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Tint a canopy??
What is the best way to tint your canopy without making a mess? I would like to try a darkened cockpit this time around.
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RE: Tint a canopy??
Here is what I do (I tint props too..its cool)
I found these posted in the Vectorflight Edge thread... I cannot take credit, but I cannot remember who originally posted them either but it works perfectly for me.... Directions I found on RCU and modified slightly (time and temp) per my findings: 10 Steps to Tinting Canopy Bliss This method works with Lexan canopies using Tintex or Ritt fabric dyes. 1. Clean your canopy with warm water and mild soap, rinse thoroughly. Note: Avoid touching the canopy, oils from your fingers may affect the tinting (use rubber gloves). 3. Find a container larger than your canopy, preferably something you don't intend to use again. 4. Use hot water (140°F), and fill your container to a depth one (1) inch above the canopy. 5. Add 1 cup of vinegar for each gallon of water used. 6. Mix in two parts of black dye and one part of Royal Blue dye thoroughly, there should be no clumps. (Note: This combination will produce a smoked tint. You could also use straight Black or any other color desired. I used 3 total packs of dye in a 10 Gallon plastic garabage can. Perhaps I should have used more dye to reduce the total time needed to get the right level of tint.) 7. Depending on the tint desired this process could take anywhere from 20 minutes up to 12 hours. 8. Once your canopy has reached the desired tint, remove and rinse with cold water. 9. Now marvel at that spectacular tinted canopy, and giggle at how cheap and easy it was to do. 10. Now say to yourself … Damn I’m Good! I did try and maintain the water temp for a couple of hours, but then just kind of left it alone. The other point to make is I prefer a rather dark tint. You may not and others have reported adequate tinting in as little as 20 minutes. This is certainly not an exact science as their are a large number of variables. You just have to work at it until you get what you want. I believe the trick to avoid any chance of warping is to avoid water temp over 140°F and dye the canopy before you trim in any way. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
I've used this method many times. It works great. Does take a little time toget that last shade of darkness.
Walt |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Is there any particular type of dye? Where do you pick it up?
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RE: Tint a canopy??
The tips article referes to Tintex and Ritt. Both are available at supermarkets. I've only used Ritt simply because that's what my market carries.
WT |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Thanks for the reply and info; I will pick some up this morning and give it a shot......
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RE: Tint a canopy??
Good luck. Keeping the water hot helps, but isn;t critical. It just speeds things up. I've used a foam beer cooler for my container. Seems to work.
WT |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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I used the above method with 150 degree water with great results.
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RE: Tint a canopy??
I've also used this method with great success. And as an offshoot, I have also tinted control horns and hinges. It's especially desirable when the white nylon stands out against a dark control surface. That final touch makes all the difference. Obviously you choose the color to suit the situation.
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RE: Tint a canopy??
Two more suggestions. Tint the canopy before cutting it off the mold flanges. They occasionally warp if overheated and the added material helps keep them in shape. Also gives you something to grab that won't smudge the results.
Don't try and economize and use only one color. Black Rit dye alone produces Orange and Navy Blue alone produces light Easter Egg Purple. Leaving it in overnight produces a lovely dark Easter Egg Purple. Equal parts Black and Navy Blue produce a coffee color. All of these also produce lots of off color language. Ask me how I know. I'm the pilot of the only "amber" tint canopy on a Contender 60. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Thanks Charlie; I am going to go with the 2 black, 1 blue mix and leave it over night...... we'll see what shows up in the morning.
jim |
RE: Tint a canopy??
NAVY18,
I have discovered that how long it takes to produce the desired tint depends a lot on the material you are tinting. For example, I died a canopy that came with my GP Super Skybolt kit in about two hours using two RITT boxes. But after soaking in three RITT boxes overnight the canopy that came with a Goldberg kit had not been tinted at all. I presume that it's the quality of the material being dyed. I mention this because you wrote that you would soak your piece overnight. I recommend that you watch it for an hour or two to get a feel for how well the material is responding to the dye. Mike |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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Sounds like a good idea Mike; I will keep an eye on it and see what the first hour or two do.... I know I want a darker shade. Hope to pick up and try this out today. I'll let you know.
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RE: Tint a canopy??
Not all canopies will tint. I forget what the newer ones are made out of but it isn't butrate anymore. It's more like a lexan derivitive. Do make sure that you add vinagar to the pot and believe it or not a little salt helps too.
The chloride helps to etch the dye into the plastic. dennis |
RE: Tint a canopy??
I have a canopy that did not tint in 45 min. Does that meant hat it would not after all might using salt and viniger?
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RE: Tint a canopy??
