Black Dye

[Peter Blair]

I know that my printer combines colours to get black if it doesn't have a black cartridge but I was quite surprised when I purchased a kit of color dye from Color FX and found that the black I bought was actually purple.

Is this to be expected with all dyes or do some of them actually produce a Black?

I continue to 'try' to follow the methods of some Creekers but wonder if the end product I get is a result of the dye rather than the process?

Anyone?

[Greg Just]

For black, I use Fiebings Black Leather Dye. I have had good results with it and it is rather inexpensive.

[Ian Upwood]

I bought the sample kit from ColorFx and the Black was BLACK. you must have a mislabelled bottle.

Ian

[Roger Chandler]

For black, I use Fiebings Black Leather Dye. I have had good results with it and it is rather inexpensive.

I use the same as Greg does..........seems to do the job well.

[robert baccus]

It all looks black until you thin it or sand it thin--have ya'll tried that. my behlen's is also dark purple underneath.-----------------old forester

[John Keeton]

Peter, you may find this thread interesting - http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?150546-Black-is-Black-Not-Really!! (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?150546-Black-is-Black-Not-Really%21%21)

[Peter Blair]

Thanks John. I see I am not alone. My Color FX appears really purple to me, although I share your difficulty in color identification, but based on your experiments I think I'll try the india ink.

[Alan Trout]

Peter.

I know Molly Winton used leather die. She says that is the blackest product she has ever found so you might give that a try as well. I think she told me she gets it from Tandy. If you see her black pieces, they are really black.

Alan

[Todd Bin]

Getting black is a little tricky. most of them are either a really dark blue or perhaps a really dark green. I have found that to make a really black die I take a quart of the General Finishes Ebony dye and add about 1/2 of the india ink container (Not sure the size but it's the same size as what keeton showed in his thread). I don't think the india ink I am using is the water based.

This gives a large volume of very black dye. BTW I got this idea from Charles Neil. (Give credit where credit is due).

~Todd

[David DeCristoforo]

The "best" black dye I have found is Fiebing's USMC Black. It's hard for me to get it because California's VOC regs prohibit selling it here. But it is worth your while to try it because it's very permanent and will totally blacken anything.

[Marvin Hasenak]

This is how I dye my leather projects, first dye it dark blue, then use the USMC black. It comes out BLACK.

[robert baccus]

Thanks John, i needed that!-----------------old forester

[Russell Neyman]

I'm a typical cheapskate woodworker, always looking for a way to save a buck. True ebony is sold by the pound here, so I'm always trying to take dark woods and make them look like ebony. The contrast of a light-colored urn with a black finial and black foot is striking, I think. Typically, I'll made my finials with the less-expensive Madagascar Ebony (darkening the occasional lighter grains) and then make a contrashing base platform with another dark wood (like Purpleheart) and ebonize that.

Has anyone tried ebonizing various woods with steel wool and vinegar? I messed with it, and the combination of that and black shellac (from flakes) gave me pretty good results. Or black paste shoe polish? Haven't done it, but I hear that works, too, on some spieces, and I'm guessing that the waxy nature of it fills in the grain to a large extent.

I find the current trend toward coloring and enhancing wood grains interesting, and have concluded that the alinine dye mixed with denatured alcohol applied with an airbrush is the best way to go for detail work. Some woods are simply too hard to absorb anything, but I will stay tuned here to see what I can gleam from your experiments.

[Prashun Patel]

I have. It's unpredictable for me and takes some time to mix, form, and strain. I did it at first because it was convenient and cheap. But I've since bought some black dye concentrate and it lasts forever with more consistent and versatile results.

FWIW, I found vinegar + steel wool most effective on oak and walnut - meaning most black. I've tested it also on cherry, ash and maple (non scientific!!!) and anecdotally the cherry was turned almost black; the ash and maple got grey.

It's just hard to control.

[Jamie Donaldson]

Prashun, what black dye concentrate did you buy? The ebonizing black process can be intensified in woods with less tannin content by first coating the wood with a mixture of strong tea.

[Prashun Patel]

I purchased Transfast black dye. I will warn you that it's a little more 'blueblack' than I'd like. The best black I've seen was India Ink.

[Robert Henrickson]

Prashun, what black dye concentrate did you buy? The ebonizing black process can be intensified in woods with less tannin content by first coating the wood with a mixture of strong tea.

If the vinegar/steel wool solution is preceded by an initial coat of quebracho 'tea', as described by Brian Boggs [ http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/ebonizing_wood ], even light blond ash will be black, with enough penetration that some finish sanding is possible (especially if you want to enhance the grain.

[Prashun Patel]

Hey, you guys are probably way more experts @ this than I am, but when I was going thru the ebonizing options, it felt like just as modern finishes and abrasives are superior and economical alternatives to their predecessors, so are commercial dyes/inks easier/cheaper and just as good (better?) than traditional methods.

[Jack Gaskins]

+1 on Fiebings leather dye. It is blacker than black! I have used it on several specie of woods and all have stayed black. Not purple not green but black. And it only cost me $1.99 a bottle from the local Tandy Leather shop here in town during an overstock clearance sale.

[Peter Blair]

Thanks everyone!

I didn't realize how much interest and how many comments this question would raise. \\

A lot of very good information and ideas . . . .

For me, I'm going to try India Ink and next trip to the US I'll try to pick up some leather dye from Tandy.

[John Keeton]

Peter, the India ink will do well - just keep in mind that it is water based and will raise the grain. You may want to wet the piece first, sand, then dye.

[Peter Blair]

Thanks John. I had considered that but wasn't sure exactly what difference it would make. I will be sure to try raising the grain first.
Appreciate the heads up.