To dye or not to dye?

[jimnolimit]

I was thinking about using Rit dye to change the scale color on my gray para 2 sprint. I was thinking about dyeing it darker grey or med-dark blue. What does everyone think?

[jhb]

its your knife of course, but since they are so limited maybe a more common model would be a better choice to dye? having said that i haven't compiled a list of knives with handles that could be done as you want.....and my guess is the choice is limited to none.

also i guess i could turn my own point around and say using the knife is a bad idea since it's so limited....and when i get mine i plan on using it so.........

[chuck_roxas45]

I have one on the way, thanks again to a generous forum member who kindly sold me his spare when my transaction for one didn't work out.

Oh, and I'm getting it to use.

[gunnut35]

If you are going to use it, then dye it if you want a different color.

[PaulVB]

I would like to dye mine a dark green. Any ideas on whether dark green Rit + grey g10 would equal dark green g10? I'd be sad if it turned out some super ugly shade of brown or something.

[The Deacon]

As others have suggested, if you plan on using it and do not like the factory color, then by all means dye it one you do like. Either of the colors you mention should work fine over light grey and hide grime better, so it's really down to which you prefer.

[jabba359]

I seem to remember a forum member saying that the grey G-10 on this sprint didn't take dye well. I'll search for the thread and edit this post if I find it.

[JNewell]

I was thinking about using Rit dye to change the scale color on my gray para 2 sprint. I was thinking about dyeing it darker grey or med-dark blue. What does everyone think?

I tried several blue and green RIT dyes - no dice. Maybe black would work, dunno. That G10 did NOT want to take the RIT dyes I tried.

[JNewell]

Small addendum: I used liquid RIT dyes on these attempts. I have no reason to think that the powder would work better, but you never know. The dye literally washed off under cold running water.

[gunnut35]

Small addendum: I used liquid RIT dyes on these attempts. I have no reason to think that the powder would work better, but you never know. The dye literally washed off under cold running water.

Did you clean the handles really good first? Allot of times there is a light film of oil on them that you cant even see or feel and the dye just wont take hold.
I am just curious because i am thinking of doing my G10 dragonfly but i have not tried to dye any G10 before.

[JNewell]

Did you clean the handles really good first? Allot of times there is a light film of oil on them that you cant even see or feel and the dye just wont take hold.
I am just curious because i am thinking of doing my G10 dragonfly but i have not tried to dye any G10 before.

The Intel cleanroom guys would have looked sloppy compared to how well I cleaned that knife. You could have safely implanted it in someone's hip. Believe me, it was NASA-clean. :p

[gunnut35]

The Intel cleanroom guys would have looked sloppy compared to how well I cleaned that knife. You could have safely implanted it in someone's hip. Believe me, it was NASA-clean. :p

:eek:

[jimnolimit]

Small addendum: I used liquid RIT dyes on these attempts. I have no reason to think that the powder would work better, but you never know. The dye literally washed off under cold running water.

did you use the dye hot or cold? i was thinking about using the powder and simmering the scales on the stove. sounds like there is a good chance that the epoxy in the G10 is resistant to the dye.

[JNewell]

did you use the dye hot or cold? i was thinking about using the powder and simmering the scales on the stove. sounds like there is a good chance that the epoxy in the G10 is resistant to the dye.

Hot. I've worked with a lot of G10, micarta, etc. This gray G10 has (based on examination under the Mk1 Eyeball ) more epoxy content than a lot of other G10 I've worked with.

Give it a try with the powdered dye. It's possible that there's some difference in how it penetrates. If you do, and if it works, let us know.

I should also point out that there are posts here reporting success with black dye, so maybe different RIT dyes have different chemical compositions that penetrate differently.

[spyderfan123]

its not for nothing that its called a SPRINT run... once you would be happy by not dyeing it

[dmon]

I would leave it as it is, or buy spare black scales from SFO and preserve original.

[dsmegst]

My dye job was done with liquid RIT under a slow boil. The scales were left in for a good 45 mins. The ground surfaces like the edges and chamferring took different tones as the textured sides. One caution Is to somehow suspend the scales with the presentation side down. I had some small deposits form on the top side that sat on the scales and prevented equal dying.

The dye is fairly durable. I left the knife on my fence overnight and throughout the next day, including a rainstorm. And it came through with slight color loss on the exposed side. Normal use, even washing to remove dirt did not effect the dye. I think the UV light really did the damage, not water.

[Mwalle6]

I think a dark green would be cool. Whatever you decide, let us know how it turns out!

[toomzz]

Well it is up to you to decide. I am not getting very warm only because it is a sprintrun. It is your life, and in this lifetime you were so lucky to get this knife :D

My piece of pannekoek; darken it up!

Tomas

[The Deacon]

I would leave it as it is, or buy spare black scales from SFO and preserve original.

Spyderco does not sell scales, so that's not a viable option. Aside from the dye, the other thing that might work is CeraKote or DuraCoat. There's a member here, jforbush, who does both.