First try at dyeing

[NatesLeatherGds]

So, my first shot at dyeing leather. I was very apprehensive. Tandy All-in-One Eco Flo. Acorn. Veg tanned Tandy economy hide. 2 were done with the leather dry (those on the right side -- "reddish" color). 2 were done with the leather soaked through with hot water and patted dry. I quickly have moved to Fiebings Pro Dye. Will post pics of that next. 

 

Edited January 11 by NatesLeatherGds

[NatesLeatherGds]

Second try : Same leather - veg tanned Tandy economy hide. 

Fiebings Pro Dye - light brown. 2 coats (made it much darker than 'light brown') - Tan Kote top/finish. Final conditioning with Angelus Leather Balm. I'm certainly happier with it. Wish I had started learning dyes years ago. Much easier than I thought and fun, too. 

[Dwight]

Not sure who encouraged the hot water before dying . . . never heard of that idea before.

May God bless,

Dwight

[NatesLeatherGds]

Thanks and hi! No one encouraged it - was a desperation move to try to get the Eco Flo all-in-one to spread more even. 

[DieselTech]

Your belts look good. You did just fine.  When using eco flo all in one dye, you need to apply it thick & heavy in a circular motion, then wipe. If the dye is spotty, repeat the above procedure. 

Here is the same acorn brown eco-flo dye on some craftsman veg tan from tandy. 

Edited January 11 by DieselTech

[MarshalWill]

You're getting some nice, even dye jobs there. I like to use Fiebings or Lincoln dyes that can be thinned with alcohol. I then spray the piece with alcohol first so the dye takes more evenly. I also have never heard of using hot water. I've heard of people using plain water but not hot water. The whole idea is to slow down the dye from soaking in too fast and getting darker spots in the finish.

The exception to that is if I want to get a patchy finish, then I don't use alcohol first and dab it on with a cotton dauber getting it as textured as I want.

Edited January 18 by Northmount
copied 3rd party hosted photo and uploaded here

[NatesLeatherGds]

DieseTech - oh wow- that's very nice and even. Will keep trying. Thanks! And MarshalWill - very nice look, thanks. I'm just starting with dyes, so your input is helpful.

[Dwight]

If you are using Feibings oil dyes . . . 24 hrs before using the dye . . . a light coat of neatsfoot oil on the flesh side . . . and laid out flat to absorb the oil evenly . . . will just about guarantee a very very smooth and even dye job.

Also cut the dye 50/50 with thinner . . . 

That is especially with some of the lighter tans . . . saddle tan being one for sure.

Took a long time to catch on to that trick . . . but it is one that virtually every time works.

May God bless,

Dwight

[DeWayne Hayes]

Just to add to your options, I gave up dying with a dauber almost immediately due to streaking and turned to first airbrushes, but later the much simpler Preval air canister. 

https://tandyleather.com/products/preval-power-unit?variant=31977386868867&currency=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA75itBhA6EiwAkho9e4ayMpy0bMgtdKQ1BZLIJiDI4YnGrzmROkU0Ke8gBK-oJLUoiP6_pBoCSP0QAvD_BwE

These will literally screw right into the top of a Fiebings small jar of Pro Dye and you've got an instant air gun with no clean up - use it until it's empty and throw away. 

It's my go-to method for dying now unless I'm doing Black, which I never have any streaking issues with when using a dauber. But that's the only color I do by hand. Anything brown or tan I use the Preval sprayer. 

Hope this helps!

DeWayne

[DieselTech]

12 minutes ago, DeWayne Hayes said:

Just to add to your options, I gave up dying with a dauber almost immediately due to streaking and turned to first airbrushes, but later the much simpler Preval air canister. 

https://tandyleather.com/products/preval-power-unit?variant=31977386868867&currency=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA75itBhA6EiwAkho9e4ayMpy0bMgtdKQ1BZLIJiDI4YnGrzmROkU0Ke8gBK-oJLUoiP6_pBoCSP0QAvD_BwE

These will literally screw right into the top of a Fiebings small jar of Pro Dye and you've got an instant air gun with no clean up - use it until it's empty and throw away. 

It's my go-to method for dying now unless I'm doing Black, which I never have any streaking issues with when using a dauber. But that's the only color I do by hand. Anything brown or tan I use the Preval sprayer. 

Hope this helps!

DeWayne

I forgot about them Preval cartridges for the fiebings dye. Does 1 of them last to spray a full 4oz bottle? 

Thanks.

[DeWayne Hayes]

Yep, I can get full use out of a 4oz bottle with a Preval.

[Burkhardt]

1 hour ago, DeWayne Hayes said:

Yep, I can get full use out of a 4oz bottle with a Preval.

Can you refill the canister with air to re-use or is it one and done?

[Cattleman]

I use Fiebings Pro dye exclusively. I apply it with a dauber or a thin long bristled paint brush if I need to get up close to an undyed detail.

 

Ive found that applying the dye directly to dry unoiled leather gives the best results. Once I get to a shade or 2 lighter than I want I stop and let it dry for about an hour and follow with a coat of olive oil. The oil almost always evens out the color, reducing blotchiness and dark spots. After the oil drys I continue with my finishing. For a finish I almost always use Tan-Kote as a resist then antique with fiebings paste, another coat of Tan-Kote, edge dye, and another final coat of Tan-Kote.

[DeWayne Hayes]

4 hours ago, Burkhardt said:

Can you refill the canister with air to re-use or is it one and done?

