The truth about scale model decal silvering part 1 

I usually use the two Microscale fluids over Tamiya X-22 gloss thinned a lot. Sometimes I still get silvering. In the 70’s Dad discovered Solvaset and our decaying changed forever, except it was very strong back then and meow it’s pretty timid. Part II should prove to be most fascinating. Thank you.

Thanks for the thorough research, Cam! In addition to your findings, I suggest trying a hairdryer in conjunction with setting solutions. Personally, I've had success using decals on flat surfaces for years, employing Mr. Softer and Mr. Setter solvents (or the newer Ammo products). By gently coaxing the decals with a hairdryer, I've managed to avoid silvering issues. Of course, it's all about finding what works best for each of us. Sometimes, depending on the decal quality and age, I do opt for a gloss coat. There are many variables at play, and I'm not advocating for one approach over another, but I believe a hairdryer could be a valuable addition to the process!

Nicely done - I love the experimentation. Those decals took one for the team.

There is no end to the You Tube videos that tell you the "right" way to do anything related to building plastic scale models. As for decals. I just finished up a Tamiya tank model kit. I put a touch of Micro Sol down first, laid the decal down, and let it dry completely. I then laid a single coat of watered down Mod Poge over the decal, and let it dry. Had no "silvering", no nothing. It looks great, and the decal is protected.

Thanks for this - I'm just getting back into hobby painting after many years. I knew a little bit about decals - mostly stuff my dad showed me when I was 10. After watching your video, I'd say I may have thought of myself as a brown belt - but really I was a yellow belt. Gonna go watch the next vid now.😊

I'm bramd new to the hobby, and I'm watching vids as I cut and sand before painting. It looks like putting decals on over gloss was producing best results. However, what if I wanted to end with a flat coat? Lay down gloss, apply decals, then hit it with flat coat to finish? That is, if I decide that to emd with flat coat. This was well done experiment!

Appreciate you doing this. I have been hearing a lot of back and forth about this topic from different modelers. I'm glad you showed that it is just more than a yes or no answer. Just like the washing models and priming debate. Do you have to? No..... Will it help? Probably. I think Clint Eastwood said it best.... "Do you feel lucky?"

Very nice, thanks.

Sometimes the decals are just terrible quality. I built a Heller F1CT last year--terrible kit as it is--and the decals were awful. Stiff as postcard, hardly any adhesive, and nearly every one silvered despite a perfect gloss coat and using solvents.

Thank you for sharing your experiment results!! 👍🙇‍♂️🙏🏻

Good job. Pattison won't like your results. LOL. I have been modeling for 40 years and always use gloss to provide a smooth surface. It gives you the best chance to limit silvering and color shift.

Thanks for this. I applied my decals on a gloss coated surface using a decal solution and I didn’t leave the decals too long in the water on applying. And I was much relieved as that would give the best results according to your research. The decals on my model look good and I hope and expect them to still look good after some days / weeks. I will put a second gloss coat on the decals within a few days after they have dried.

Thank you for the solid research - very useful

The concern I have with this is you’re using sheet styrene for your tests rather than kit surfaces which contain things like rivets and panel lines. As such, it doesn’t reflect real world conditions.

I say screw the decals. Silhoutte cutter to the rescue…

I have 5 aircraft models that are two different manufactures, tamiya and accurate miniatures. They are all old. The oldest +20yrs a tamiya F4F-4, painted flat colors, tri-color scheme, used micro-sol and mirco-set. No top coat. All decals have silvered and are lifting. The 2 AM aircraft were flat base coat grey over light grey, again micro 2 part decal solutions. But a matt top coat. Absolutely no silvering or lifting, age is around 17yrs. Final 2 aircraft both Tamiya's base colors are matt finshed with gloss varnish applied before decals, used both micro and tamiya decal solutions, with a matt top coat applied a week after decals, their age is and +10yrs. No silvering or lifting. Keep in mind my learning curve over the 20yr span. But i also believe gloss varnish defore decals and a top coat definitely help in the long run.

I think you did a pretty good job considering the variables. Thanks for sharing!

This is an interesting test. I think the main takeaway is that it comes down to where you as the modeler want to put in your work… if you like using solutions and solvents and the pinprick methods etc… you can probably skip gloss. If that’s not your thing and you want a more quick and easy style decal application, gloss before seems the way to go. You absolutely can get the same results with the right working processes and solutions no matter gloss or flat surface. Just comes down to what feels best for you as a modeler. Again, awesome video and a nice statistical dive into this debate!

When you say Matt or gloss is that a paint surface or varnish 🤔

Wouldn't it be a more realistic test to use spare kits with actual raised and engraved details: rivets, panel lines, surface texturing, etc.?

So with your conditions, glossing is basically as effective as using Mr Markfit Strong. And glossing before Mr Markfit strong almost eliminates silvering altogether. I might get myself some more gloss varnish…

Thanks, very helpful!

Good luck over at SMCG with these results…😉

Very interesting exercise. You took a broad sample of different quality decals, and I guess they were equally split among the different tested methods to have a representative result.

Thanks for the analysis. Very useful

5:09 Longgggg intro ends and tests begin.

Excellent stash!👍