Question About Isopropyl Vs. Denatured Vs. Bacardi 151 To Cut Leather Dyed?

[JulieP]

I need to cut my Angelus spirit dyes. I've read a few things regarding isopropyl vs denatured. I'd rather stick with ethanol(denatured) rather than isopropyl which is a bit different compound. Angelus recommends ethanol and their reducing solution is ethanol. My question is to the techy/ chemistry savvy people.

Could I substitute Bacardi 151, in a pinch for the denatured alcohol? It is 75.5% alcohol. And I believe it is ethanol? I use the 151 to cut food dyes to paint on cookies and cakes and wondered if it would work for leather? It completely evaporates on my cookies and there is no alcohol taste or smell. Would it be a little bit less harsh on the leather? Or is it too high of a water content?

Not to mention if my project looks like crap, I could down a few swigs it may look a whole lot better!

Thank you!

[dirtclod]

I use denatred when I cut my dye.

[pg043]

I have no idea if that would work, but that doesn't sound very cost effective

[CrazedLemming]

I'd probably avoid the 151. The cost would be pretty high for a solvent, and I'm guessing there's more than just ethanol and water in there since it has some color. (Maybe drip some on a glass surface and see what residue it leaves when it dries?) If someone was determined to use booze as a thinner, something like Everclear would probably be a better option than 151.

I haven't played with the Angelus line, but I prefer 90% isopropyl when working with the few Fiebing's alcohol dyes I've used. I know the msds for the real reducer says it's mostly ethanol, but I like how the color behaves with isopropyl. Here's an example with fiebing's light blue. Denatured alcohol cuts the dye but after a point it just looks like greenish mud. 90% IPA keeps cutting it to lighter shades of blue.

[Gump]

For cost effectiveness I use methyl hydrate, 100% pure alcohol. It is available at any truck parts store as it is used to remove water from diesel fuel, and it sells for about $3 per quart.

[Thor]

Well without getting to fuzzy about it, I'd be using isopropyl alcohol. It's suggested as the commercial solution. If you want to read up on it you can do so here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isopropyl_alcohol. That is fairly simple reading. That's also the type of alcohol used in medical cleansing. You cannot go wrong with it. Even if you get it on your skin there's no problem. Versus Methanol, there could be a problem as it can penetrate the skin.

Methanol is toxic by two mechanisms. First, methanol (whether it enters the body by ingestion, inhalation, or absorption through the skin) can be fatal due to its CNS depressant properties in the same manner as ethanol poisoning.

Those are reasons I'd stay away from it if there isn't any absolute need to use it.

[JulieP]

Thank you for the replies. CrazedLemming thank you for posting a pic of you dye test. That is amazing the difference the 2 alcohols make. I may try the same test with the few different alcohol compounds and compare the results. The 151 does have color but when mixed with food dyes leaves no odor or taste on pure white icing. I know it's not cost effective for big pieces but I would be using it for painting small areas(flowered ect...) rather than dyeing large areas.