Some questions, Thanks!

Hi, everyone,
I have been here for awhile but I just registered and became a member.

I have the following questions and please help, thanks!

1. Do we need to sand the original paint (if there is orange peel) before we spray clearcoat on top of it?

2. the decals got pulled off by the masking type for one of my models. I firstly sprayed the paint, then decals, then decal softener, then clearcoat. Does anyone know which step(s) I have done wrong?

All helps are appreciated, thanks!
Merry Christmas :smile: :smile:

Welcome to AF!
1)If you would like the paint to look nice, you should sand it down, and smoothen it out, then shine it out.

2)I don't understand what you are saying. Why would you have masking tape over your decals? Could you please explain.

Acutally I firstly sprayed the paint on top of the primer and then I put the decals on. Afterwards, I sprayed about three layers of clearcoats. Lastly, I masked the body with masking tape and sprayed the window frames. However, some decals were pulled off along with the masking tape and I just couldn't figure out where I did wrong.
Thanks for your quick reply, really appreciate!

1. yes
2. Sounds like the decals did'nt dry long enough before you applied the clear. Your masking tape may also be too tacky.

:p

What kind of masking tape are you using? If it isn't Tamiya, you might want to get some. Also, like Ferrari said, it sounds like the decal didn't dry enough, or you soaked it too long and the glue came off of it.

Thanks, all,
Firstly, I used Tamiya masking tape since it's recommended by everyone here.

Secondly, I sprayed clearcoat about 1 week after I put the decals on.

In conclusion, I think the main reason is that I soaked it too long and the glue just came off of it.

Thanks all. It really helps a lot. I usually leave the decals in the water too long and I didn't realize it would make the glue come off. Thanks!

Glad that we could help. How long did you soak them for?
A good way to soak them is put them with the decal down, and the paper up, and when the paper gets a little darker like it does, pull it up. Always seems to work for me. You have to watch closely, because it'll happen in about 10 sec.