Quote:
Originally Posted by CarlitosBonitos
So I have been using rit dye, powder and liquid, I seem to prefer the liquid as i dont have to spend too much time mixing it versus the powder. I am willing to use a different dye if you have any suggestions. Next I put about 4 cups of water to one package/ container of dye, and heat it for a few minutes on medium until it just barely begins to give heat off the top of the surface of the dye, then i take the heat off and touch the side of the pot and make sure it is not too hot, then I tilt the disc at an angle and lower it into the dye, and leave it for 20 minutes and then use semi hot water to wash and peal the vinyl... any suggestions are seriously appreciated. Thanks mang!  |
I use powdered RIT because it's much cheaper than the liquid. I've used the liquid in the past, and I don't think there is much difference. You can get sharp blacks with either one, if you prefer the liquid, stick with it.
SOLUTION:
I'd say that 4 cups is probably a little too diluted. I use 1 1/2 - 2 cups max. The more water you add, the less potent your solution will be. I have two "dying" pans that I use, both are standard 10" x 2" pans. I usually fill them with approximately 1 1/2" of solution, you don't want the disc to be touching the bottom, obviously, but you don't have too be way far away either.
TIMING & HEAT:
I Always heat the solution to a "heavy steam" level, maybe a minute before it starts to boil. Then I turn off the heat completely and immediately drop the disc in. I let it sit for a couple minutes, pull it out and check for airbubbles, then I immediately put it back in for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes I take it out and check it again to make sure everything is going according to plan. At this point it should be getting dark, but not pure black yet. If everything is still good, I put the heat on a low setting (2/10 or something) and let the disc float on that for 3 minutes, then check, if not dark enough, 2 minutes, check, etc.
The disc will get very warm, and that's ok as long as you are
paying attention. Some people might tell you that using this method is an easy way to ruin the disc, and that can be true, if you're not
paying attention. I've used this method for all of my dyes, and I've only messed up one disc. That was when I was first starting to dye, and I was goofing around. This will give you PITCH BLACK results.
If you're uncomfortable, try it with a junky disc first!