So I've started getting in to 3rd party figures over the last 12 months. Not many mind, at the time of writing I own a whopping 5 with a 6th of the way. But one thing I always dread is applying reprolabels as am I am so lutely horrendous at it. This came to a head recently when I tried applying stickers to my recently acquired MP10V Prime, and replacing a previous reprolabel on my Cloud 9 Quakeblast.

Essentially for Quakeplast, I was replacing a clear Deception logo on his head with a white backround round, felt it helpit it stand out more. It took me about 15 minutes of sightly slipping, ripping one sticker before I got it in to a satisfactory position. On MP10V was a similar story but I destroyed 2 stickers doing that.

I triwed using a pair of treezers but that only exacerbated issues, and my huge man childs hands faired little better. Just wondering how people get the buggers so straight.

 

there are some members in the Maketoys Downbeat thread that have been giving excellent sticker advice check there

my advice don't do it stickers are stupid, but that just my 2c

 

How i apply stickers is: messure the middle point where you wanna apply the sticker.
peel sticker off on the upper side and put a small flat screwdriver in and stick it on the screwdriver.
you have messured the middle point, so apply the lower part of the sticker on first and keep the upper part lose.
if the lower part is perfect in the middle, then messure the upper part and spin your sticker to left or right so it's in the middle and press on it so it sticks.

That's how i do it, i hope it helps.

 

Try getting an exacto knife or other thin pointed blade. I find that to be very helpful in positioning.
Clean the spot you intend to sticker first to make sure theres no particles or dust. use the the point of the
blade to hold the sticker.

 

I use either an exacto knife or a toothpick to apply stickers/decals. It's worked really good for me.

 

I peel the sticker off with clean washed hands, then stick an edge of the sticker on the edge of the sticker sheet so it's dangling off --

Then you can use the sticker sheet (with said sticker hanging off) and accurately place the sticker where you want; press down and pull the sheet away.

 

I suggest this as well. I also use an exacto to place the sticker. It gives me a high level of control to place the sticker and not have my booger hooks in my way.

 

3 tools you definitely need ,
Exacto knife
Tweezers
Tooth pic .

Also , best time to do it is when you have lots of free time , and preferably in a quite environment.

 

You'll get better results if you use decals. That way you can cut the front perspex into a straight line to contour itself flat with the surface you're applying to then simply rub it on.

They look a lot nicer than stickers too.

 

Tweezers, toothpick or those little metal hair clips (the lady has thousands of them). My tip for getting them straight is to apply them with the toy upside down. Bear with me here. My eyes instantly gravitate towards issues with something lining up straight when I look at it from the opposite angle.

 

1. Clean the area you are applying the stick to, to maximize adhesion. You want to remove grease and granules.
2. Make sure you have good, even lighting on the areas you're working on.
3. Peel off the stick with tweezers. Avoid using your fingers since they can interfere with the adhesion.
4. Holding the sticker in the tweezers firmly, locate it as accurately as you can. Only place it so that a corner or edge of the sticker is in contact. This acts as a guide, and you can use the tweezers to drag or rotate the sticker into the right place.
5. For placement, it sometimes helps to find a reference somewhere nearby on the figure, e.g., the right edge of the sticker aligns with a molded detail line in the plastic.
6. Once it's in the right place, you can press it down away from the corner or edge you started with. Use a toothpick or compacted tissue paper to make sure the edges are fully flattened.

 

This - the tweezers especially. Need to be that type that is at an angle at the business end (think it's called a grooming tweezers) rather than a flat 90 degree angle at the top (so you can grip it straight and with only a bit of the blade without twisting your hand at an angle)

Takes loads of practice also - had to make a few costly boo-boos (and still do) with each type of sticker, grade, and stickyness / and larger areas - I only got better after knowing how to completely balls it up, tbh.

Pins and blades are extremely useful when piercing air bubbles on larger items (thinking of Reprolabels set for Prime Knockout specifically here)

 

I don't use exacto knife for it because i don't wanna accidently cut the paint or the plastic.
Something small and flat is the best thing to use.
I also used toothpicks before and it works good.
But since it is round, the sticker can move off of the toothpick when you're rotating the sticker.

 

I vouch for everything here, save for the toothpicks, as they can damage a decal. Instead, I use what amounts to tapered edge Qtips you can buy from hobby stores. They allow you to smooth even tight corners without worrying about causing damage.

 

So...what exactly is the difference between decals and stickers?

 

Maybe they meant water slides or something :3

 

Decals have a learning curve of their own as well.

This going to be sound unhelpful, but it does get easier with time. Practice makes perfect  

 

So decals are those aqua applied form of stickers?
That you also get in a " build it self " figure?
I used to build a F-14 jetplane.
What i did was put them all in a bowl of water and then get the one out to apply it.
You have to be fast though, because if they lay in the water too long it can't stick anymore.
Best way if you're still novice is to hold it and put the part in water that you want to apply.
Get it out of the water with one of those things that girls use. it's that thing that you can use to pull some hair off. don't know how it's called in english.

 

I get a long straight pin or a sewing needle. I peel the sticker and put the sticky side on the edge of the pin just enough to hold it for me. Say you've got a round sticker....it'll look like this: ---------O

Then you can use the pin as a "stick" to help hold it and not finger touch the back of the sticky. It also lets you see where you're placing it without big fingers getting in the way. Just place and align the edge of the sticker where you want it, pull the pin off the sticky and because you just have the tip of the sticker on the figure, you can move it a lil up or down to help get it perfect. Then just smooth it out.

I'm 6'7" and my hands are huge. This is how I do all my decals and almost all the time, they come out exactly how I want them.

 

Wet the area where you want the sticker and slide it to the desired placement as you would a waterslide decal then pat dry w/ cloth. Only apes apply stickers dry.