially fix.
What I personally would do is applying Mr.Hobby’s mark softer in between the surface and the decal. It will “melt” the decal into the surface making it hard to peel off.
To add to this, I would lift the decal where it’s peeling and apply like a drop of the mark softer with the brush letting the capillary action do the work of spreading inside the decal.
Ok now that we are on the topic of decals on an English channel, does anyone know how the Asian gunpla builders are peeling the clear carrier off after applying the wet decal? Is it a special type of decal or a specific process?
I think you’re talking about アシタのデカール, or ASHITA NO DECAL apparently a special kind of decal that lets you do that. never used it so I can’t comment on it :P
@@stebplamo possibly. I can't understand Japanese or Korean well enough to figure out what they are saying and auto translate makes no damn sense at all. Oh btw, it's possible that the edges kept showing despite multiple sanding and clear sessions, is because of shrink back. It's common among diy auto body guys. They would lay down a clear and it would look smooth and then a few days later, the clear starts to cure and possibly flash off some of the VOCs so it's gap filling volume is diminished
as someone who currently only literally cuts out the pieces and then puts them together, I would love a sanding tutorial vid. afraid I’ll mess it up somehow
ok but if you use mark softer properly the decal medium dissolves anyways? And it doesn't require ~8 layers of gloss. That's a lot of time and expense.
Use microsol or an equivalent. I never use clear before or after. The catch is I don’t build clean builds so I’m usually damaging the decals anyways!😂 BUT if you use it, it melts the film around the ink on the decal and will cut your clear coat usage in half. You might go over this in the video I just thought I would suggest it.
Hello~ Thanks for the comment. I use Mr. Mark Softer which is quite similar, maybe even stronger than microsol and it does indeed help with decal film! but my experience with Bandai’s Gundam Decals with softer doesn’t completely deal with the border issue I mentioned in the video. I’ve had people tell me that softer/microsol is good enough for the decals that they personally use so I for sure believe that. I think the method in this video should be used if that still doesnt work out and the borders bother them like it did for me.
@@stebplamo yea I know there is another one that is like microsol from another company, something with a W in the name… maybe Walter? ANYWAYS supposedly it’s even stronger than microsol so it’s good for really tough decals! Overall your method works best for clean builds and it’s what I believe Chris Pabz does to get his amazing results! Great video
Great tip. For those not using lacquer, give VMS varnish a try. It works surprisingly well and gets similar results, without having to sand. Example: ruclips.net/video/vb-9iLtPRNw/видео.html
Would this be possible with wet sanding as well?
love this question~
I wanted to include this in the video but I thought that wet sanding deserved its own video.
But YES wet sanding is very efficient when sanding the clear layers. It makes it more gentle and the sandpaper clogs far far less.
The only downside (which is another reason why I didn't include it in the video) is that it can be kind of hard to see what you're sanding when its wet. so it does require some experience in my opinion especially when dealing with such a delicate task.
But if you're experienced with wet sanding, it's great! 100% recommend.
@@stebplamo I was going to comment about wet sanding but here it is, good thing you pinned it.
I know some JP car modelers use wet sanding on cars to perfect the gloss coat on the model car.
Omg, imagine using this on Legos!
This, quite literally, changes everything.
enjoy!!
this is what I've been doing for years, but I don't sand. I gloss over the decal, then I spray matte / flat and the results are perfect. Even with the thicker bandai decals. Don't forget the Mark Softener!!
Whoa, this is weird. I recognized the pieces in the little preview clip youtube does from your post on r/gunpla. I hadn't opened the comments there to see you made a tutorial vid. Well, time to watch, lol.
I hope it serves you well!
This is a great tutorial and I can’t wait to try it out. I’ve struggled with having those noticeable decal boarders. Thanks my friend!
thanks for watching!!
it’s gonna look 👍
As someone who is experimenting with topcoats, I am gonna have to give this a try some day!
