Preventing Balck Dye Lifting When Using Resolene...

[thekid77]

Trying to minimize/prevent black dye from lifitng while applying acrylic resolene. I am working with 50/50 Fiebing's Acrylic Resolene/water and Tandy eco-flo charcoal black water-based dye...I dont have access to an airbrush or I would just try spraying it on to prevent the dye from lifting...

What do you guys think about mixing some eco-flo black dye with resolene to prevent black dye lift while applying the resolene?

I don't know if mixing the two products is even safe, or if it will be effective??? Can anyone chime in on this? Thanks all

[paprhangr]

Fiebings Pro Oil dye

[Dwight]

Two things will limit this, . . . but I have never found anything to totally prevent this:

As paperhangr said, . . . use Feibings pro oil dye

Get an older (really soft, . . . like almost worn out) wash cloth, . . . and buff the piece until no more pigment comes off. What is happening in reality is there are little gidget sized pieces of pigment laying on the surface of your product. Buffing can remove "most" of them. Finishing will sometimes also remove some, . . . and they wind up in your brush, . . . and are transferred into your beaker containing the finish.

I keep a beaker of "black" resolene, . . . and one for "browns". It is the answer that works for me. But I also buff until the product shines before I top coat it.

May God bless,

Dwight

[Double U Leather]

I've found a couple ways around this. First, as has been mentioned, try using an oil based dye. The oil based doesn't seem as shiny and glossy, but if that is okay then go that route. The other way to go that has worked for me is using Angelus Pro Black dye. However, instead of rubbing the Clear Lac on with a piece of wool, I started using RTC by Bee Natural. It comes in a bottle that you can just spray on. That seems to work well for me. Like has been said, a good thorough buffing is necessary regardless. I cringe when I get an order with black dye on it somewhere. I've had more than one order be ruined by the lifting/smearing that black does. Anyway, I hope that helps.

[paprhangr]

I bought my first airbrush recently, it does a great job applying dye and resolene. Cheap and easy to use too.

[olds cool]

Your biggest problem is that Tandy black. I have the same crap, and I do mean crap. It doesn't get down into the leather that way a good Fiebings dye will. Most of it lays on the surface and with a good buffing, it will start showing brown underneath. This can be used to your favor if you want a weathered looking piece but not when you want solid shiny black. If I knew of a good way to make this junk work, I'd gladly share it but alas I don't. The only thing I have heard that works well for the resolene application in the airbrush method. As for the accessibility of an airbrush, is it the cost of one or the lack of a compressor that's a problem? If you have a compressor, a lot of guys have had good luck with the cheap Harbor Freight airbrushes, less than $15. You don't need a fantastic $150 airbrush to spray dye. You aren't doing intricate artwork. They don't take a lot of pressure so even one of those small pancake compressors can handle it.

[thekid77]

Thank you all for the sharing your expertise!!! I really appreciate it!!

I've been researching the subject and found out that black resolene exists!! Haha, news to me, but a couple of guys on Springfield leather youtube channel demo its application, and it seems to work...i'll give it a try )

Thanks again!!!

[Geneva]

Odds cool hit this one on the head. Eco flo is crap. Get the Feibings dye either in Pro grade or regular without the oil. Resolene is an ammonia based finish it penetrates the leather with no problem. Once it is applied there is nothing that will penetrate the finish it provides. Make sure your piece is dry before applying it. I use the Black Resolene also. Make sure your leather piece is dry before applying. I use a piece of sheep skin with the wool as an applicator it can be rinsed out with hot water before it dries. Good luck on your next project with black dye.

[OdinUK]

I have not used Resolene much but I will be using it on a pair of black (with a white tooled logo) bracers that I'm about to start making. I will be using an airbrush to spray it 50/50 with water. I will try it on some scraps that I'll prepare first before using it on my project. I'm sure I'll find your advise useful too

[Feraud]

Get an older (really soft, . . . like almost worn out) wash cloth, . . . and buff the piece until no more pigment comes off. What is happening in reality is there are little gidget sized pieces of pigment laying on the surface of your product. Buffing can remove "most" of them. Finishing will sometimes also remove some, . . . and they wind up in your brush, . . . and are transferred into your beaker containing the finish.

Great advice. Buffing the surface is an essential step in the process!

[thekid77]

Update...i tried something I didn't think would work and it did...

So, after buffing a black dyed piece of leather, completely dry, I applied 50/50 resolene+water...i got some dye lift in certain areas...i then waited for the first coat to dry, then got a rag and tipped a bottle of black dye onto it, followed by tipping the bottle of resolene over the black dye on the rag...i swirled it around over the piece, darkening the areas where the dye had lifted and let it cure...i tried splashing the piece with water and there was no pigment rubbing off!

Could this be the ticket? Has anyone else tried this?