Q.  Can you guys send me a catalog of your products?

A.  Sorry, but we do not have a printed catalog.  All the standard items we have available are shown on our web site.  We are constantly developing new items for customers and it would be impossible to keep a cata- log current.

Q.  Are your decals fuel-proofed or do I need to clear coat them?

A.  All of our printed decals go through a four step finishing process to protect them from U.V., abrasion and fuel resistance up to about 25% nitro.  This finishing process is what makes Cal-Grafx decals stand apart from most of our competitors, in that our decals have a true painted finish rather than a cheap shine from a plastic film overlay.

Q.  O.K, but what if I want to clear coat over them, is that a problem?

A.  No, it's not a problem at all, in fact we recommend it, especially on water slide decals to seal the edges. The finish on our decals will allow you to abrade them lightly with steel wool or a very fine sandpaper to improve adhesion or add weathering effects.  Be sure to go slow and check often to make sure you are not going too deep to damage the printed image.

Q.  You say your "printed" decals have a finish applied to them.  Which decals are not printed, and how will they stand up to fuel, engine exhaust, cleaning, etc.?

A.  Pre-cut or machine-cut decals are made from thin vinyl and the color goes all the way through. This process is also called "vinyl graphics" and we only use this method for single-color decals, trim striping, etc.  We use a high grade outdoor-rated vinyl and it is highly resistant to U.V., abrasion and fuel. You can clear coat over vinyl graphics as well, but if you do we recommend that you pre-treat them with spray-on plastic adhesion promoter available in stores that sell auto paint.

Q.  So, for multi-colored decals like roundels and Stars & Bars, you don't use multiple layers of cut vinyl to create the decal?

A.  No, we do not use this multiple-layer process which ends up being thick and does not have the painted on look that most modelers want.  Most of our PSA vinyl decals are printed on a Gerber Edge FX which is an industry standard for small format thermal printing. For water slide decals and higher resolution images we use an ALPS MD 5000 printer which has the unique capability (for what was originally marketed as a small format home printer) of printing white ink.

Q.  I guess you can say I'm  from the old school and really favor water slide decals.  I notice that your prices for water slide are about 20% higher than PSA vinyl, and you are limiting the size to a maximum of 2. 5 inches in any direction. What's the story there?

A.  There are a couple of reasons for this. First, as mentioned above, for printing water slide decals we use what was basically intended as a home printer manufactured by ALPS Electrical Corp., a Japanese company. This printer is unique among all other home printers in that it can print white ink. This is a must when printing decals unless the decal is being applied to a white background. The problem is, several years ago, ALPS ceased all operations in the U.S. which makes their machines and particularly the ink cartridges difficult to find, and expensive.  Some U.S. suppliers continue to maintain limited stock of the colored ink cartridges which are also used in some CITIZEN printers, but the white ink is almost impossible to find. Secondly, the printer itself is not designed for commercial use.  It is very slow in that each of the CMYK colors are printed on a separate pass. When it's working well, it can print beautiful decals.  But it's inconsistent, is somewhat affected by humidity and printing large blocks of solid color is particularly challenging without experiencing "drop-outs", areas where the printhead missed a few pixels.  This can ruin the entire decal and although some limited touchup is possible, more often you than not you will have to start all over again. We recognize that many of our customers like water slides, as we do, and we will con- tinue to offer them with the conditions described above.

Q.  Do you guys make dry-transfer decals?

A.  No, we do not have that capability at this time.

Q.  I just bought a kit for a 1/5 scale P-51D Mustang and I want to do it in Bud Anderson's OLD CROW theme. Can you tell me if you guys stock the decals for that theme and what they cost?  I assume that you know what all the decal sizes should be for 1/5 scale Mustang, right?

A. Because we are a full-custom house, Cal-Grafx does not stock any decals. All decals are made to order. Secondly, we do not size decals for your model based on scale. Even if your model was 100% scale accurate, which is rare, we couldn't begin to keep track of the dimensions for all the full scale aircraft that are modeled such that we can look them up and apply a scale factor that is guaranteed to fit your model. To make sure that the decals and markings fit your model, we ask that you provide us dimensions for each decal in one direction, either height or length. Standard markings like Stars & Bars are sized by a US Military graphics standard, so only the diameter of the center circle is necessary in that particular case. If you know that the full scale aircraft deviates from the standard (e.g. the bars are longer than normal) we will be glad to customize that decal so that your model matches your documentation, particularly if you are going to enter it in a scale event.