FWIW, here is Mike Gretz of Sig Mfg. on canopy materials:
<Ted, Alan is right on. SIG canopies are not made of butyrate plastic. They are made of PETG plastic. We haven't used butyrate plastic for at least 10 years, maybe more. If you successfully dyed a SIG canopy in the meantime, you had one that was old stock. Bottom line is PETG will not accept dye of any sort that we have tried. On the plus side, PETG is a lot tougher and doesn't get as brittle with age as butyrate plastic, not to mention that it molds easier on our end. Mike Gretz SIG Mfg. Co.> |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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ORIGINAL: kdheath ... SIG canopies are not made of butyrate plastic. They are made of PETG plastic. ... We haven't used butyrate plastic for at least 10 years, maybe more. If you successfully dyed a SIG canopy in the meantime, you had one that was old stock. Bottom line is PETG will not accept dye of any sort that we have tried. ... Mike Gretz SIG Mfg. Co.> |
RE: Tint a canopy??
I have tinted those white control horns and even bolts with Rit dye. I does make a difference when the back plate for the horn is in a wing
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RE: Tint a canopy??
ORIGINAL: krossk ORIGINAL: kdheath ... SIG canopies are not made of butyrate plastic. They are made of PETG plastic. ... We haven't used butyrate plastic for at least 10 years, maybe more. If you successfully dyed a SIG canopy in the meantime, you had one that was old stock. Bottom line is PETG will not accept dye of any sort that we have tried. ... Mike Gretz SIG Mfg. Co.> |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Same luck here with RIT dye, about a year ago... as Deadeye stated, mine took a while too... and it scratched in a couple of places where I was not too careful with it (i.e., hangar rash) but overall it dyed up OK.
Bob |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Having been unsucessful in dye tinting,many years ago I used to use a transparent paint put out by Testors mainly for model car use. This could be a little hit or miss affair as it was difficult to spray it on even. At a local hardware store I recently found a 200ml.spray can of .... plasti-kote GLASS SPRAY PAINT....... origin unmarked but distributed by.... Master Distributors Pty.Ltd. 11 Howleys Road.Notting Hill.Victoria.Australia.3168. It looks disaster when first sprayed on but drys completely transparent and even shade in about 30 mins.
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RE: Tint a canopy??
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Hi all,
Here is one of my canopies I recently completed. Acrylics, Acetate, Butyrate, Lexan, Plexi, PETG, I haven't found anything yet that I can't tint using the proper chemical combination and employing the right technique. Ben |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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15 seconds in a bath of RIT black dye. No other chemicals, vinegar, etc. Temp was approx. 155*F
I wanted a light tint. 15 seconds is all it took. This is my SIG 4*60 canopy. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
I just tried to tint two canopies. One was from a World Models ARF and the other just a no-name Chinese mfg's "discount" ARF.
Neither of them took a bit of color from 2 packs of black, 1 pack of Navy Blue, vinegar, and salt. I let them sit in the brew in a pot that was sitting over a fan housing that shakes, sort of a poor man's "ultrasonic" bath. They jiggled away for about 3 hours. I'd washed them off with soap before trying to die them just in case there was some kind of mold release or whatever on them. After they failed to take the die, I washed them again and decided to spray paint them with Testor's canopy tint. It's lacquer I think. It usually works halfway decent. It went crazy with spots. I'm guessing that the salt or maybe the vinegar had actually gotten into the plastic and was brought out by the thinner in the lacquer. So I blew time and money on the die, and that wound up screwing up the painting. Some things work, some things don't. And some things don't work and screw you up even more. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
go to aerobob web site. www.rcaerobats.net there he shows a neet way of using Testers tent
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RE: Tint a canopy??
ORIGINAL: teufelhund Hi all, Here is one of my canopies I recently completed. Acrylics, Acetate, Butyrate, Lexan, Plexi, PETG, I haven't found anything yet that I can't tint using the proper chemical combination and employing the right technique. Ben Kerry |
RE: Tint a canopy??
ORIGINAL: Oldbob go to aerobob web site. www.rcaerobats.net there he shows a neet way of using Testers tent thanx V. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Here's my first tint job... posts #2 and #16.
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_3959856/tm.htm They said this canopy couldn't be tinted... The photos make it look darker than it really is... in person it's perfecto! |
RE: Tint a canopy??
If you don't mind my butting in, what temperature was the water that you were using?
Bob M |
RE: Tint a canopy??
The thread that's linked in above says he used the hottest tap water his faucet would give. Most hot water heaters are set in the 130-150 degree range.
The Rit dye packages say to use hot water and mention adding salt and a touch of soap. I used two packages of black, one package of Navy blue, the right amount of salt for the 3 gallons of water I used, and a touch of soap. I had to put in a new hot water heater a couple of months back and it's supplying water that "steams" and you'd not be able to keep your hand under as it comes from the tap without burning your hand. I was a bit worried that it'd warp the two canopies I tried to dye so cut some off the flanges and tested it under the faucet. The Rit instructions mention stirring the stuff so I did about every 5-10 minutes. When the two canopies came out of that dye bath after over 3 hours, they rinsed off as clear and undyed as they went in. I think the 3 packages of Rit dye cost me about $10. That was $10 down the drain. Wish I'd thrown in some shirts or something so the time and money weren't so completely wasted. I also bought a new bucket for this. At least I now have a new bucket. It's a dead simple process that works when it works, and is a total waste when it doesn't. And nobody has said boo about how to predict if your canopy is one that'll dye or not. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Hay VASEK, your right, I just went back to his web site and all the stuff about the tint is gone. Sorry about that. His tint info was part of the write-up he did about the Excelleron 90 he was working on. I guess after he sold the Excelleron he removed all the info about it, which had a net blue tint canopy. As best as I can remember he cleaned the inside of the canopy with alcohol and sprayed just the inside with a couple of coats of Testers Blue Tint and left the outside clear.