Thanks for watching!
always feel free to ask me questions here or on my Twitter if you would like :)
Pretty amazing results. Will use this from now on! Thanks for the tip!
thanks for watching! would love to see the results ~
Excellent tutorial. I will try this out myself!
thanks for watching!
would love to see the results ~
Loved the visuals. Very helpful tutorial. Soooo much extra work to achieve that finish. I always wondered how some people got them so perfectly integrated.
thank you for watching! and yes I think some brands out there are also naturally thin so they don’t stand out even if applied naturally. but if you’re looking at car models there’s a good chance they did something similar to what I’ve just shown~
This is an awesome process. Yes, I've done similar work on hard body(ABS) RC cars with nail polishing sponges and a dish of water.
Cool! I also made a video a year or two ago about how I paint on ABS with lacquer paint if you’re interested in that
Nice! Thanks demonstrating this technique.
quicky becoming my fav new gunpla channel. great video.
wow thank you~
let me know what kind of videos you like to watch! ive been having fun with build wip videos but helpful videos like these are fun too
@@stebplamo love that your videos have voiceover and narration explaining the process. So many videos on youtube are unfortunately silent videos with subtitles, which I personally find very difficult to watch. great breath of fresh air!
@@pixxellieI thought the same regarding no commentary! I love explaining what I do and I love the idea of helping people by explaining everything. I had some doubts about this format but I think I will keep going with it! thank you for your feedback :)
Oh man that looks gorgeous! Nice job and excellent tutorial. I'm so glad you experimented with fewer layers because now I know not to cheap out when doing this. Thank you!
thanks so much for watching!
there might be a way to do it with fewer layers but from a bit of research into the Japanese modeling scene all of the instances I’ve seen were done with a lot of layers. I think overall it’s just way safer and consistent
@@stebplamoso when sanding; do I just sand it along those border or equally on whole surface of the decals?
@@leomr1504 I would sand over the entirety of the decal BUT make sure that the main focus is on sanding away the “raised border” that I mentioned in the video.
@@stebplamo noted. Also does godhand sanding sponge work as i only have 1k n 2k grit?
@@leomr1504 I would test it first. If you’re going for a matte finish at the end 1k is ok I think, but because it’s a lower grit compared to something that you would polish with, it would sand thru the clear quite fast so be careful~
I've seen others do this as well, but rather than such thick layers, the goal was to literally sand down through the decal carrier film to make it level with the surrounding clear they added. Then an additional clear coat after to protect it. It has a few benefits in not filling up details if you need to change or add any additional paint.. and it's less paint and work overall. Seems to get the same results from what I've seen.
I’ve seen that as take as well! but I haven’t been successful with it at all (skill issue perhaps…) If possible I would like that method more too since like you mentioned it’s less clears being sprayed but when trying to sand the film, the actual decal gets sanded away as well at least in my case.
so I wanted to share the method and theory that was most consistent for me (very easy but yes it does require lots layers and time to dry)
@@stebplamo Yeah, good point. It might require a lot more skill and care to not screw up the detail.. but.. I like to paint worn out vehicles and stuff with chipped paint and decals.. so just makes it easier for me! ;p
Looks great! I never really thought about the outlines but youre right it looks so much better when blended
Thank you for watching~
Requires some time and effort but I think so too!
Oh man, that does look amazing.
Thank you for watching!
Nice tutorial, as you said it is a common technique from other sides of the model building hobby.
thanks for watching.
good to know! is there a specific name for this technique? I called it blending in but I wouldn’t want to confuse anybody watching
This is a super great video!!! The points are presented in detail and explained well, while still being compact in a short, easy to digest amount of time.
You’re bringing a lot of fresh techniques and style to the western gunpla youtube scene and I am really looking forward to seeing your channel continue to grow!
Thanks for the good content🙏
thank you so much for your kind words. It’s always a very conscious effort to make these videos as compact as possible! can’t wait to make more videos soon :)
This looks really good, I will def try this, thank you.
Enjoy~
very clear, very understandable tutorial. The diagram helped alot in visualizing what is going on.
This will be tremendously helpful when applying the decal stickers from HG kits, thank you for bringing to light a way to make those a viable good looking choice instead of the ever popular waterslides (esp when it is hard to find and ship those in my area)
Thank you for watching!
I hope you don’t mean the actual stickers that come with hg kits because this is specifically for waterslide decals ~
@@stebplamo o-oh... Like the HG/RG marking stickers with emblems, model names, and the like?
the theory should apply even with those right?