Q.  O.K.  So, for a theme like OLD CROW where you have done it before, all I have to do is give you a complete listing of the decals I want, and the sizes in one direction, and you can provide me a quote for a complete package, is that correct?

A. That is correct. However, remember that there are at least two different versions of OLD CROW, the P-51B and P-51D which have different paint schemes. You have to let us know which version you are model- ing. We have done graphics for both versions.  Click HERE to see one of our OLD CROW projects. Bottom line, if you really care about scale accuracy, the more homework you do on the graphics the better the outcome. We will provide you exactly what you specify, that is the advantage of working with a custom house like Cal-Grafx.

Q.  What about graphics and graphic themes that you haven't done yet, how do you handle those requests?

A.  For those requests we ask that you provide us all the documentation available to view the graphics. This can be in the form of web sites with photos, scanned images from books, magazines, etc. or from plans, whatever you can show us that clearly depicts the graphics you need.  Unfortunately, we do not have the time to do the research for you. By experience, we suggest you start with the internet, which has a wealth of information and chances are good you will find something on the aircraft you want to model, no matter how rare or obscure it might be.  Occasionally we have customers write and ask a question like: "I am building a P-47 with the "Hun Hunter" theme, can you tell me what a graphics package will cost for that?"  The answer is no, we can't give you a price. We may have no idea what those graphics look like, and even if we did, we'd still need to have a detailed listing of all the graphics you need and the sizes as we've mentioned above. By the way, be sure to view our PROOF SHEETS page which will give you an idea of some of the graphics and graphic themes we have developed over the years for our customers.

Q.  I have or can buy a smaller scale decal sheet that has all the markings I want. Can you use that sheet to make decals for my larger scale model?

A.  Yes we can upscale markings from small decal sheets and do this on a regular basis. Be sure to buy the largest scale sheet available for better accuracy. Then, send or scan the decal sheet, tell us what the upscale factor is and we can take it from there.Click HERE to see an example of upscaleing

Q. What's the best way to get my documentation to you?

A.  We strongly prefer electronic files, that is, attachments to emails or URL's for web sites.  Of course you can mail materials to us, but we can't guarantee those materials will survive the shipment and it adds to the time to get you an answer. If you have documentation but no scanner, you can go to FedEX/Kinko's and they will scan the images for you as long as they are not copyrighted. By law they are forbidden to scan or copy copyrighted material.  You can then either attach the scanned images to an email, or mail them to us on a CD which is still preferable to hard copy material. Electronic file formats we can access with our software are:  JPG; GIF; TIF; AI; PDF; BMP; MS WORD; Do not send .DAT or .EXE files as we will not accept or open any file that could contain a virus. Also, avoid sending files over 5 Meg via email as they may be rejected by the server.  If you have your documen- tation scanned as suggested above, tell them to keep the file sizes at or under 2 Meg which should have plenty of detail to work with. Lastly, if you have large electronic files, don't try to send them all in one email.  Send in several emails to keep the email size down to under 5 Meg.

Q. How do you guys handle noseart, like pinup girls which can get pretty detailed in terms of the artwork.

A. That's a great question.  The answer is, it varies.  In most cases, we need a good quality photograph of sufficient size if it is an illustration like a pinup girl or other illustrated figure with lots of detail. We're not going to attempt to draw the pinup from scratch as that is most likely outside of our skill set, and it would be cost prohibitive in any event. However, with a good quality photograph we can use the bitmap image for the print file to produce a very   acceptable quality decal. If the photo is small, lacks contrast (washed out) or not taken in direct line with the image, we may not be able to help you. You will have to keep looking for a better photo if you have your heart set on a theme that needs that noseart. Click HERE for examples of the quality of photographs or digital images we like to see for noseart.

Q.  If I order custom graphics from you that I can't buy on your web site, how do I pay you?

A.  No problem.  We'll send you a secure link for VISA or MasterCard authorization via email.  We also accept PayPal but we prefer credit card.

Q.  What does your typical lead time run?

A.  It will vary with the complexity of the job, primarily how many hours of computer design time to create the print files, and what our backlog is running.  For full custom graphics packages, you should allow at least 4 to 6 weeks after receipt of order.  For online orders of standard items, we generally say 2 to 3 weeks. If you have a deadline for a contest or fly-in, please let us know up front when you place the order (not two days before the event!) and we'll do our best to meet your date, but please do not expect turnaround in several days or even a week.  Remember you're going to have to allow at least 2 or 3 days for Priority Mail shipping, so the message is: PLAN AHEAD!

If your question didn't get answered or you need clarificatioin, click HERE to email us

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