Building question

[nmroberto]

Hope everyone isn't getting tired of my flood of questions, hopefully you pros will have the answer for me. 

OK, here we go.....  As I said before I'm very new at building WW I models, all my previous experience has been in WW II and modern ac and some armor.  Those models aren't covered with decals.

 How do you guys attach things like wing struts, and other little pieces after you have applied lozenge decals all over the surfaces?

Do you cut out the decals from the areas where things get glued after the decal has been applied? If that's the way it's done, how do you get a nice tidy place to attach the part without having to do a bunch of touch up?

[Ian from Doncaster]

Again like many things, there will be as many solutions as modellers!

Some kits come with pre-shaped lozenge decal sections with holes in place for struts etc.  This I assume (I haven't yet used such) would also help with positioning the decals, by lining up the holes with strut locations, plus the strut brackets etc can be pre-painted before applying the decals.

Whilst no way a pro, I have sometimes pre-painted the bracket areas, then trimmed the decal with a sharp blade after applying over the whole surface.  Where struts appear to disappear into the wings without any brackets on the wing surface, I have punched the strut end into its location through the decal - just need to be extra careful with glue!

[coyotemagic]

A very good question, Roberto.  I tend to treat a decaled surface the same as I would any painted surface, once I've coated the decals with a clear finish.  For struts, they either come with attaching pins on the ends or I drill out the ends and insert metal pins, usually brass.  Then I drill a shallow hole in the wing surface to accept the strut pin.  I've never had the decaled surface disturbed by this procedure.
Cheers,
Bud

[ALBATROS1234]

ive done it a few ways. it depends on the exact situation. mainly when i put on the decals and it hit them with the hairdryer and the kinda pulls them taut and it makes a dimple where the strut holes are. i take a sharp #11 blade or drill bit and spin in the hole therefore clearing the decal from where the struts go. sometimes you do have to touch up. my best friend is dullcote.after each stage i clear cote. this ends up blending everything.to me it makes insignia look painted on and it unifies the overall sheen making it look more realistic. plus i just dont like shiny models. i know a doped fabric aircraft is shiny from the factory but it does dull plus i assume theres dirt/road dust whatever on real stuff and i just like the way it looks. put enuff dullcote and it cant help but look kool if you ask me.