Applying Tomix high grade dry transfers

[Khaul]

I am considering getting my first Tomix High Grade train, a canary yellow 103 series. It comes with lots of dry transfers for precise customisation. Do you have any advise on how to apply the dry transfers, correct mistakes etc.? I have developed some patience but I am far from having nerves of steel.

[cteno4]

Khaul,

 

small burnishers like these are handy.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2Way-Marbleizing-Dotting-Manicure-Painting-Tools-Dot-Pen-Nail-Art-Paint-5PCS/322451671471?epid=2163100244&hash=item4b139e09af:g:58QAAOSwax5Yx2j9

 

you can usually lift off mistakes with tape, but not to reuse. Cutting out what you are going to use helps from accidentally rubbing other bits off, but small bits can be hard to hold in place. You can add some tape to the smaller bits to hold them in place once you get things lined up.

 

ive seen folks use a very fine marker on the back side of the transfer (it it's not waxy) to make a leveling line on a light box so you can try to get things as lined up as possible.

 

might grab some inexpensive dry transfer decals or lettering on ebay to practice wirh on an old burner freight car.

 

lots of YouTube videos to also get tips and see how things work (or are sposta work...)

 

im old enough to have used gobs of rub off lettering to make figures for papers pre pcs! Much more forgiving than the old rapidograph pens!

 

good luck!

 

jeff

[miyakoji]

I have only two 2-car sets, both Tomix, one high-grade and one regular.  None of the transfers have been applied, I just don't have the nerve to do it :)

[kvp]

The bigger question is not how to rub them on, but how to keep them there without coating the whole car? They tend to rub off easily with the touch of a finger.

[Khaul]

Sounds quite like nerves of steel...

[cteno4]

I would say that practice can get over this, along with trying out different techniques to work with issues (each of us has different parts of something like this they may find challenging).

 

kvp, for the having other ones stick by mistake you can do the cut up technique, but it then presents dome other challenges doing the cutting and holding the little bit. I do remember way back a guy on a sf model blog had issues with a garage shop making dry transfers that were tiny and they crammed them as close together as possible I guess to get as many sets on a print sheet. He used waxed paper and cut a tiny mask hole to try to protect the surrounding ones from being stuck. As I remember some adjacent ones got mucked up some but at least were not transferred and and had to be removed close to the desired one.

 

ive not had issues with the tomix ones, just mostly attention to placement and alignment. It is one of those things you want the train firmly held and goodnight and magnification.

 

my best advice if you are nervous is to get a cheap sheet and and old car and practice.

 

jeff

[Pashina12]

Yeah... like the (probably apocryphal) story about Yehudi Menuhin as a child, on his way to a concert he was to play at, asking someone on the way, "how do you get to Carnegie Hall?", and being told, "Practice, boy. Practice." I'd also add patience. I took about half an hour applying the transfers to my KiHa23... of which 25 minutes probably was looking and checking x times to make sure I'm positioned properly, etc... turned out just fine, I think.

[cteno4]

Lol, yes the two Ps! Practice and patience! And a splash of the old measure twice, cut once! Plus a pinch of just going for it and trying even if it fails, it's how you learn, more from the failures usually than from the successes! 

 

Jeff

[kvp]

I think i wasn't telling my problem the right way. My problem is not how to put the transfers on, but how to keep them on the cars. They tend to rub off very easily when the cars are handled manually.

[cteno4]

ok, yeah thats an issue with dry transfers. if you burnish them well though then the ink layer should be well adhered to the surface after it all cures up. do keep your dry transferred well sealed up in plastic zip lock with its backing board as they will attract dust and smutz and this will then stop them from adhering well to the surface. they also dont last for ever as the adhesion layer is exposed, so better to apply them now then wait 5-10 years!

 

they do really need a clear/dull coat to keep them from getting dinged. that is a big issue if its a whole car to coat for just a few small bits like car numbers! if its in a small defined edge spot you can try to just paint on or mask spray some clear coat in that tiny area and not the whole car. ive not see a solution other than clear coating to seal them though and just did a quick web search and found no other alternatives.

 

ive only ever dinged a larger one on a tomix 400, but that was a gash with the sharp edge of another car and me being a little too rough... small ones seem to not be in places i touch. i do try to treat the cars like they thin skinned though.

 

btw i did stumble across these videos, excellent tutorials

 

http://www.archertransfers.com/PAGE_Instructions.html

 

cheers

 

jeff

[kvp]

Many car numbers go around the center at floor level. This is the area i hold most cars to take them out of the book. Also these cars are usually flat sided and fully painted. This means any coat must cover all areas painted the same color. This would mean a full disassembly and spray. Not to mention that most curved platform side collisions happen in the middle at floor level. :-(

[nah00]

On 11/29/2017 at 3:23 PM, kvp said:

The bigger question is not how to rub them on, but how to keep them there without coating the whole car? They tend to rub off easily with the touch of a finger.

 

The method I use (probably not the best) is after I apply the transfer I immediately brush over it with a Vallejo clear coat and then use a cotton cloth right after to soak up the extra. I've found you only need the tiniest bit on there and the transfer will soak in some the clear coat and it will fill in enough around the edges. You have to wipe it off right after brushing it on though otherwise it'll really stick out as a different colored spot on the model.  

[kvp]

31 minutes ago, nah00 said:

 

The method I use (probably not the best) is after I apply the transfer I immediately brush over it with a Vallejo clear coat and then use a cotton cloth right after to soak up the extra. I've found you only need the tiniest bit on there and the transfer will soak in some the clear coat and it will fill in enough around the edges. You have to wipe it off right after brushing it on though otherwise it'll really stick out as a different colored spot on the model.  

Thanks, i'll try this on some scrap european shells i have laying around somewhere.

[Kiha66]

Came across a nice video showing the application of dry transfer decals.  While it is showing the application on a Kato HO car, the procedure should be the same in N scale.

 

 

[Tanuki]

I use a pencil - just a standard HB. It lets me see where I have rubbed a bit more clearly. Tomix usually includes extra transfers and for car numbers often extra sets. On occasion I have made mistakes and applied the wrong number, but I find I can remove freshly applied transfers with just my fingernail, leaving no marks. It reminds me very much of the old Letraset letter transfers (showing my age now 😬).

[railsquid]

1 hour ago, Tanuki said:

I use a pencil - just a standard HB. It lets me see where I have rubbed a bit more clearly. 😬

 

Interesting idea, I'll give that a try.

 

1 hour ago, Tanuki said:

 I find I can remove freshly applied transfers with just my fingernail, leaving no marks. It reminds me very much of the old Letraset letter transfers (showing my age now 😬).

 

FWIW the Tomix instructions explicitly advise agaist using fingernails, and suggest using sticky tape for this.

Edited January 24, 2019 by railsquid

[Tanuki]

6 hours ago, railsquid said:

 

FWIW the Tomix instructions explicitly advise agaist using fingernails, and suggest using sticky tape for this.

 

I’ll keep that in mind. Do they give a reason? I can see why they might say that if the transfer had been on for a while. So far I have realised my mistake pretty much immediately.