ive done quite a few of these hood decals & would suggest the soap & water over the gel.. the gel is way too thick & for a beginner is harder to work with. if you can get the car to iowa i'd do it for you!
but its really not that difficult, especially for a smaller 78 bird, 80-81 turbo birds, are huge & much harder but still doable for a beginner.
check with hitman, hes in mentor ohio.