Micro set and Mirco sol strenghts and weaknesses......

[Bzzymatt]

O.k. so this might interest you. Have you had a bottle of micro set and a bottle of micro sol that have been used several times and then you just leave it on your workbench or a cabinet for about a month or 2 and then when you apply it on a decal, it is not as effective as it was when you first used it.

This is a topic that I have heard every once in a while and in my opinion it does lose it's strength after a certain amount of time when you have used it for your model projects.

My first opinion is that the micro set and micro sol should be kept at a certain temperature other than room temperature because my bottles of micro set and micro sol seem more effective in the summer time. But in the winter time the micro sol doesn't make the decal bond to the plastic as well. :/

Does anyone else have an opinion on this?!?!?!?!?!..........


Matt

 

[Chris S]

I have to say ,I only use the 'Sol' but I've been using the same bottle for a few years and havent noticed any difference ! However ,some decals just dont respond to it ...like the ones on my latest build P-47 ,the Sol just couldnt penatrate them and it was defo the decs ,maybe thats actually your problem

Chris.

 

[glennonrp]

I hope this isn't the case. What if you don't get fresh one from the store? I only use the sol, too. The guy at the LHS said that's what he does.

 

[Igard]

I only use the Micro Set for making my own decals. I've had it since about June last year, and I did have problems recently, but I put it down to a bad clear coat (the clear coat had 'do not spray over stickers and decals' written on it in small print).

I'll have to test this out.

 

[Dusky]

Try stirring or shaking it.

 

[letsgobrowns82]

I only use the sol but Ive found that different decals react differently. Could just be a difference in the decal quality.

 

[f2k]

I have to say ,I only use the 'Sol' but I've been using the same bottle for a few years and havent noticed any difference ! However ,some decals just dont respond to it ...like the ones on my latest build P-47 ,the Sol just couldnt penatrate them and it was defo the decs ,maybe thats actually your problem

Chris.

I had the same experience with the decals for my Corsair. The decals were so thick that the Microset Sol just didn't seem to be able to do much about it.

 

[Chris S]

I think in most cases it does come down to the decal and not the Sol ,decals vary greatly between manufacturers ,I have worked with many different types over the years ,but the worst I have found were in Academy kits ,they seem to have some clear glaze or varnish over them and the Sol just doesnt get into the decal at all !!

Chris.

 

[sunsanvil]

I too have had wildly mixed results with Sol/Set over the years but as others have suggested I think the variable is more the decals and less the setting solutions.

I had HORRIBLE wrinkling issues with a sheet of Hassegawa decals a while back. Very next kit was also Hassegawa of similar vintage and they worked fine. Same bottles of Set/Sol. Lately I'm building Bandai kits and buying their water-slides and I'm finding they sometimes silver, sometimes don't, even across a single sheet!

 

[ModelMan]

I have a bottle of each and never know which to use for which situation, so I default to my Walther's Solvaset.

 

[Grendels]

I have a bottle of each and never know which to use for which situation, so I default to my Walther's Solvaset.

I had that problem until I used the the wrong way, and destroyed every single decal on the sheet. You could say I learned the hard way.....

Blue first, red second. The red color is for the HOT solution, the one that will melt the decal.

 

[schweinhund227]

I don't have much to add to this.... just my own experience ...

I have actually stop using this product a few years ago... I too experienced its potency diminishing...
but I think It was more from... Cross contamination! me mixing the Blue and Red ... by mistake...


I have switched to Mr. Mark Setter and Mr. Mark Softer


I haven't gone back since ! I find that stuff to be more.... gentle on Japanese decals...
Nothing against Micro Set and Micro Sol...

I like the Mr. Mark Setter better because it has a Dulling or Matting agent in the solution... which helps with Silvering ! sometimes I even applied the decals on Mate paint without FUTURE underneath and it didn't Silver....!!! quite amazing stuff....

anyway.. enough product placement LOL !

Later guys !

 

[sunsanvil]

I'm actually curious to try those. Do you use the Mr.Softer the same way you would MicroSol/Set?

I've had the Vallejo Decal "Fix" and "Medium" on my shelf for a while and decided to give them a serious try. I'm still reserving judgement. I followed the directions from Vallejo's product information page which was to use the alcohol based "Decal Medium" first, then apply decal, then finish with the "Decal Fix". Worked well in that I got ZERO silvering, but it was imperative to finish with a coat of matt varnish to knock out the admittedly extremely slight brushstrokes left by the fax/medium. The decals look good but the edges of the film are I think too visible at certain angles.

Confusingly there are a couple post on Vallejo's own blog which reverse the order of use which doesn't make sense to me but maybe I'll try that and see what it looks like.

 

[schweinhund227]

yeah... "Setter" to settle the decal down.... and the "Softer" to get it to conform to 'raised details'...

same o same o !!!

 

[sunsanvil]

Do you let the setter dry at all, or slide the decal into it while its still wet?

 

[schweinhund227]

Do you let the setter dry at all, or slide the decal into it while its still wet?

The Setter? Oh yeah, WET in deed! It gives me the best results that way ! .....