Dyeing problems

[eddiexero]

Hi everyone this is my first post ever on here and I'm hoping to get help. I've been leather crafting for a long while and I can't figure out how to prevent "spotty" dyeing like in the picture. It doesn't always happen but I can't figure out how or why it happens when it does. 

In this picture I used Angelus Jade color dye and airbrushed it on. All the white spots seem to be where the dye didn't absorb in. I did use acetone to deglaze it before I dyed it.

Has anyone else ever had this problem? And is there a way to fix it or even prevent it from happening again?

 

 

[Gezzer]

I'm pretty new so take this with a grain of salt . To me it looks like some contamination ( wax , something maybe on your work surface ) of some sort .

[dikman]

That's what I thought, in the picture it looks like smudges of something on the leather.

[toxo]

Maybe oily fingers when stitching before you put gloves on for dying? The problem only seems to be the edges where it's been handled.

 

[Dwight]

I had similar problems with some of my holsters . . . a friend suggested that I give it a light coat of neatsfoot oil . . . on the hair side only . . . allow it to rest for 24 hours . . .  then dye the project.

It worked like a super champ . . . I do everything like that now . . . VERY seldom have a dye problem.

I do however . . .  dip dye about 99% of my work . . . and use a brush or dauber for the rest.

May God bless,

Dwight

[tsunkasapa]

It certainly looks like something got spattered on the surface, with a couple of the spots looking smeared/wiped. But something is definitely resisting the dye.  I'm surprised the acetone didn't take care of it. 

[eddiexero]

  On 8/10/2022 at 4:10 PM, tsunkasapa said:

It certainly looks like something got spattered on the surface, with a couple of the spots looking smeared/wiped. But something is definitely resisting the dye.  I'm surprised the acetone didn't take care of it. 

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I'm still not sure how much acetone to use. This one was kind of a light coat with about an hour before dyeing. 

[Garyak]

The spots are from your hands. Glue, oil, dirt etc. Try cleaning before dying with tsp (leather bleach) mixed with a little saddle soap. Very little tsp is needed in the mix. Too much will burn the leather. Your leather will look like the picture in the catalog when you ordered it, and not what you actually received. My 2 cents. 

[eddiexero]

  On 8/10/2022 at 6:24 PM, Garyak said:

The spots are from your hands. Glue, oil, dirt etc. Try cleaning before dying with tsp (leather bleach) mixed with a little saddle soap. Very little tsp is needed in the mix. Too much will burn the leather. Your leather will look like the picture in the catalog when you ordered it, and not what you actually received. My 2 cents. 

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I'm definitely gonna try that trick.  I've never heard of that mixture before. Thank you.

[tsunkasapa]

Oxalicacid is another cleaner/bleach. 1tsp to a pint of water