@@kapresmoke5869 hmm I don’t think it would work for those but you can give it a try.
I suspect that it would get soaked and peel off very quickly when spraying the clear. A part of why waterslide works (esp with softer applied) is because it’s very strongly adhered to the surface so it’s not easy to peel off.
@@stebplamo I see, so i have to try confirm it myself when it comes to marking/decal stickers.
I wont be able to until next year but that's something to look forward to doing.
Thanks for the heads up on my misunderstanding
It *can* work with regular stickers but since they’re so thick it’s hard to not have a visible border.
Amazing work bringing this to light! I'm definitely gonna have to use this technique when doing high gloss and candy coats, maybe use the lesser clear coat decal sanding for weathered builds!
Thanks for watching! I still recommend using more coats if you can even if you want the finish to be matte. You can simply spray matte at the end as much as you need it to be~
i would advise buying sanding grit at 2000-10000 just to play it safer
Also, don't do this tech nearby joints or area that moves, the paint is thick enough to become 0.1mm plate & cause joint to clog/over tightened
Bro thanks so much for sharing it is a great idea for my builds I am now in the step where I apply ALL the decals but for the emblems looks so nice need to try this one. Cheers
Thanks so much for watching! Your builds are gonna turn out great 😌
Thanks for the tutorial. I usually avoid gloss overcoat because of the decal. Would you make another video with spray cans top coats and share the results?
sorry could you elaborate on spray can top coat? if you want to use can gloss top coat that's ok too~ and if you want to do a matte finish you can just spray that at the very end
Thank you so much this tutorial is amazing
thank you for watching!!
Hope it goes well~
Damn, fantastic video! Definitely have to try this out one day. Thanks for sharing this tip!
it will turn out awesome~
thanks for watching!
Great technique!
thanks for watching!
I almost always do matte finishes, so I tend not to notice any decal edges. But if I ever decide to finish a project with a gloss coat, I will try this. I only use vallejo (water-based acrylic) so I would need to be a little more careful.
in my opinion regardless of the finish, any kind of clear coat over a decal will make it at least a little more noticeable.
also you can finish your piece using matte coat at the after using this method!
@@stebplamo Maybe it depends on the brand of decals. I always use simp/evo decals and even when looking up close on my most recent project, I can't see the edges even on the big decals. To be fair, I put on a very heavy matte finish on it. There is absolutely no shine on this model even with a flashlight right on it.
@@fattiger6957 Yeah some brands are just naturally thinner or just better at hiding the borders. I use Bandai decals when I can cus I like the emblems but they’re just so thick in comparison
@@stebplamo You are the first person I've ever heard say that a matt coat over decals makes the border MORE noticable. You are doing something wrong.
Thank you its this is really helpful..
Of course ~
I hope it goes well!
I would love a pre-shading/ highlighting video, with pieces painted in different base coats to show what colors to use if the piece isn't white.
ahhh okay noted! would be quite nuanced but I think that’s an interesting idea
Man great vid, thanks for the tip!
Nice share. I just want a Bawoo MG
At least we have re/100 ~
excellent video man. great to watch while eating dinner lol
Thanks for watching!
not what I would expect people to be watching while eating dinner tho HAHAHA
@@stebplamo naturally, dinner without youtube is merely food. how does one even *enjoy* a meal without conversation or a video.
@@f_sharp64fair enough !
This is great! thank you. Have you test this with stickers or rub on decals?
Haven’t tested on either sorry. Stickers I don’t think it will work. Dry transfers maybe… but i would suggest testing on a junk part
One tip that might help you save a few bucks on those expensive high grit sandpaper: get some dollar-store clone magic-erasers (melamine sponge) to clean out the sandpaper and make them last longer. Also 3M auto grade 800~2000 grit sandpaper is about 25% to 50% cheaper and functions the same as those GSI Creos sandpapers. :)
Hello~
I haven’t tried out 3m auto grade sandpaper but I think I will try it out next time I see it :)
I’m a big fan of Tamiya, GSI Creos, and Sankyo Rikaku so far btw
@@stebplamo where I used to live, these brands are either scarce/non-existent or ridiculously expensive, so I had to look for cheap/affordable alternatives for consumables like sandpaper and paint. Most of the alternatives I use for gunpla come from the automotive paint department but YMMV. :) Hope my tips could help you out.