No, it's one and done - once the canister is spent, it goes in the trash. They're around $10 a pop, so not cheap, but the trade-off is never having to clean an airgun or maintain a compressor, etc. 

[MarshalWill]

I've used Preval cannisters for many things. If you just need a small amount of dye, you can clean them out to use for another small job later. For the most part, though, a full jar just about uses them up.

[NatesLeatherGds]

On 1/16/2024 at 8:10 PM, DeWayne Hayes said:

Just to add to your options, I gave up dying with a dauber almost immediately due to streaking and turned to first airbrushes, but later the much simpler Preval air canister. 

https://tandyleather.com/products/preval-power-unit?variant=31977386868867&currency=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA75itBhA6EiwAkho9e4ayMpy0bMgtdKQ1BZLIJiDI4YnGrzmROkU0Ke8gBK-oJLUoiP6_pBoCSP0QAvD_BwE

These will literally screw right into the top of a Fiebings small jar of Pro Dye and you've got an instant air gun with no clean up - use it until it's empty and throw away. 

It's my go-to method for dying now unless I'm doing Black, which I never have any streaking issues with when using a dauber. But that's the only color I do by hand. Anything brown or tan I use the Preval sprayer. 

Hope this helps!

DeWayne

DeWayne, Oh thanks and that looks really useful! I will see if my local Tandy has one and may explore use - small apartment - so have ventilation issues with sprays. Can I use it for a small one off (2 or 3 belts, say) and then reuse over a few days until the dye jar is empty ?

[Northmount]

On 1/11/2024 at 8:12 AM, MarshalWill said:

 

Please post your photos on this site.  3rd party hosted files often disappear making the post and sometimes even the thread become useless for anyone researching or reviewing these posts in the future.

 

[MarshalWill]

25 minutes ago, Northmount said:

Please post your photos on this site.  3rd party hosted files often disappear making the post and sometimes even the thread become useless for anyone researching or reviewing these posts in the future.

 

I'll remember that.

Thanks.

[DeWayne Hayes]

11 hours ago, NatesLeatherGds said:

DeWayne, Oh thanks and that looks really useful! I will see if my local Tandy has one and may explore use - small apartment - so have ventilation issues with sprays. Can I use it for a small one off (2 or 3 belts, say) and then reuse over a few days until the dye jar is empty ?

Absolutely. I will split a canister over two or three projects until it's exhausted. Bear in mind, you use more dye this way, as a lot of it gets sprayed right past the edges of your project (as with any sprayed medium), so you'll see your dye jar going down faster than you might expect, as opposed to a dauber, where it all goes into the leather. But I freely move the Preval from one color to another. Give it a little blast to clear out the old color still in the tube, then carry on. 

Also bear in mind this one little trick - when you're screwing a Preval directly onto a Fiebings 4 oz jar of dye, you'll need to trim a tiny bit off the end of the Preval's plastic tube that extends down into the dye. They're made to go into a different reusable reservoir and are just a tiny bit too long for a Fiebings dye jar, but with a sharp knife or razor, if you trim it just a bit, you can screw the Preval unit right down onto the Fiebings jar and eliminate the need for a separate reservoir entirely. Very handy! 

BTW - I'm in an apartment too, and I just step outside in the parking lot and spray my piece quickly. You certainly don't want to spray that pro dye in the apartment! 

Edited January 19 by DeWayne Hayes

[TonyV]

I bought a bag of scraps several years ago which included some sheepskin pieces.  I had no use for the sheepskin bits at the time until I realized they make great applicators for dyes, NSF and finishes.  

[NatesLeatherGds]

On 1/16/2024 at 8:10 PM, DeWayne Hayes said:

Just to add to your options, I gave up dying with a dauber almost immediately due to streaking and turned to first airbrushes, but later the much simpler Preval air canister. 

Just reporting back - used a Preval sprayer for resolene - bit of a trick. Had to cut/thin the resolene, trim the pump straw and get the exact right angle - but it worked and sprayed even and didn't run the paint. Thanks all. 

[JLSleather]

isn't that eco-flow stuff more of a stain?  ah - no mattter.

you'll get a jillion different comments, some more logical than others.  For a baseline startig poing, if you git that fella tellin' ya ta dye only when facin' east and standin' with weight on the left foot... run away

the #1 way to ensure good results with dye is to start with good leather.

[NatesLeatherGds]

5 hours ago, JLSleather said:

you'll get a jillion different comments, some more logical than others.  For a baseline startig poing, if you git that fella tellin' ya ta dye only when facin' east and standin' with weight on the left foot... run away

the #1 way to ensure good results with dye is to start with good leather.

ha! good advice all around. Agreed, good leather, good result. Thanks!

[jrdunn]

6 hours ago, JLSleather said:

isn't that eco-flow stuff more of a stain?  ah - no mattter.

you'll get a jillion different comments, some more logical than others.  For a baseline startig poing, if you git that fella tellin' ya ta dye only when facin' east and standin' with weight on the left foot... run away

the #1 way to ensure good results with dye is to start with good leather.

Now, that's a bunch of hooey.  What really maters is your Zodiac sign. . .

[NatesLeatherGds]

4 minutes ago, jrdunn said:

Now, that's a bunch of hooey.  What really maters is your Zodiac sign. . .

I'm now very confused. Facing East, thinking about my Zodiac sign ? I tried it - but the dye was still splotchy.

As always, thanks ladies and gentlemen.