How to make Grey Dye

[tat2]

Hello everyone as a leather crafter for 5 years I have made several product to all corners of the world, but never made a grey belt. I bought he suede dye Grey and it is not good for a belt leather. I have tried to dilute the black dye with alcohol and not having much luck. Perhaps I put toooooo much balc in then not enought alcohol.

I would be very greatful to anyones thought on how to make a decent tone of grey.

www.greenmanleather.ca

[Timd]

Check this out I've never used, or seen it used, but they have 3 or 4 shades of gray. Anyone use this stuff?

[cybertracy]

I found a couple reviewsfrom different sites. Would love to hear how it works on vegtan. . .

review (1)

review 2

review 3

[thecapgunkid]

Try this. It is actually a frequently used method historically.

Get a glass jar and make sure it is cleaned out good and all the mayo, jelly, gravy or whatever is gone. It's gotta be glass. Think like a craftsman in pre-industrial ways of life where oil was taken by the teaspoon rather than converted to something at four bucks a gallon. I usually make my last pass at the inside of the jar with some alcohol on cotton rags.

Pack it with fine steel wool. The old timers used iron filings, in abundance from the blacksmith, and probably sat around wishing somebody would invent steel wool.

Now go get some white vinegar. We're partial to Heinz here in Pittsburgh. Pour the vinegar over the steel wool until the jar won't hold anymore. Use the rest to clean your coffee pot.

In about a day, come see what the elves did while you were sleeping. The neatest feature about this kind of dye is that you can't get it on unevenly. Don't take any prisoners when you glop it on, and watch it spread a nice, even charcoal gray on your cowhide. The more you put on, the deeper your shade of gray. Folks get confused assuming that all colonial shoes were balck because of the dye. They were, in fact, only gray until gopped up with grease, oils or whatever in vain attempts to make them shed water a little better.

I've only used this on cowhide, but it works sort of the same way a nail or piece of metal will discolor leather.

Now, then. This is only marginally more harmful to your leather than an alcohol based dye, so make a point of re-moisturizing your leather before applying a finish.

There are several ways to do this, inclusive of neatsfoot oil, olive oil or commercial grade dressings that are devoid of silicon.

The way I did it when I was making shoes for the re-enactors was to go down to the yuppie-duppie health food store and latch onto some liquid lanolin. Then I rendered fat off our steaks on a very low heat until I got about a quart of tallow.

Again using a low heat, mix up the lanolin and the tallow and add some pine or scented oil to make it smell a little sweeter. Hold the beeswax.

You've hit the right combination when you get a thick, jelly like mixture.

This is called Dubbin, it goes on best when warmed, it is great for your hands and You can read all about it by doing searches like Worshipful cordwainers company or honorable cordwainers company or historical shoemaking, and so on.

I like to think of myself of helping out all the vegetarians of the world by helping to get rid of sheep and cows, and all the animal activists by demonstrating that I am revitalizing some poor, dead bovine's soul in a natural way.

I also like the smoothe, wrinkle free surface this adds to my product as time helps it build its patina. I tend not to use the shellacs and coatings commercially available, but, hey...sazeech his own.

Don't shoot yore eye out, kid

The Capgun Kid

[maka]

great info thanks

[Doc Reaper]

This is @ capgun, I have tried that method you explain, I ended up with just wet steelwool. I used 0000 steelwool, white viniger, and a baby food jar. What did I do wrong?

[krappstein]

Hi, Doc. Was the steel wool clean, no oils on it? It also doesn't just happen overnight, you have to let it sit for a while.

Check this thread: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=14946&hl=

[anhurset]

This is simply a recipe for vinegaroon/vinegar black/iron black. Yes a weak versions will turn leather gray, but over time, as the oxidization continues and the leather absorbs oils it will continue to darken until it eventually turns black. It may take years for it to turn black (though I have seen it happen in days, it really depends on the amount of tannins in the leather), but it will happen.

[camano ridge]

Doc, if you buy standard steel wool at the hardware store it needs to be cleaned dip it in acetone let it dry, take a torch to the steel wool if you get any flame frome the steel wool let it bur. then put your steel wool in the vinegar. To get a good potency let it sit for a week or two or longer if you can stand it. Take a test piece dip it and see how quick it turns black. If it takes a while let the roon continue to age. after you use the roon on leather make sure you give it a dip in a baking soda bath then rinse with water. For good information as stated above there is the link posted and a couple other threads on this site on Vinegaroon, also take alook on CASCITY.com forums under FAQ, How toos and look at making old time dyes. Lots of good information on roon.

[Tree Reaper]

TARRAGO Dye is garbage, I tried the grey last year and then opted for grey embossed leather from Springfield which is also garbage, I'm constantly touching it up.

If I wanted grey for another project I would try a penetrating wood stain.

[Doc Reaper]

I found a bottle of gray dye at Zach Whites, last one and I don't have to make vinagroon! I got steel wool from Home Depot and I'll make some groon in the future, like a week from now