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Thread: dying wood

  1. #1
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    dying wood

    I have an idea I'm thinking about that's not fully developed yet but one of the ways to make it that I think would look the best would be to dye wood. But I would need to get the dye deeply penetrated due to the amount of material that would need to be removed. Of course that's not easily done. But what about slicing veneers 1/8" thick on the bandsaw, dying them (possibly soaking them for a long duration), and then gluing them back together. I was thinking 1/8" because there would be multiple colors and if I sanded to the glue on one of the colors I could sand slightly further with less risk of hitting glue on another color. 1/8" soaked is only 1/16" from each side. I would like the color to be even throughout the wood.

  2. #2
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    My guess is that dye will not penetrate very deeply no matter how long you let it soak. I think you need to pull a vacuum in order to get it to penetrate, like infiltrating resin into lab specimens.

    John

  3. #3
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    Species will make a huge difference. Dying poplar is a lot different than hard maple. The only thing I've seen with full dye penetration is 1/16" veneer that has been in a vacuum chamber,

  4. #4
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    Considering materials and labor it would be more economical to buy the colored veneers. Of course lengths maybe a consideration.
    I have experimented with dying veneer and decided I'd rather be building than dying. You can not do it cheaper and get the same quality.
    Review this site to see if it meets your criteria. https://www.dyed-veneer.com/category-s/161.htm
    No affiliation, just a satisfied customer.

    Tony
    "Only those who have the patience to do simple things perfectly will acquire the skill to do difficult things easily.”
    Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805)

    "Quality means doing it right when no one is looking."
    Henry Ford

  5. #5
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    My wife taught headstart for decades. To die pasta use rubbing alcohol and food color. The alcohol does not attack the pasta like pure water and it dries quickly after a 30 minute soak.
    Soaking wood in a water base dye and drying it will cause some warping and take a few years dry time before using the wood unless you have a kiln. I have no idea how 95%alcohol would effect wood. It is called wood alcohol for a reason.
    Bill D
    Bill D

  6. #6
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    It's been done. It's not pretty.



    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  7. #7
    I think those belonged to Austin Powers.

    Tabu venner from Italy is dyed all the way through. maybe heat and under pressure. Had a grey Birdseye from them years ago pretty stunning. I needed some quarter inch edging so made a stack of veneer to get there worked perfect.

  8. #8
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    You might check out Dymalux by Cousineau Wood Products. Available in 10" x 40" panels in thicknesses ranging from ⅛ to 2". Dyed birch; not cheap. They also sell Spectraply - wider variety of colors but smaller, more limited sizes.
    -- Jim

    Use the right tool for the job.

  9. #9
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    The species doesn't matter too much, just needs to be a hardwood. A vacuum system is not out of the question. All the veneers I've found on line are thin. To get to 3/4" would take 19 sheets of 1mm to get there. Most I've seen are even less than that.

    Rob how thick are each ply? That looks a lot like what I would like to do.

    James Cousineau looks like they might be promising but I didn't see much selection of colors. I'll give them a call this week.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alex Zeller View Post
    The species doesn't matter too much, just needs to be a hardwood. A vacuum system is not out of the question. All the veneers I've found on line are thin. To get to 3/4" would take 19 sheets of 1mm to get there. Most I've seen are even less than that.

    Rob how thick are each ply? That looks a lot like what I would like to do.

    James Cousineau looks like they might be promising but I didn't see much selection of colors. I'll give them a call this week.
    I think about 1/16" (0.062", 1.5mm). These are a series of guitars that Gibson made a few years back called the "Zoot Suit" series. They look worse in person than in the photos.
    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  11. #11
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    Getting deep, through penetration of dye in wood takes a heavy vacuum process to drive the dye into the material thoroughly. I'm honestly not sure that it economically possible to do that in a home shop environment, but I could be wrong about that. There is commercial product out there as has been mentioned...not sure of what the available thicknesses are.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  12. #12
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    It looks like skateboard veneers might work. They are thicker than the typical veneer, 1/16" vs 1/42". So building up enough to do what I want shouldn't be too hard. Since they will be smaller in size, maybe 8" x 12" I think I can tint epoxy and then use my hydraulic shop press to glue them up.

  13. #13
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    Jan 2016
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    Nashville, TN
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    Marc Adams treaches a process for dyeing veener using Rit Dye. It is labor intensive, but does not fade over time.

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