Transfers

[El_Diablo572]

What do you guys use to make your transfers?   I want to make my own decals for a few projects i have on the go, but i dont want to waste my time or ruin any of my projects with cheap/inferior materials... Any suggestions?

[ξεναγος νεκροπολης]

wasted hundreds of euros....nothing worked as i wanted..so i've build my self a cnc machine

[rocket88]

i don't like transfers either, cause i've had nothing but problems in the past. i acid etch all my effects. i know the first 2 answers don't really answer your question, but i think it's down to the person. some of the guys can make transfers work and look fantastic. i don't really think it's so much what you use, but you're ability to do it.

[bogey]

I've had decent results with an inkjet printer and waterslide decal paper (I find the clear easier to work with than the white).

My top tips would be: always print more than one of your design (for when you inevitably fuck up the first one). Cut to size after clear coating (makes it easier to slide of the backing paper). Practice a couple of times on some old glass or a mirror to get a feel for it.

Oh....and be prepared for a few failures.

[Marbles]

Tricky one..
I'm alwaaays fighting with printer options haha. It can be frustrating, but it's relatively low cost way to have nice looking results in my opinion.

I have heard good things about Papilio decalpaper. Haven't used it myself though. I just use whatever.

I'll describe the amateurish way I go about it ;)

First, I'll drill my enclosure. I buy painted ones, so I use painters tape where I'm drilling.
This will prevent the paint from chipping. Also, this will prevent measuring/marking lines on my boxes.

When the enclosure is drilled, I will put it on my scanner and scan it.

In GIMP, I open a new project. I check the sizes of the enclosure in the shop I bought it. That's the size of the bottom, so usually I go 1 or 2 mm smaller. I set it to 600dpi and create the project.

I add the scanned pedal as a new layer. If all is well, it should be the same size as the project. This way I'm sure that if my drilling is a bit off, the pot labelling will be still good.

When I'm done with making graphics etc, I'm putting a border around my project, so that I know exactly where to cut it.

I print that out using a setting for glossy photopaper. If I didn't use to much black, it will look nice enough.

Because I use decals for inkjet, and to make my life a lot easier, I clearcoat it with a thin layer. After an hour or so, I'll add another layer.

I let this dry till the next day.

I the cut the decal out, so that the border is not visible anymore, it should fit exactly on the pedal, if not, I'll trim the sides a bit.

I make a (dustfree) bowl of lukewarm water and put a splash of clear vinegar in there. If that does anything, I don't know, but I have heard it makes the decal a bit softer, so the edges will be less clear.

I put the cut out  decal in there, making sure it doesn't curl too much.

Wait for a teeny bit. The decal has to be loose enough, but not come off the paper completely already.

Then, with the paper still attached, I just slide the decal on the enclosure. Because of clearcoating it, the decal is a bit more sturdy and less likely to crinkle too much.

The most annoying part comes now, which is carefully swipe away airbubbles, and wipingthe edges around the edges of the enclosure. This takes a while, and have too be careful the decal stays in place.

I let this dry overnight usually. After that, it's just clearcoating with not too thick layers. Usually I do about 1 from every angle with 2 extra for the top layer, so 6 in total. On a warm day and not doing too thick layers, I could do one every hour.

I let that sit overnight too after the last layer too make sure the paint is fully dried, so no fingerprints will be in the paint.

After that, I cut out all the holes carefully with a sharp knife and assemble. Making sure not to twist on the pots etc too hard, or the decal will 'turn' too.


This way I have results that I think look pretty good. Though screenprinting is what I want to do eventually. But for one-offs, I think it's great.


This is some of the stuff I got out of it (full color and white backgrounds are vinylstickers btw):


https://www.instagram.com/trailofmarbles/

[El_Diablo572]

Sweet, nice one marbles.

I've been using waterslides for years (i used to make a lot of plastic models) i've just never made my own, so i know all the tricks when it comes to using them....


That thing took days, each decal is an individual transfer believe it or not, and all those curves!
However, what i have here is a full comprehensive guide to making my own, lots of useful info there, thanks lads!

[Marbles]

Oh shoot, got caught up in explaining my way haha. Did not mean to sound condenscending in any way, I did not know you had experience with them already! :)

I can imagine that would take days.. geez. I can already picture myself putting on those mini-decals, girlfriend asking something just when I'm putting a small bit like that on with tweezers.. That would not be a mood lifting experience for me I think haha

[balazs.bencs]

I am using them a lot, but I don't actually print them, I just draw the stuff at home in Illustrator, and a local print shop prints the decal for me (they have MagicTouch decals in stock), plus they can also print white color, so I can print whatever I want onto whatever color - this way it is a lot easier for me, I just cut it and apply.