The Little World

Or how I stencilled myself into the asylum.

As a kid facing my first decal sheets, I was blazingly confident. Allowed to use water and scissors…what could possibly go wrong? After all, Aurora moulded the position of the USAF and the insignia right there on the top of the wing – all you had to do was get the decal into the fenced-off section.

Okay, the kid down the street put the star the wrong way up, but he was only 5 years old.

Years came and went and the decal sheets got bigger – if not better. The moulded-in guides were phased out and instruction sheets introduced. But you could still make a fighter plane look real with only ten decals and a bottle of Revell gloss black paint for the tyres…

Then puberty and detailed decal sheets occurred. I am still coping with the first, but the second is easy…as long as you are prepared to spend two days on one airplane. The stencils are the thing – they are found everywhere – the No Step warning covers nearly every portion of an American aircraft. Oddly enough, they do not put them on the underside of the wings…

You cannot ignore them, as they are such a feature of the real thing. I grudgingly accept this and spend the time doing the deed. First a dot of Mr. Mark Setter – then wet the decal for about 8 seconds and let it rest on a wet paper towel for another 8. Then push it gently off th paper onto the wing or tailplane with a cocktail stick and blot it dry once it is straight.

Then only 35 more to do. I mark each one off the instruction sheet call-out as I complete it. eventually either the aircraft is complete or the Earth spirals into the sun.

Some people blot their wet decals with paper towels or tissue paper – some use cloth, and some select cotton buds on sticks. I use a soft brush that I press dry each time I use it. It wicks away moisture and strokes the decal flat.

A varnish to seal and protect, and the whole thing seems worthwhile.