Using Dyes

[robert raess]

i am about to order some 'transtints' dyes,and would like some feedback on your opinions and whether there is something better and or cheaper out there that you like.I do like the fact that the dyes are already in solution..thanks rob

[Don Morris]

Best answers are probably found in Project Finishing Forum

[John TenEyck]

Can't give you any feedback on other dyes, but Transtint dyes work great for me, so I haven't looked at others. Water or alcohol soluble which is a handy feature. In addition to using them as dyes, they work great for me as a toner when added in to shellac or waterbased topcoats. Good info. in their use at Homesteadfinishing.com as well.

[Chris Fournier]

I prefer the Lockwood powdered aniline dyes which are readily available at Lee Valley. The price is right and storing them as powder is compact. I mix up as much full strength dye as I want when I want. This is the best dye for using directly on wood. They are water soluable. I have alcohol dye stains for use in shader finishes but they are not as colour fast as the water based.

[John Toigo]

+1 on Lockwood dyes. However - you can buy them directly from Lockwood and they will sell you a 5 or 6 pak sample set of different colors for a very reasonable price. I usually don;t mix their dyes nearly as strong as they recommend so the sample paks have more than enough.

[Chris Fournier]

Good tip John! I live in Canada and the border kills the economics of buying direct.

I mix full strength to start and I am very careful with the measurements because I want a base line. Once I have a full strength batch I usually end up diluting it significantly to get the effect that I'm after.

Blending these dyes is fun and you can get the colour that you want spot on - for this reason I always stock the primary colours to tweak the mix. Layering the dye - say yellow first, then red and following up with a light brown can create very lively colouration on wood.

[Peter Quinn]

+1 on Lockwood dyes. However - you can buy them directly from Lockwood and they will sell you a 5 or 6 pak sample set of different colors for a very reasonable price. I usually don;t mix their dyes nearly as strong as they recommend so the sample paks have more than enough.

++1 on the Lockwood dyes. Lots of colors, they work well, get some primaries to tweak your blend, mix them up very strong and dilute to reach the desired effect for a given project. This is what I was taught. I think the prices wind up being very reasonable for the volume these powders create.

[Prashun Patel]

I've used Lockwood and Transtint dyes. Either way, a little goes a long way, so the price diff is really insignificant.
The Transtints do make it easy to tweak: Easy to add another drop and it mixes easy.