Transfer fun

[Coopervisor]

I've ordered some transfers and this will be my first attempt at getting them to work correctly and look good.

 

I've done some prep for this and wanted to check if there is anything else anybody can suggest or offer tips.

 

I've got a PDF guide by Winterdyne and I've ordered some Micro Sol and Micro Set.

 

The only thing I'm not as sure on is the varnish. I've not varnished anything yet so have no experience. The tutorial mentions what seems to be a floor cleaner/polish applied with an airbrush. However I don't own an airbrush and am not sure what exactly is needed.

 

Can I just buy a normal floor polish and apply with a paint brush to the parts i'd need to apply the transfers, then use a normal spray can of GW varnish over the top to finish?

 

Can anybody suggest an alternative (UK) brand if the supermarket doesn't stock Klear?

 

Thanks

[winterdyne]

UK formula Klear is different now and tends to yellow (making it useless for modelling). You can use something like Vallejo Model Color gloss varnish, or GW 'Ard Coat instead. Apply smoothly with a brush (ie don't let it start to set then poke at it - you need the surface to be smooth). You can also buy artists' varnishes in spray cans (Windsor & Newton etc). Those will do too. The basic lesson is gloss, decal, gloss, matt. What you actually use to do those steps is up to you. :-)

[bystrom]

I'm sorry to barge in, but I have a question for winterdyne's response, I've just started using transfers as well, and have used gloss, decal, matt. What's the second gloss step for? Is it an extra layer of protection?

What I've done is paint gloss first, then transfer, then sprayed matt over.

[winterdyne]

Yeah, basically an extra layer of protection, for follow-up paintwork, but in particular it's useful for oil washes on vehicles, or pin washing on infantry. Gloss surfaces provide much better capillary action along panel lines (the paint gets pulled along them and into the recesses as opposed to spreading out in a gradient as it would on a matt surface). The (acrylic) gloss is also usually immune to the thinner used for oils, so a q-tip/cotton bud moistened in the thinner can be used for cleanup.