Orange dyefest

[Spyharpy]

Since I had a pile of white FRN knives, I decided to try dyeing FRN as I've done quite a bit of G-10 (foliage green to black). Since I've always wanted an orange Delica, it was time to make one. I disassembled the knives and prepared the handles for the color change. After the solution was mixed (RIT orange dye & near boil water on simmer), I dunked a pair of scales at a time for about a half hour and thoroughly washed them. I added a just a little more dye to the mix after each pair to keep the concentration the same. The knives were put back together without a hitch (blades with matching lock bars). The Dragonfly is pinned construction so I had to dip the entire knife holding it by the blade for about a half hour. The dye doesn't stick to steel so it washed up nicely and was lightly oiled. After all this work, I now have a nice collection of orange Spydercos.

Since I wanted to make some custom versions, I bought an all black Delica for one and used a FFG Delica blade for the second. I replaced the black handles of the all black Delica to create an all orange/black Delica. What a sinister looking knife! I'm not much for CE blades but given there is no black PE blade in current production, I'll settle for this. The other Delica received a FFG blade as well as the Endura.

Amazing what a little color change can do. Well worth the effort.

[Evil D]

Looks awesome...can you bleach color out of FRN? How does the dye hold up to scratching?

[ChrisM]

Nice work. I wish orange would become a regular color for the frn E4/D4 knives.

[712KY]

Those look amazing. Interested to know how the color holds up to normal wear and tear. How deep do you think the dye penetrates the FRN? Also, is the process the same for dying G-10?

K

[cosmo7809]

That orange and black delica is looking VERY good!



Great work.

Love the D-fly too.

[redyps04]

Mmmmmmmmmm..... orange.

[Spyharpy]

Thanks for the comments. I haven't given these knives any pocket carry or use yet but from what I heard the dye should hold up well. Most dunk them for about 5-10 minutes. I let it soak for a half hour for good penetration. Should they scratch, I can simply dye them again. Dyeing the G-10 is the same way.

[5150]

Very nice job Spyharpy! :cool:
Too bad it wasn't possible to turn a fg g10 d-fly into a sick orange like that.
While the ffg one is real sweet, that black 'n orange combo is indeed enviably bad-***!

[bada61265]

makes me want to hunt around for some white frn spyders. awsome , really like the black and orange, not a all black knife fan but this 2 tone really works well.

[Evil D]

I really wish white Delica scales were for sale in the parts kits...that would really be awesome.

[syphen]

Orange looks great! I've been ordering a bunch of the salt series because I love the bright colors. Yellow is great, this orange is even better!!

[cosmo7809]

I really wish white Delica scales were for sale in the parts kits...that would really be awesome.

I agree....








Just saw a white delica go for about 80$ on the bay. :confused:

[Fred Sanford]

That looks really nice. Very swell work.

[bada61265]

wonder if you could dye the yellow salt scales with red and get orange?

[gunnut35]

The black and orange combo looks amazing...
Great job and keep up the good work...

[DM11]

Those look great!!! :)

[gbelleh]

Very nice! I like orange. :)

[Creepo]

wonder if you could dye the yellow salt scales with red and get orange?

Possible yes, easy, probably not.
With these kind of mixes, I hear it's very hard to get the color you want, too long and it'll be a really dark red.

[ryxlyx]

I didn't realize how intense these dye jobs could be! They look fantastic. Thanks for the pictures-- this is something I'll want to play w/--

[MaxM]

That black and orange delica is just pure sex, and the dragonfly is just too cute in orange. :)