dye for antler

David

Thank you for your response.

I assume something like Fiebings leather dye.

Do you thin it down with anything? Soak/dip the handle? Just apply like paint? Seal it with anything?

Any help is appreciated.

DeMo
 
I add it just straight from the bottle. No soaking or sealing. It saturates pretty well into the bone on its own. When finished I just buff the handle.
 
That's basically what I do......it does penetrate well (Fiebings) and it will buff well if that's the effect you want.....
 
The best way to see how dye will work is to do a test on a piece of scrape from the same handle material. There was a time I would mix several dye colors together which worked fine but have gotten lazy in my older age. I like Fiebings oil base walnut the best.

Here's a little before and after with a piece of ho hum fossil walrus ivory that was soaked in the dye I just mentioned.

IMG_4281.JPG

IMG_4283.JPG

IMG_4779.JPG

IMG_4788.JPG

IMG_4782.JPG
 
Last edited:
Raymond Richard said:
The best way to see how dye will work is to do a test on a piece of scrape from the same handle material. There was a time I would mix several dye colors together which worked fine but have gotten lazy in my older age. I like Fiebings oil base walnut the best.

Here's a little before and after with a piece of ho hum fossil walrus ivory that was soaked in the dye I just mentioned.


IMG_4281.JPG

IMG_4283.JPG

IMG_4779.JPG

IMG_4788.JPG

IMG_4782.JPG
Click to expand...

Y'all listen to Ray,he knows what he is talking about.
Ray,I dyed some plain looking mammoth ivory with potassium permanganate and it looks a lot like your ivory here does. I will use it one day on a folder.
 
Cal, I scared the crap out of myself years ago with potassium permanganate. It was about the time I started experimenting with different dyes and color agents. Back then I was trying to dye deer shin bone. Started out using Rite Dye in a vacuum bottle without no success. I decided to try the potassium permanganate in the same set up except I didn't rinse out the Rite Dye. Put the bones in the jar and added a vacuum and let it set. Out of the corner of my eye I see the mason jar and it was bubbling. Went to pick up the jar and burnt myself. The PP was attacking the salts from the Rite Dye and was boiling. I picked up the jar with a rag and gentle carried it of the shop thinking it was going to blow up. The deer shin bone still didn't dye well.
 
Gentlemen - thank you for all the responses. I have a whitetail deer antler that I am going to try with the feibing's dye. Unfortunately, I do not have walnut. I do have light brown and dark brown. I'll probably shoot for medium.
 
Potassium permanganate, as defined, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potassium_permanganate

Now my definition, it is wash and wear, if you handle it, wear gloves such as chemical resistant rubber gloves! It will as stated by Raymond, it can and will burn you when it goes through its chemical reactions.

It is an oxidizer, that is why it can't be flown for delivery, (after the incident in the Everglades a few years ago), it must be transported by land only. Refer to this shipping info, http://www.hillbrothers.com/msds/pdf/n/potassium-permanganate.pdf

It is not necessarily permanent on bone or antler, it will lighten with age when not sealed!

It is not always my go to when I want to dye bone/antler for some of the above reasons.

I have dyed antler using oil based dyes and paints rubbed in and the excess rubbed off! I feel I have had limited success at this process so I got to ask!

How do the professionals dye bone? Anyone know??? Is it done in a vacuum like a stabilizing process???
 
I,ve never had good luck dying my own stag but I have dyed bone many times. Stag just doesn't soak up the dye for me. I have used patassium permanganate but don't like the thin layer. I do however send batches to Culpeppers for Amber dye. They have a patent on the process and they won't give out their secret process, believe me I,ve tried to find it out. They charge $25 per pound and it usually takes a month or two to get it back. After it comes back it is solid black and makes your hand black when working it. Takesp several weeks to dry unless it's summer time and will shrink. Lately I've found that most collectors prefer the natural colors instead of the amber. I still like amber the best of all personally. They do have a mahogany dye I'd like to have done sometime.
 
DeMo - I'm "assuming" the antler was originally fairly bleached out 'n white? That sure does look better than the white antler I have here. I might try that on some of it myself. I'll have to get some of that type of dye and see how it works.... well, I do have some Tandy's leather dye, maybe I'll try that on a small test section.

Thanks for starting the thread - got me to thinking more.

Ken H>
 
KenH
I was not necessarily bleached out. It was a year old shed antler. It had some color but not much. Just a plain old shed. I used feibing's oil dye - dark brown. If that helps.
DeMo
 
Thanks DeMo - I have some antler that's pretty bleached out, and some that's got decent color. Just looking for a way to make the bleached out useable.

Ken
 
KenH
If I ever do it again (I'm sure I will, sometime) - I will soak it. I had this knife glued up and q-tipped the dye on the antler handle. Next time, I will soak the antler in the dye before putting the knife together.
DeMo
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top