Rit Dye G10 help!

Hairlesstwinkie

Hairlesstwinkie

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Feb 4, 2013
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So I'm wanting to dye the brown g10 on my Spyderco Southard Flipper to a navy blue. I have already bought the powder dye and I bought a whitener. I figured it'll be better to change the brown to a white or lighter color then do blue. How should I go about the procedure? How much water do I add for x amount of rit dye? should I just skip the whitening part? Do I boil the dye with the g10, or do simmer? How long will it have to sit in heat? Would royal blue work better?
 
I simmered a set of black G10 Warn scales in the Rit dye remover for 45 minutes-- NADA. I've had little success dyeing G10, but I haven't tried dyeing over a lighter color.
 
I added navy blue RIT dye + salt in water just after it hit the simmering point. Then I turned the heat down slightly.
Seriously, after 12 min with my Southard G10 scale + insert submerged, it was beyond navy blue and into black.
It went too far and I was bummed. Based off my experience, I do not yet understand why it's taking people longer to dye scales and I do not (as of yet) see why I need to bake the scales afterwards or do anything extra.
 
Hairlesstwinkie said:
So I'm wanting to dye the brown g10 on my Spyderco Southard Flipper to a navy blue. I have already bought the powder dye and I bought a whitener. I figured it'll be better to change the brown to a white or lighter color then do blue. How should I go about the procedure? How much water do I add for x amount of rit dye? should I just skip the whitening part? Do I boil the dye with the g10, or do simmer? How long will it have to sit in heat? Would royal blue work better?
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I don't know if the whitener will work with g10, but you can try. I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't do anything. Don't boil the scales, just simmer them. I'm not familiar with the G10 that Spyderco uses, so only submerge them for a couple minutes at a time until you get a feel for how long it will take. The G10 that Benchmade uses is really dense and it took me 90 minutes to dye the scales on my Rift denim blue.

ryxlyx said:
I simmered a set of black G10 Warn scales in the Rit dye remover for 45 minutes-- NADA. I've had little success dyeing G10, but I haven't tried dyeing over a lighter color.
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You can't dye black G10. You can only dye from a lighter color to a darker color.

DagaOculta said:
I added navy blue RIT dye + salt in water just after it hit the simmering point. Then I turned the heat down slightly.
Seriously, after 12 min with my Southard G10 scale + insert submerged, it was beyond navy blue and into black.
It went too far and I was bummed. Based off my experience, I do not yet understand why it's taking people longer to dye scales and I do not (as of yet) see why I need to bake the scales afterwards or do anything extra.
Click to expand...
You don't need to do anything extra except rinse them off in cold water and let them dry. I think the dying time has to do with what kind of G10 is used.
 
I dyed my scales on my 300sn. I used navy blue and boiled water, put the whole pack in, and let it sit in a bowl for 15-20 mins. Came out looking super dark brown.. was hoping for blue, but I kinda like it tho
 
Keep in mind, folks, that whatever color the scales start as will affect the color of your dye job. If your scales are yellow G10, you won't get blue if you dye them blue. If your scales are brown, you'll get a muddy blue-ish brownish color. The kind of G10 may also have some effect on the color and dying time. I have to wonder if peel-ply G10 takes dye better than some others. The denser the material, the longer it will take.

Here is the result of using Cherry Red dye on grey/black G10. You'll notice that it didn't turn out cherry red...
maroonblackrift3.jpg
 
IMAG0667_zps8754496f.jpg


Bottled green. Its a light green. Kelly maybe? I can check later.

Little vinegar, 3/4 bottle, about 4 cups of water. Boiled for about a half hour.

IMAG0663_zpsfd56f003.jpg


I love it!

Edit - yes Kelly green. I suggest a light blue. If it doesn't come out dark enough you can try darker. Also, you can try mixing. I considered Denim blue, but I'm very happy with my results.

Also, I've heard the remover actually does work on dyed g10. Not dyed from the manufacturer, rit dyed. So say you dye your brown blue (supposedly) you can go back to brown.

I wouldn't dye the scale unless you are sure that you want to. I mulled it over for a couple of days after I bought the dye.

I'll check back on this thread in case you have any questions.

Good luck, and have fun!
 
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Oh one last thing. I came across a yt vid where the guy expressly said NOT to use bottled Rit.

That's simply bad info. It may take longer, but done correctly you will get good even results. At least I have the few times I've used it.

Most problems I've seen have occurred because the person dying didn't let it "cook" long enough. It may take an hour. Be persistent!
 
I used a whole box of denim blue to do my Southard. Used about 4 cups of water,simmered for 15 min or so came out great!
I always save the dye in a jar for future use. I also did a Super blue Caly 3.5
 
Strigamort said:
Oh one last thing. I came across a yt vid where the guy expressly said NOT to use bottled Rit.

That's simply bad info. It may take longer, but done correctly you will get good even results. At least I have the few times I've used it.

Most problems I've seen have occurred because the person dying didn't let it "cook" long enough. It may take an hour. Be persistent!
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Bingo! I used bottled Rit for both the blue and the red that I did. Took at least 90 minutes to get the dye to penetrate the G10 that Benchmade uses.
 
I've been cooking this for the last hour and a half... And the blue is barely on. I've used a little salt, almost half a bottle of the dye, and plenty of water. What am I not doing right?
 
Hairlesstwinkie said:
I've been cooking this for the last hour and a half... And the blue is barely on. I've used a little salt, almost half a bottle of the dye, and plenty of water. What am I not doing right?
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How much is plenty of water? You don't want the ratio too far from 1 bottle to 4 cups of water. Do you have any white vinegar? If so try about 1/3 cup with the above mentioned mix. I do believe it helps, although I can't recall why chemically speaking. It's something that I came across when dying delrin. I don't use salt, but I doubt it would hurt. Salt, if I remember correctly, is used when dying clothing.
 
I think I've used more than 4 cups... I don't have any vinegar... Now I'm just letting it simmer... It's collecting some blue, but not enough for the entire thing to be covered in blue.
 
Hairlesstwinkie said:
I think I've used more than 4 cups... I don't have any vinegar... Now I'm just letting it simmer... It's collecting some blue, but not enough for the entire thing to be covered in blue.
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Okay, if it just isn't working I suggest stopping until you can get some vinegar. If nothing else it will help diffuse the frustration. :o

Don't give up though. You'll get it, just save that half bottle for later. Once you've scored the vinegar try a stronger recipe.

Btw, you've probably noticed that the little metal pin on the back of the scale has fallen out. Not sure what that pin is for. Couldn't get a definitive answer in the Spyderco subforum. I just put it back in when I put the scale back on. Any theory on what it's for?
 
Well, any word on what ended up happening? I've been checking back a few times every day. I hope it went well. :)

Let us know if there is anything we can do to help. If nothing else I might be able to do it for you.
 
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