How do I get the ink to stop running on my homemade decals!

So I'm using Testors decal paper, and testors decal sealer. in the instructions it says to wait for the ink to dry, then apply the sealer. I waited a good 4 hours or so before spraying, but the red ink still ran. Do I have to wait longer or am I doing something else wrong? :screwy:

are you using a ink-jet printer or a laser/ALPS?

It could be that particular ink that your printer uses. You could also be spraying on too thick a coat of the sealer. I've used this stuff and it works ok. The printer I used was an Epson inkjet, and then I sealed it with 3-4 very thin coats of the sealer.

It worked alright for me, but thankfully I printed extra decals, because sometimes the sealer doesn't fully cover, and the ink dissolved in the water, and if you trip too close to the printed part of the decal, water can seep in between the sealer and the paper, and dissolve just the edges of the decal.

I've only tinkered with ink jet decals, and it was long before the Testors system came out. But I did learn to seal them with several VERY thin and dry coats of clear. Krylon works OK, I also used Testors lacquer clears with better results. I found using a flat clear for the first passes helped in that it dried faster than gloss clear and was less likely to cause runs. Gloss clear was built up later, between 4 and 8 thin coats total. Yes, it made thicker decals than I would prefer, and they had a slight amber tint, other reasons I only tinkered with them. But it did seal them enough to put one last semi wet coat of gloss on without smearing the images. Clearcoating the model after application helped too, it was almost a necessity to diffuse the edges and discoloration. Hope that can be of help to you... - Mark

Badger decal sealer for example is VERY aggressive (even more than TS13 LOL) and will happily dissolve your print ink if applied too thickly. Light coats and preferably through your airbrush is the best way IMHO.

Interesting... yes, it is an inkjet. Maybe I was spraying it on a little thick. I'll try thin coats next time.