Primary Color Dyes as a Substitute for Bottled Tints
You can buy blue, red, and yellow in bulk and make 90% of the colors you would ever want. July 16, 2012
Question
Is there another product that is less expensive than the bottled tints at $15 a pop.
Forum Responses
(Finishing Forum)
From contributor Y:
Yes, and no. Keystone has the exact dyes called Nerosols. Depending on the colors, they range from approximately $70-$160.00 per gallon (8 lbs.). If you mix your own colors that's the way to go.
Look at it this way, black - $70 per gallon divided by 128 oz equals $ 0.54 per ounce. Blue is $165 per gallon divided by 128 and equals $1.28 per oz. (blue being the most expensive of the series) although the cost will vary a little since they are sold by the pound and not the oz. You will still find them to be less expensive rather than purchasing from a middle man who has to cover his cost to repackage/label/advertise/etc. I've been using them since 1981, long before they were on the open market and wouldn't ever use anything else. One of the best industrial dyes available.
From contributor H:
I have been using Chemcraft dye's for years and an additional supplier with whole sale capabilities will be helpful.
From contributor V:
I looked at Chemcraft today and that product is not a concentrate. I’m going to contact Keystone.
From contributor Y:
I don't have a formula specifically for cordovan. I can tell you it would be a mix of black and red with maybe a touch of blue, depending on your definition or the cordovan color you’re using as of now. As I said, with blue, red, and yellow you can mix 95 plus percent of all wood colors. You may have to buy two-three differing ones of each color to match everything, but you will be able to make as many cordovan colors as you wish.
From contributor V:
You can also purchase the General Finishes dyes as they are the same dyes as trans tint but in larger volumes at a lower cost.
From contributor P:
That is true, and you can also get them for SW at a higher price and elsewhere. SW acquires theirs from Keystone so I'm not sure about GF. There are not that many manufacturers of this type of dye here in the USA. What I like about Keystone is that they are an American company in business for almost a century family owned and run and growing and spreading out with pigments and inks and others to provide the associated industries.
