Removing Decal Film

[NecronautDrummer]

So I decided to rescue a Harrier I started in last winter's Group Build from the old shelf of doom. I just finished decaling the little guy, but I find that some of the decals have a lot of carrier film still showing through. I applied Micro Set and Micro Sol, as I saw fit, to get the decals to conform to the surface and in the panel lines. They sit fine with no actual silvering, but they are all showing a lot of carrier film.

I read in a recent aircraft modelling mag article (he was building Airfix's Vickers Valiant I think) that he removed the carrier film for the decals with some mineral spirits. My Harrier is the 1/72 Airfix FRS.1 so I would imagine that the decals would be manufacture in a similar way. I searched around the net looking for more advice/tips for this technique, but a lot of people say it's a hit-and-miss venture. Any experience with this?

My decal sheet has markings for a few different aircraft, so there are some extra RAF roundels that I could use to replace the ones that are already on the model, just to experiment with this. I might try this tomorrow, and I'll post pics.

 

[NecronautDrummer]

Before:

Not the greatest pic, but you should be able to see the film on some of the decals. Maybe it's the paint colour that's making them stand out. Here goes the mineral spirit treatment.

After:

It's definitely still there. I let the mineral spirits sit for a minute or two, then scrubbed at the decal with a Q-Tip. I wiped away the excess spirits, and this is what I was left with. It did not appear to make any difference at all.

Any suggestions would be welcome!

 

[Elm City Hobbies]

I don't know if you follow Phil Flory or not, but as part of his weekly free news program he puts in bits of how to from the range of videos he does.

One was on decals, and what to do if you have a really stubborn one that Micro Set and Sol won't do anything to.

His solution.......Tamiya X-Thin Cement. Thin coat over the decal, and then just let it sit....don't touch it at all, otherwise you are done for. Once dry, suppose to make it look painted on. He also stressed that this treatment was for those extreme situations that other methods just aren't working.

Not for the faint of heart I believe, but he swears by it.

 

[NecronautDrummer]

I did see that from Phil, but I thought that it was for decals that wouldn't sit down on the surface. I think I just have a case of really thick carrier film.
I'd use that technique for the odd decal for sure, but I'm pretty hesitant to go and apply it to every decal on this thing. Thanks for the tip though, Scott ;D