Transfers, Decals, and pronounciation of Deckals/Deecals

[Bealman]

It was always transfers, but when I was a kid, every Christmas I'd get a really cool present, usually a model kit, from my father's brother in America. Hence I was introduced to decals at a relatively early age.

I always said deckals.

[railsquid]

"Dee-cal" here, though it seems like one of those words I have encountered only relatively recently and never heard it pronounced.

"Dry transfer" appears to be the technical term for what is used with models, "decal" apparently covers a variety of methods.

Not that it's at all relevant, but in Japanese these are referred to as "inreta", which one can infer from the way it's written is derived from "In letter", and the internet tells me the "In" is short for "Instant". Learn something new every day.

[The Q]

I've always known them as deckals since the 1960s, and until this page,  had never heard a British person say anything else.
The use of DE-cal to me is very American as generally,  that is the way they pronounce almost any word  begining with DE- , emphsising the DE.. Generally that have the same habit with words beginning with RE-
In the UK we normally say deh- and don't emphasis it. And I'm very DEcided on that...

But then Americans pronounce many things increasingly wrongly. The city of Norwich,  Connecticut, USA was until recent times, pronounced Norrich as per the UK,  only in recent times have they pronounced it NOR wich. Just old timers pronounce it correctly.

[Bob G]

sounds like it could be a separation at the Watford Gap, being a Southerner I always say deecal. Now being even further south still call them deecal.

I'm a southerner (born in Portsmouth - can't get much more south than that) and I always said deckals, so its not regional.

[Bealman]

Just edited previous post, as it didn't make sense as to why I was introduced to decals at an early age.

Sorry! 

[Bob G]

"Dry transfer" appears to be the technical term for what is used with models, "decal" apparently covers a variety of methods.

In our modelling world we have always had two, and more recently three types:
Dry transfers are rub down ones
Wet transfers use water (usually) as the release agent from the paper carrier
Vinyls as used by Electra Railway Graphics, and the real railway, of course
All three count as decals, in the big world, but possibly vinyls are not transfers?

[Bealman]

Those rub-down things were a nightmare to a young Bealman. They were new, and a gee-whizz answer to making your control panels, etc. look professional.

I would inevitably rub one so it went on crooked, and end up having to remove it and texta (sorry... Aussie, sharpie) it in anyway.

There were very few replacement letters on the sheets I used to buy with pocket money in 1968.

Avoided the stuff ever since.

[weave]

Hi all,

Just to add to the tomayto/tomarto debate. I used to say deck-alls in my youth but was often corrected in model shops with the reply 'don't you mean day-cals' which as Nick @ntpntpntp mentioned is probably the correct pronunciation from the French. At the time I bit my lip but now I sort of mix the two up and say deck-als. I don't say dee-cals.

I find that the main problem is not saying it but finding the ones I want that don't cost a fortune.

Cheers, weave 

PS. As an aside I still say sumbarine. It used to drive my dad bonkers. I can say submarine but have to stop and correct my brain just before I say it. Please don't send me to the funny farm 

[Newportnobby]

Like all cycles, my bike has 2 pedals. It certainly does not have 2 peedals
I find myself shouting at the TV all too often, especially when someone says 'nucular' rather than 'nuclear'. The shout is usually "Spell it! There are not two 'u's in 'nuclear'!!!"

[chrism]

We are currently running at Deck-als 4 votes, Dee-cals 4 votes
I didnt think it would be so evenly matched.

Just to put the cat among the pigeons, since it's from the French it ought to be pronounced "day-cal" 

[chrism]

I find myself shouting at the TV all too often, especially when someone says 'nucular' rather than 'nuclear'. The shout is usually "Spell it! There are not two 'u's in 'nuclear'!!!"

There's a reason why the Yanks do that - it's to use up all the letter u's that they leave out of colour, flavour, etc.

[37214]

Fox transfers, not Fox Deeeeeecals. 👻😜

www.fox-transfers.co.uk

[Bealman]

While I was typing something onto this forum today, my phone's stupid supposed intelligence inserted the word 'lower' instead of 'power.'

So why are those two words pronounced differently?

Low her,

Powe her?

[Bob G]

I find myself shouting at the TV all too often, especially when someone says 'nucular' rather than 'nuclear'. The shout is usually "Spell it! There are not two 'u's in 'nuclear'!!!"

There's a reason why the Yanks do that - it's to use up all the letter u's that they leave out of colour, flavour, etc.

[Ted]

I'm with the Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries on this one  - https://dictionary.cambridge.org/pronunciation/english/decal -  https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/decal

It's "deeeeee-cal" for me!

*or transfer