I hope this helps, if not, sorry for steering you in the wrong direction. OB |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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Wow Overnight to dye a canopy ,Sorry I don't have that kind of time ,as a rule it takes me less than 30 mins to get the results I want .
I to use rite dye in powdered form the liquid won't work,or hasn't for me .I don't add salt or vinegar or soap either ,maybe i'll try it though . Prep the canopy using hot soapy water and rinse well with cold and dry it off, don't leave any water spots on it . Run hot water in a large pan over the dye and stir it up good as you go,put it on the stove and heat it until the water is just starting to move,Although I don't use one a candy thermometer one would come in handy .160 to 170 degrees is just an estimate .Trim off a edge of the flange and stick it in the dye mix color of your choice,swirl it around for a few secs and rinse it off with COLD water .If the heat is correct there wont be any deformation and the dye will take immediately.Repeat for a darker look and don't use mommas good baking pan ,as she may get rather upset and show you the pan has more uses than you was aware of. The only canopy I couldn't dye was one I got from a buddy off his cloud dancer arf. and I have seen several that use this same sort of material It looked ok just wasn't super clear sort of a distorted look when looking thru it.I'm sorry I don't know what the material was. This may have been the time for the salt ,soap and vinegar trick ??? Anyway I would use rubber gloves the dyes a buggar to get off bare skin and some kitchen tongs help. Oh the mix I use one package dye to 1-1 1/2 gal water approx.If possible I like to submerge the canopy but sometimes the size wont let me so I roll it in the mixture,this seems to work ok. I build many kits a year and so far I haven't found one that couldn't be dyed ,only a few arfs . If the canopy looks clear with no minor orange peel look I would say its dyeable. Heres a couple I did. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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I dont have a clue as to what happened with the pics ,They have been used in here and i've not had this in the past???
I'm sure its operator error *LOL* To err is human to really screw it up use a computer. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
ORIGINAL: Oldbob Hay VASEK, your right, I just went back to his web site and all the stuff about the tint is gone. Sorry about that. His tint info was part of the write-up he did about the Excelleron 90 he was working on. I guess after he sold the Excelleron he removed all the info about it, which had a net blue tint canopy. As best as I can remember he cleaned the inside of the canopy with alcohol and sprayed just the inside with a couple of coats of Testers Blue Tint and left the outside clear. I hope this helps, if not, sorry for steering you in the wrong direction. OB |
RE: Tint a canopy??
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Ok The pics made me a little PO so I had a canopy that was in need of a dye job .This one I used a mixture of black and blue 2-1 and its ok but I wished I would have stayed with just the black.Anyway it took maybe 25-30 secs in the hot dye to make it this dark..
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RE: Tint a canopy??
Did you thouroughly clean the canopy with soap prior to attempting to dye it? The come with a good amount of mold release on them.
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RE: Tint a canopy??
If you're asking me, then yes, I actually cleaned them inside and out with denatured alcohol and then washed them with soap and water. And if anyone didn't wash something that'd had mold release, usually the mold release is only on one side. And most vacuforming is done "naked" anyway.
There was a post awhile back in an earlier thread about how canopies fail to take dye nowadays. It was by somebody from one of the ARF importers. He said that the plastic that was being used nowadays was a type that wouldn't take dye and that none of the recent releases by his company had the old plastic in the canopies. So none of their present ARF canopies would take dye. Unfortunately, he didn't mention any way to identify what plastic you've got. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Hi Teufelhund,
You mention that you can get any plastic to take the tint with the right chemicals, what are the right chemicals??? I've had one canopy that takes the above dying method fine, and another that I have left in the Ritt dye path for a week and has washed off as clear as when I put it in. If you have another method or some additional chemicals that you put in the dye bath i'd love to hear them, Thanks. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
ORIGINAL: teufelhund Hi all, Here is one of my canopies I recently completed. Acrylics, Acetate, Butyrate, Lexan, Plexi, PETG, I haven't found anything yet that I can't tint using the proper chemical combination and employing the right technique. Ben Good for you. The real value of a forum is the sharing of information. It's really nice to share the info that you can tint anything, but it'd be nicer still if you'd share the info on how. It'd be neat just to learn how you identify the clear plastic as to type for starters. Looking forward to your help. Thanks in advance. |
RE: Tint a canopy??
Hi all Great information on tinting canopies..I've always painted them in the past..This time I would like to try tinting one..The color I would like would be a light blue..What colors/color dye/dyes should I try..The canopy is from Sig a ww11 one.
Thanks Dan |
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