my very first build - help requested

[tone4days]

Hi Folks

i am trying my very first inkjet waterslide decal on a (rehoused) zendrive pedal

after i print it and let it dry over night, do i spray it with the clear BEFORE trying to apply it to the painted pedal enclosure?

i have primed and painted, but not yet clear coated, the pedal enclosure ... do i put down a coat of clear before i apply the decal?

how long do i wait after applying the decal to the enclosure before i start lightly spraying coats of clear to seal it on the enclosure?

thanks so much

[a2music]

Hi Folks

i am trying my very first inkjet waterslide decal on a (rehoused) zendrive pedal

after i print it and let it dry over night, do i spray it with the clear BEFORE trying to apply it to the painted pedal enclosure?

i have primed and painted, but not yet clear coated, the pedal enclosure ... do i put down a coat of clear before i apply the decal?

how long do i wait after applying the decal to the enclosure before i start lightly spraying coats of clear to seal it on the enclosure?

thanks so much

Be sure to spray *several* coats of clear to the decals before cutting them out and applying them. I find that the decal sheet should dry overnight to be fully stable and I always use 6 coats of clear. Two products to check out are Micro Sol and Micro Set. Micro Sol goes on the pedal's surface before applying the decal and Micro Set goes on about half an hour after the decal has been applied. These two steps have made my decals adhere many times better than without. You can buy them online. I get mine from Amazon. If you chose to clear coat the box after adding the decals you should let them dry for a few hours first.


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[tone4days]

thanks so much, Alex

i will do that ... and look into those products ... i already purchased a rustoleum glossy clear spray can

will spraying the decals before applying keep the colors from running during application?

cheers,
bill c

[a2music]

Yes indeed. It's just surprising how much clearcoat it takes to keep the ink from running.


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[lukeferg]

Just a word of warning about Rustoleum paint.
It's brilliant quality paint, nothing wrong with it, but be very careful with recoat times. I've had major issues in the past where I have tried to recoat outside of their suggested times and it has ended in a very sad mess.
I haven't used the clear so that one may be different but read the recoat instructions on the can and follow these to the letter.

[tone4days]

thanks, luke ... will do

i used rustoleum primer and flat black rattle can spray paint and am happy with how they came out ... 2 or 3 thin coats, about 20-30 minutes apart ... then let it dry 24 hours, light sanding with progressively finer grits (ending with about 1200), then repeat the whole process about 3 times

i think i regret choosing black, even though it looks really good ... it's probably going to be hard to read the print on the decal against the black background ... we'll see if bright yellow print works

next time, i will use a much lighter color paint like cream, white, or maybe a slightly orange tinged yellow color

[thermionix]

I've never used a decal on a pedal, but is seems they would work better going onto a glossy surface.  You mentioned flat black and sanding to 1200.  You could buff that to a shine, or spray a few coats of gloss clear before applying the decal.