Staining Question

[BobbyF]

Hi apostles,
     I think of this forum as the go to bible and all the Pards as apostles generously spreading the good word and solving the mysteries of leather.
     I'm almost ready to post a pic of my first holster. I am at the staining phase and stumped. I bought brown dye from Tandy, it is too dark. I bought light brown still too dark. I would like it to be be a little darker than natural. My question is can I thin it to a lighter shade by adding water or some other agent. I'm using Fiebings leather dye. Also is there a clear product I could use instead. Thank you all- BobbyF

[Marshal Will Wingam]

You may be able to thin it with alcohol. I don't use Tandy dyes but they may be solvent based. Try it with a small sample and see how it works before you commit your holster to it.

[Camano Ridge]

The Tandy Ecoflo dyes are water based and can be thinned with water. However if you want it just a little darker then natural. You might try oiling and suntanning. Rub some Extra Virgin Olive oil or neats foot oil (true 100% not compound) then lay in the sun for several hours until you get the shade you want.

[Graveyard Jack]

He said in the OP he's using Fiebings.

This is what the EcoFlo Professional Waterstain in light brown looks like.




The medium brown looks like this if you put two coats on it. Didn't realize the finish was going to darken it so much.

[Camano Ridge]

your right I missed the Fiebings just seen dye from Tandy.

[Nasty Nate]

Thinking it may be the way it was applied? I still haven't gotten the browns down pat yet. But I do spray my browns with an airbrush now. When I first started last year I was applying by sponge and sometimes it came out way too dark. 

[Bugscuffle]

Fiebings is alcohol based and you can cut it with either water or alcohol. Applying it with a sponge or cloth wet with the dye will make it come out darker for some reason. If you want a lighter color, you might try the Eco-Flo desert tan. That will still come out pretty dark though. The bottom line answer to your question is, yes, you can cut it. I use water on the Eco-Flo and alcohol on the Fiebings. The alcohol based dye soaks in better and deeper, but they all do the same thing.

[ChuckBurrows]

1) Yes you can thin your dye - as noted water for eco-flow and alcohol (or acetone) for spirit dyes such as Fiebings
2) To help keep the leather lighter no matter what color or type used - first dampen the leather with water ( I use a cheap spray bottle and spritz it well) - the water will open the pores for better absorption but also will keep the dye from going as dark...

[Massive]

I use the water trick as a means of getting the colour more even.  But I also find it dillutes the shade, possibly because there is so much water in there, that it is not going to go on as heavy.

Ecoflo has it's pluses, but I still prefer the Fiebings for a lot of stuff.  Edges also.

[BobbyF]

Dear Pards, thanks for all the staining tips. I'm glad I waited to read them before I jumped into it. I keep a note book with all of your tips and techniques, it's getting fatter by the day. I am slow with the mechanics, but I'm sure practice will help and I'm retired so time is not an issue. Note to Craig C: I liked the light color on auto holster and especially the the trim tooling, I hope to copy the pattern, hope you don't mind it's just for my use.thank you all --BobbyF

[Trailrider]

One thing I do when I need to make leather goods with a non-factory Fiebing's dye is to take a scrap piece of leather, and experiment with water, alcohol, and other color dyes until I get it right.  Keep in mind, that you need to keep careful records of what you have done. Also, remember that different pieces of leather, even different places on the same hide, will often absorb the dye differently, resulting in differences in shade and darkness.

[Graveyard Jack]

Note to Craig C: I liked the light color on auto holster and especially the the trim tooling, I hope to copy the pattern, hope you don't mind it's just for my use.

By all means my friend! That was just supposed to be a quick `n dirty holster I came up with for woods bummin' and shooting on the farm but it turned out really nice. Guy ordered one just like it yesterday. Basically a modified Threepersons pattern with an open toe but enclosed triggerguard. Border stamping inspired by some of Chuck's work.