Has anyone here used mixol universal tints?

[keith ouellette]

They are sold by woodcraft. They claim to be compatible with many solvents and coatings. You can buy them in a set to custom mix colors. Is this the same as a dye?

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello Keith,
I've not used Mixol - but - I've used rivers of universal colorants over the years.
All of them are the same, in that they are all pigments ground in Ethylene Glycol.
The EC allows them to disperse in almost any type of resin - oil (linseed and alkyd) - latex - epoxy - vinyl. There's a few "exotics" that won't accept them.

They aren't like a dye in that they have no ability on their own to dry.
Even drawn out to near infinity, they are still soft.
They rely on the resin in the materials they are added to for any drying/curing action.

Also - unlike a dye, UC tends to be "cloudy" when added to clears.

For most WW'ing, the color selection is also very limited. It's limited not only by the "paint" type colors of the UC, but also by the strict limitation of how much can be added. Add too much and it will slow or stop the drying ability of what you mixing it with.

Stick with dye - it's easier to use and will give a better effect.
If you desire "colors", use powdered pigments instead.

[Victoria Bingham]

Mixol Universal tints are made in Germany of the finest quality pigments. They have no drying elements whatsoever, as is the definition of a 'tint', and as such never dry out. That is, they may be re-wetted in their bottle, cleaned out of a brush, cleaned off of a surface days weeks months years later. Mixol tints specifically (this is not necessarily true of all tint makes) may be added to the following:
Acrylic Paints, Water Paints, Oil based paints, solvent and water based; waxes, varnishes and glazes, and most types of Venetian Plaster - whether lime based or synthetics.

[Jim Tobias]

Keith,
I've use Mixol tints in some of Target Coatings lacquer (EM6000) and they worked great! They are very high quality. They are also very expensive but if you aren't using large quantities, it's worth it to know you have a good product.
I have one of the small samples packs from probably from Woodcraft(bought it awhile back on sale).
I am trying presently to mix the #23 sample in with some of Target Coatings EM7700(High Build lacquer). Will know more in a few days.

Jim

[Alan Lightstone]

I've used combinations of Mixol and TransTint dyes in shellac, varnish and lacquer to get more complex coloring on some pieces. Worked out well, but keep in mind they are opaque and wil hide grain. I also commonly use them to fix mistakes or grain issues.