Looking for a source for water slide decals suitable for magic props. Any ideas?

Thom

I've had good luck with the big auction site. May take some patience, but you'll find something that will work with your apparatus and act.
Good luck
wk

This information was just given a few weeks ago here on the Café. Search the threads or contact Michael Baker here on the Café. I believe he posted some references about decals.

Okay, found it here you go, you are welcome.
http://www.themagiccafe.com/forums/viewt......forum=26

Few weeks ago, time flies on the Café, it was October, 2099.

I use the big auction place also.

If you acquire any original decals, I would scan them at the highest resolution you can so maybe you could duplicate them later.

I have two Alps printers which do not require the sealing of ink jet ink.

I just have not had the time to do any decal work yet.

Richard

I've had several people ask me if I sold ready made decals, and the answer is no. The techniques for applying these things are idiosyncratic. They are different in some ways to the typical waterslide decals that come with model airplanes, etc. Also, if someone goofs up the application of those commercial products, it is assumed to be their own fault. If someone were to goof up one that I made, I, as a cottage industry, would be at the mercy of anyone deciding to rant online. It's that ounce of prevention thing.

Besides, if I goof one up, I just print another one... and yes, it happens a lot more than I'd like.

Decals available online are a crapshoot. Vintage Meyercord are popular, but many have yellowed from age, and sometimes this affects the final result. Scanning and filing the images is a great idea, which I do as well. You can also clean up a world of sins with Photoshop. But unless you are blessed with something like an Alps printer, you'll find that duplicating some things on inkjet are not possible. Many of the oriental Meyercord decals, which are hugely popular with magicians (Milson Worth products are loaded with them) are adorned heavily with gold accents, a color that inkjet cannot duplicate. Nor can inkjet print the color white, and any lighter shades are simply a lack of ink, and not an opaque color unto itself. Such a decal applied over most any other base color will result in color bleed-through.

These are things that have taken me years to understand and work around, and frankly the solutions to those issues are some of the trade secrets that keep my work somewhat unique.

Can you give us a little more info? Model, price range, cartridges, etc.?

I have an MD1000 which is the cheapest of the ones made. The only way to get one is on the secondary market thought they might be sold in Europe still.

I by chance had bought it as a regular printer. It was about $225. I quickly found it too expensive to print with all the time. It is a thermal transfer close to dye sub ptinters.

Do an ebay search and they can probably tell you more about it than I can. As I recall, a set of 4 ribbons were about $25.00. Some of the models did print in white and gold ink colors quire well.

Richard

Posted: Mar 11, 2011 11:10pm
You guys got me thinking about my Alps printers once again. Obviously (if you do any search on them), they are very hard to find. The ribbons are going to run almost 12 a shot. And they do not print a lot. But it is beautiful and durable. And they do print white, silver and gold.

Doing a little googling I found some articles and places that may of use.

http://www.tangopapadecals.com/Make%20yo......0101.pdf
http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/How_to......e_decals

http://www.kadee.com/htmbord/custom.htm (makes custom decals)

I hope this gives a little more information that what I originally gave to help out. Obviously, the Alps was the perfect printer for waterslide detail work.

Richard

Great info, Richard. Thanks!

A little more info:

http://www.mcgpaper.com/modeldecals.html

Their is a place for custom decals the over can explain what he needs to get you what you want. great guy I have been using him for a long time for my rockets. and magic is just the next step http://www.excelsiorrocketry.com/

Thanks for all the replies.

Thom
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I used to silkscreen water slide decals back in the 60's. I will contact the screen supply house to see if the ink and paper are still available. Problem is the color separations needed to make the various screens. They were really fun to print.

Doc

Color separations would be the easiest part to do today with computers.

Richard