White Dye

[vonFrenchie]

Can anybody tell me where I can get a, close to, white dye? I know white dye doesn't exist, or so I've been told. I was given a nice offer for a nice mahogany body and I want it to be white... but its a beautiful body so I don't want to cover the grain.

[crazymanandy]

The closest dye I've seen to white is grey:

www.woodfinishsupply.com/PLaniline.html

Alternatively, you could opt for a Mary Kay White finish, ala:

reranch.com/reranch/viewtopic.php?t=13761

and

www.warmoth.com/paint/paint.cfm?fuseaction=trans_marykaywhite

CMA

[vonFrenchie]

I saw a "Mary Kay Sunburst" that was really cool but the problem with it was that it went from whiteish pink to pink. The Mary Kay White is pretty much... white, unlike the sunburst.

Thats exactly what I'm looking for, if only I could find a place to buy it from.

[sumgai]

vF,

What you're really trying to do is bleach the wood. That said, you can go about it several ways, some more difficult, some more expensive, and some more attractive in the long run.

My first go-to reference for wood finishes is always Minwax. Check out their color chart, particulary the top one, here:

www.minwax.com/products/woodstain/waterbased-color.cfm


Next, I've been hearing some good things about UGL's ZAR products. Like Minwax, they've got a nice chart, here:

www.ugl.com/zarWoodFinishing/zarWoodStain.php


The WIKIpedia has some words to say on the topic, in general:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_stain


But a much more in-depth article, with some specifics, can be found here:

antiquerestorers.com/Articles/jeff/using_wood_bleach.htm


As usual, when you're stuck in a rut, Google is your friend.


HTH



sumgai

[crazymanandy]

ReRanch has MK white, just not on the product list. You have to ask for it when you order.

CMA

[vonFrenchie]

I found a picture of what I want, exactly, but I lost it. It was a white Danelectro and it looks like someone had put one or two coats of white paint on it and thats all. From afar it looked like it was solid white but from 10-15 feet you could see the grain of the wood. The guitar wasn't painted so much as stained/dyed/bleached.

Do you think the Mary Kay white could give me that effect or would bleach do it or a combination of paints, bleaches and stains?

[lunaalta]

Just an idea (based on furniture stuff my ex missus played with). What about using unfinished wood, putting on white paint and wiping it off (leaving just what is in the woodgrain), to leave a white impression. Then finishing the wood.

[crazymanandy]

vonfrenchie said:

I found a picture of what I want, exactly, but I lost it. It was a white Danelectro and it looks like someone had put one or two coats of white paint on it and thats all. From afar it looked like it was solid white but from 10-15 feet you could see the grain of the wood. The guitar wasn't painted so much as stained/dyed/bleached.

Do you think the Mary Kay white could give me that effect or would bleach do it or a combination of paints, bleaches and stains?

To me, that finish sounds just like MK white. From far away it'll look opaque, but if you get close enough you can see the grain. It also depends on how thick you put it on.

CMA

[badams]

White shoe polish or white leather dye should work. I've used black several times with good results. After you put your clear finish over it, it wont be going anywhere.