Gel Pens for Custom Decals?

[Snake45]

Anyone ever tried making custom decals using gel pens? I tried googling—got lots of stuff about fingernails and a couple sites about using them to put graffiti on model railroad cars and WWII Russian tanks, but nothing about making decals for cars (or airplanes).

Specifically, is the gel opaque enough to use light colors over dark colors? I want to do some race car lettering using lime green over dark green, and bright orange over purple.  I have both clear and white decal film—would prefer to use clear but can go with white if need be.

Does the gel stand up to a clearcoat such as Krylon Crytal Clear? For that matter, does it stand up to the water? Does it "migrate" over time like Sharpie ink?

Ideas/suggestions welcome!

[crazyjim]

Good question.  Can't wait to see replies.

[hedotwo]

Good question.  Can't wait to see replies.

Same.

[Snake45]

Well, I'm going to TRY it soon. Just wondered if anyone had already been down the road with it.

[Jantrix]

Well, I'm going to TRY it soon. Just wondered if anyone had already been down the road with it.

Not me, but it is a heck of an idea.

[Tom Geiger]

The most I've done with a gel pen...  see the Dodge logo on the hood?  I made that decal.  It's only printed in black.  I printed several copies. I place one on the model and colored it  in solid with a silver gel pen. Then I took a second decal and placed it over the silver  to get the effect you see here.

I don't know how a gel pen would react to clear etc,  and it may help if you used the gel pen on the first decal, and then covered it with a second decal as I did, effectively sealing it in so clear paint wouldn't touch it.   Of course, practice on scrap first.

 

[Snake45]

Ran a quick test last night with disappointing results.

I used Pilot G2 gel pens from Walmart, some kind of “designer colors” set. The green just won’t work for me at all. The color on the package and the pen body is very much like Mopar Sublime, but the gel is much darker, more like Sassy Grass Green or Green-Go. Won’t work at all for lettering on a dark green car.  The bright orange color was much better, pretty much just what I wanted.  (These were on plain white paper.)

As a quick test of opacity, I used both pens to color small patches on Scotch “invisble” tape, then tried putting the tape on dark green and purple painted plastic. The green simply vanished against the dark green, and the orange brightened the purple a little but also pretty much vanished.

So THESE gel pens at least would be useless to me on clear decal film. Might work okay on white. Also, the gel rubbed right off the tape with my finger, so they would definitely require some kind of protective overspray. Finding one that wouldn’t also dissolve or affect the gel might be a problem.

Next step is to check out another brand, probably from a more artsy-craftsy store than Walmart.  Also, gonna investigate white gel pens and fine markers. Such might work well as a “primer” if I can find something opaque enough.

[Tom Geiger]

Richard- Your observation is correct. Any clear decal you use a Sharpie (or print a decal on) is opaque like a stain glass window.  The darker color under it will overpower it. As you know, commercially made decals start with a coat of white, that allows your decal to show up on darker colors.  Our NNL East decals were done that way.

If you are replicating a real car, you are stuck with the color scheme.  If you are working on your own design, I've always managed to include a white or light color panel in the design for the sole purpose of allowing the decals to do their thing.  

Another thing you could do, as in my Dodge Caravan logo shown above, would be to layer the decals.  First layer, use a white gel pen and color in the whole design. Then put your colored decal right on top of that one.

 

[Chariots of Fire]

Depends on what kind of a decal you are trying to make.  For fine detail or making more than one of the same thing gel pens would be a hard way to go.  I don't know about you but my hand is not that steady for making nice clean decals.  I've done it but the effect is never the same as getting one printed out.

[Art Anderson]

One thing I've noticed in a recent search for gel pens--they seem to have lost their luster as far as retailers are concerned.  Just a couple of years ago, they seemed to be everywhere, both individually and in sets.  However, now, Michael's here no longer stocks them at all, nor does Hobby Lobby.  Even Office Max has dropped them.  I did find a set at Walmart, but that is about it.

Art

[Foxer]

I just got back from a long trip to my daughter's wedding, so I'll have to post photos later, but I needed something to paint the white piping around some black rubbery seats and tried a Gelly Roll white gel pen. I could easily draw around the raised thin edge of the molded on seat piping and was very OPAQUE! I was surprised how visible the white gel showed up on the black black seats.

I would definitely recommend trying some Gelly Roll gel pens.

 

[oldcarfan]

I know the white ones are opaque, I've used them on tires for white walls. As far as covering them with clear coat, I misted a coat on to set the ink and it seemed to work.

[Snake45]

Good to know. If the white ones are really opaque, I think I could do whatever I want in white and then cover it with other colors as needed.

[Foxer]

here's the rubber with one pass with a white Gelly Roll gel pen ...

[Snake45]

Wow, not bad at all! I'm going to have to try one of those.