@@emv143 always good to know alternatives, especially affordable ones. thank you :)
the melamine sponge trick I haven’t had that much experience with it but I heard good things about it
@@stebplamo no worries!
the melamine sponge (mr. clean magic eraser) feels like (to me at least) a 3k or even a 5k grit sandpaper, it usually used to lets say blend 2 paints if the airbrushing gradient is too harsh, but I just use it for cleaning LOL. :)
I had no idea that clear coat could act like this! I want to try it on my Talgeese! Please make that sanding video, I had no idea that the particles could do damage like scratches
yep! keeping track of sandpaper is quite important
You should be wet sanding, it will prevent the sandpaper from clogging up quickly. Also work you way up to a finale grit of 3000 before you do the final clear. That way you can make sure you don't have and fine scratches.
@@Gunpla-Slinger thanks for watching :) please check pinned comment regarding wet sanding ☝️
also yes regarding the final grit to use, 1,500 works for me without scratches after but I have also seen people go up to 6,000 as well. some sandpapers are rougher than others too despite being same grit but due to differing brands. I think it also depends on spray pattern and the thickness of the final clear applied. I wish I could give a concrete number for the grit but I gave an example of what worked for me.
I think the type of finish matters too. If finishing the kit with a matte clear (quite a common finish used for gunpla) the scratches left by a 1,000~1,500 would be extremely negligible. But for a glass pristine finish, I think you’re right it is worth experimenting with higher grits if the scratches remain.
Not alot of people do this because the patience it takes to do it
I think the only youtuber i know about this is korean modeller JENIC
The guy is DILIGENT
true, it does require a lot of drying time~
but I think a lot of ppl will be willing to wait if they see the results!
Let's be real for a second, if you are building models, you cannot be in a rush.
If there is one thing that this hobby teaches you, it is patience.
People don't not do this because of impatience or anything, it's because there are 10x easier ways to achieve the same effect, that doesn't result in having a super thick gloss layer.
What about decal softeners like Mr. Mark Softer?
I personally use them when applying the decal. But as you can see with Bandai’s decal it was still quite visible which is why I made this video~
great vid :D
so on that last example you used a matte clear the entire process or just the last coat?
On the red gunpla part you showed, you used a gloss clear coat the entire way?
Just looking for finish ideas to try this with because you posted this at such a good time. About to do the water decals and stickers on my Deathscythe Hell EW and I want him to be shiny so I have shined ever part of his armor and don't want the last coat to ruin it.
Thanks for watching. Last coat was matte clear for the green piece
@@12stormy13 also just letting you know that this is for waterslide decals. I don’t recommend doing this with stickers.
Good stuff
Thank you for watching!
Hi! I have a few questions.
You said you spray 4-5 layers of clear coat and wait for 3 days before you sand it. Does that mean I would have to wait 3 days for each layer? Aka 15 days in total before i can sand it?
Or do you spray those multiple coats in one day, then wait for those 3 days before sanding?
If so, how long do you wait before applying a new coat?
Im asking cuz i havent used clear coat yet. I only have a matte clear coat from a spray can, since i dont own an airbrush. Sorry for the long question!
No problem at all! Very good questions.
With lacquer paint I actually spray a ton in a day! Like spray multiple layers in a day. Some manufacturers and modelers don’t recommend it but in my experience it dries very fast and I haven’t had issues with layering within a few minutes. It’s been only an issue when I spray on an already runny piece that isn’t dry to touch yet. What I look for to see when I can layer again is if it is dry to touch. Maybe test on junk parts and spoons to get a feel for it.
Also, I wait around 3 days total before sanding over it, maybe even a week if I want to be super safe. But I’ve found that timeframe to work for me without having to wait too long. I would hate having to wait 15 days to sand…
@@stebplamo aaaah, alright i get it! Thanks so much for the quick response!!
This is pretty cool, I must say. Have you tested this with a flat coat as well? Or would it be better to hit it with clear, sand and then a final spray of flat coat?
