Need help with dyeing leather red

fumbler

fumbler

Joined
May 19, 2009
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I have to admit, I hate making sheaths. Usually if someone asks what kind of leather sheath I'll make I'll reply with Henry Ford's "you can have whatever color you want as long as it's black."

However, I've got a friend who really wants some red sheaths to match the fiber liners in a couple of knives. I purchased some Fiebing's red oil dye and I just can't get the color right. I have a hard time getting the intensity right, regardless of intensity it has a purplish hue, and it's splotchy. The dye is the correct color when it's on white paper towels. I've tried diluting with alcohol and it helps a tiny bit with the evenness, but it's still purplish.

Anyone have any tips?

This is the color I'm trying to match. It's basically a generic bright red.
Parker 1a.jpg
 
Try the dye on a scrap piece and follow it with a wipe with their acrylic finisher. I had that issue with a purplish green metallic sheen which came right off when wiped with the acrylic sealer and allowed to dry

-Page
 
I had a similar situation on a project this past summer...it involved red no less...I ended up using an acrylic paint my brother mixed for me (he's a painter) and it's held up pretty well from what I understand...it was on a guitar strap.
It wasn't a whole lot of solid coverage, just some outlines here and there.
 
Take some scrap as sunshadow suggested, clean it well with denatured alcohol (rubbing alcohol will work in a pinch) let it dry thoroughly.

Swirl the dye on quickly and evenly (learned that from Stohlman) The thing about oil dye is that it has a long cure time and always looks splotchy till it is fully cured.

If that doesn't work, then I'd suggest the regular Pro Dye, spirit based, it has always dyed nice and bright for me, often too bright. Takes a few applications to get it a nice and deep color.

Almost looks hot pink in the picture, this is regular Pro Dye.
ak4-1.jpg
 
If that doesn't work, then I'd suggest the regular Pro Dye, spirit based,
Click to expand...
Just an FYI - Both the Oil Dye and the Pro Dye are spirit based - there is NO oil in the Oil Dye per the MSDS - per Fiebings the Oil Dye is an improved version of their original spirit based pro-Dye. Why they called it oil dye I'm not sure, but back in the "old days" many pros did make their own improved dye by adding oil to the spirit dye so maybe.....

For colors like red, try Angelus Leather Dyes - they work better for me - I get mine from Springfield Leather or Dharma Trading but their are other sources. Red is a tough one no matter what though since it's a "transient" color

To prevent splotches dampen the leather BEFORE dying - I use 70% rubbing alcohol - Al Stohlman recommended a LIGHT coat of mineral oil first. Once dry be sure and buff the leather well with a clean dry cloth to remove the surface residue before adding any finish.
 
:D Its just easier to separate the two, saying Pro Oil and Pro Dye sometimes become interchangeable.

I have the book where Stohlman talks of loading his dauber with mineral oil before dipping it in the dye, he does warn of over dipping in the mineral oil as it will cause a swirling of the dye. A nifty effect if desired. I haven't tried mineral oil yet, but its coming close on colors like saddle tan. That is one color that makes me want to pull my beard out by the roots sometimes. :p

I got the above effect simply cleaning the leather and applying the dye. Since red is so translucent it takes several coats to get the desired color anyhow, so any missed strokes are covered by the last. :)

I'm going to look into those Angelus dyes, sounds interesting.
 
sunshadow said:
Try the dye on a scrap piece and follow it with a wipe with their acrylic finisher. I had that issue with a purplish green metallic sheen which came right off when wiped with the acrylic sealer and allowed to dry

-Page
Click to expand...

What kind of finish does the acrylic provide? I don't want a plastic looking finish.

leatherman said:
I got the above effect simply cleaning the leather and applying the dye. Since red is so translucent it takes several coats to get the desired color anyhow, so any missed strokes are covered by the last. :)
Click to expand...
I cleaned with alcohol before applying the dye. Maybe I just need to experiment more with how wet the leather is before applying the dye.

Thanks everyone for the comments. I'll just keep on trying. If it doesn't work I'll try some of that Angelus stuff.
 
Oddly enough the Cranberry color from Eco-Flo was been a cool red for me.
I primarily airbrush solid color on and I can control the shades with airbrush with no splotching.

--Biz
 
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