Hello~
I recommend using gloss clear throughout the process and using flat clear as the final coat. Flat clear despite how smooth it might look is actually very rough so you would be compounding layers and layers of rough clear layers which could make the entire piece very rough and dusty. That would require sanding the entire piece to potentially fix.
@@stebplamo thanks!
do you know how to fix a decal that is peeling off?
What I personally would do is applying Mr.Hobby’s mark softer in between the surface and the decal. It will “melt” the decal into the surface making it hard to peel off.
To add to this, I would lift the decal where it’s peeling and apply like a drop of the mark softer with the brush letting the capillary action do the work of spreading inside the decal.
@ thanks man
@@Toomanytransformers I should also mention that if you’re applying softer to a decal, to be very gentle with it as it can rip very easily
@@stebplamo thanks
Ok now that we are on the topic of decals on an English channel, does anyone know how the Asian gunpla builders are peeling the clear carrier off after applying the wet decal? Is it a special type of decal or a specific process?
I think you’re talking about
アシタのデカール, or ASHITA NO DECAL
apparently a special kind of decal that lets you do that. never used it so I can’t comment on it :P
@@stebplamo possibly. I can't understand Japanese or Korean well enough to figure out what they are saying and auto translate makes no damn sense at all.
Oh btw, it's possible that the edges kept showing despite multiple sanding and clear sessions, is because of shrink back. It's common among diy auto body guys. They would lay down a clear and it would look smooth and then a few days later, the clear starts to cure and possibly flash off some of the VOCs so it's gap filling volume is diminished
@@joshuaszeto shrinkage I also considered which is why it’s better to wait a long time (days to maybe even past a week) post clear!
@@joshuaszeto luckily I’m Japanese so I can do some research on that decal later after work~
@@stebplamo oh nice! You are doing everyone a favor!
as someone who currently only literally cuts out the pieces and then puts them together, I would love a sanding tutorial vid. afraid I’ll mess it up somehow
noted! I’ll see if I can put together something presentable soon…
After leveling the clear coat, will a matte final coat on the piece give an even matte finish on all the surface?
@@manuelitofabiala2379 yep! The piece I did at the end is matte
You are _wet_ sanding, right? It makes a big difference. Use some polish on that piece that has the scratches.
mentioned in pinned comment ☝️
but yes I usually do ~
Should wet sand keeps the paper clean
Thanks for watching
please check pinned post regarding wet sanding👍
I just saw this on facebook but forgot what group
Would this work on stickers?
Can’t recommend it!
Feels like too much works but how come no one make the scratch to apply decal anymore😂😂
ok but if you use mark softer properly the decal medium dissolves anyways? And it doesn't require ~8 layers of gloss. That's a lot of time and expense.
if using softer on Gundam decals is a good enough result for you then I think that’s fine 👍👍👍
and correct! it does have its expenses and requires a lot of patience but the result is worth it to me personally
Use microsol or an equivalent. I never use clear before or after. The catch is I don’t build clean builds so I’m usually damaging the decals anyways!😂 BUT if you use it, it melts the film around the ink on the decal and will cut your clear coat usage in half. You might go over this in the video I just thought I would suggest it.
Hello~
Thanks for the comment. I use Mr. Mark Softer which is quite similar, maybe even stronger than microsol and it does indeed help with decal film! but my experience with Bandai’s Gundam Decals with softer doesn’t completely deal with the border issue I mentioned in the video.
I’ve had people tell me that softer/microsol is good enough for the decals that they personally use so I for sure believe that. I think the method in this video should be used if that still doesnt work out and the borders bother them like it did for me.
@@stebplamo yea I know there is another one that is like microsol from another company, something with a W in the name… maybe Walter? ANYWAYS supposedly it’s even stronger than microsol so it’s good for really tough decals! Overall your method works best for clean builds and it’s what I believe Chris Pabz does to get his amazing results! Great video
9k well ive known about this for over 20 years. this is nothing new just common knowledge about painting cars and pinstripes
Yep mentioned that in the video
👍👍👍
Great tip. For those not using lacquer, give VMS varnish a try. It works surprisingly well and gets similar results, without having to sand. Example: ruclips.net/video/vb-9iLtPRNw/видео.html
thanks for watching!
I haven’t used that before but I appreciate you informing us on the alternatives!