As it turns out, I am too lazy to keep up with this entirely by myself, so I need help from the dyers of the DGR forums. I think what would be best is if you PM me a good entry into the FAQ that isn't in there yet. That will help me remember to take the time to edit this thread and help it grow.

Questions about masking materials

The vinyl I was using left adhesive all over the disc. How do I get it off?It may sound strange but COLD water and good thumb pressure will ball up the glue, then you roll it off. It's similar to getting gum out of fabric or hair. You just have to rub hard on the glue in the cold water. Do not use abrasives or cleaners, you risk ruining your work.

Questions about plotters

Questions about dip-dyeing

Can I reuse the dye pan for cooking food later?No. Even stainless steel pots will have a small amount of dye residue left no matter how well you clean it. It's safer to just buy a junk pan from a thrift store for this specific purpose. Stainless steel is the best if you plan on using the pan for multiple different colors, as it gets the cleanest when washed.

Is there a way to remove dye from the disc after it's on there?No, once it's there that is it. Dyeing is as permanent as a tattoo. If you goofed, try covering up the goof with more dye and creativity.

Questions about dye in general

How do I post pictures onto the forum?Set up a free account with an image hosting site like Photobucket, and load your photos to the account. Copy and paste the text that looks like this under your picture:

Is there a way to dye a dark disc a lighter color?No known methods yet. Sunlight will bleach a disc's color eventually, but there has been no evidence of using this technique to put an image on a disc.

Should I dye a picture of Colonel Sanders on my Firebird?Yes.

Questions about plastic/factory stamps

What's up with Innova Pro plastic?A: Pending

What's the best way to remove the factory hotstamp?Using 100% acetone, moistening a cotton ball and rubbing gently works without scuffing the disc up. The acetone does all the work, and usually the strength of scrubbing makes little difference. Nail polish remover (diluted acetone) works as well, but is less effective depending upon the % acetone. Other known successful products: Goof-Off,

Can you remove just the color from a hotstamp, leaving the silver foil on the disc?This is a bit tricky, and the results vary from stamp to stamp. Get pure acetone, pour just enough to cover the stamp on the disc, and rinse it about 3-5 seconds later. Do not let the acetone run or your color will stain the disc. Just let drops land on top of the stamp. Another easy way is use a soft sponge, soak it with acetone, then wipe the stamp a couple times, then immediately rinse.

Last edited by ChUcK on Sun May 02, 2010 10:38 am, edited 14 times in total.

We are not like those other golfers. We throw our clubs and keep our balls where they belong. -Ol' Bob

Q.What kind of dye is best? A. Most types of rit brand dye work well by adjusting the pigment content to achieve your desired color. The only rit dye you should be wary about using is dark green, etc.

Q. what can I use to mask discs? A. Masking agents for discs can vary from place to place but you should look for these products. Cricut brand vinyl is available in the crafts section at most Walmarts and comes in 2 12x24 inch sheets for $9.00. Some kinds of contact paper work well. This is a cheap alternative if you can't find anything else. Some tape like thick masking tape is good for quick and simple designs. Hot glue and Elmers brand glue also works well for abstract designs or to mask an already dyed part of a disc.

Q. Can you reuse the frying pan or pot for food? A. I have not really tried but you can pick up a cheap old frying pan at a goodwill store for cheap.

Q. Can you reuse rit dye? A. Absolutely. After my rit dye cools I pour it into a mason jar and label the color it is.

Q. What discs hold dye well? In general premium plastic discs like star(ESP and champion(elite Z) are best but some kinds of pro(elite X) can be used. You may be able to make the dye hold better by roughing the disc up a bit with acetone. Use caution not to overdo this.

Q. How do you stop the disc from falling into the dye? A. The most simple way is to tape some good heat resistant packing tape to the opposite side of the disc and dip it in. When done if there is any sticky residue you can use goo gone and a mr. clean magic eraser to remove it. DO NOT USE ACETONE! This will make the dye bleed.

ChUcK wrote:Gateway doesn't use foil hotstamps. Dave Mac employs a neanderthal with a chisel and a loveless childhood.

Yes, I want a pretty comprehensive list of the Innova "Pro" plastics that are good/bad for dye. So far:

Good- Pro drivers, Old Candy Proline

Bad- KC Pro putters/mids,

Bennett, whenever you have time, go through your saran-wrap threads and see if there are some questions we can add to the list. Eventually the FAQ will kick ass, depending on how much time we put in to it.

We are not like those other golfers. We throw our clubs and keep our balls where they belong. -Ol' Bob

ChUcK wrote:Yes, I want a pretty comprehensive list of the Innova "Pro" plastics that are good/bad for dye. So far:

Good- Pro drivers, Old Candy Proline

Bad- KC Pro putters/mids,

Bennett, whenever you have time, go through your saran-wrap threads and see if there are some questions we can add to the list. Eventually the FAQ will kick ass, depending on how much time we put in to it.

Bad-soft pro putters. Rhynos and pigs. Also, some driving pro has not worked for me. Just recalling on memory some of the softer pro TL discs faded like crazy.

Last edited by riverboy on Fri Feb 12, 2010 11:33 pm, edited 2 times in total.

ChUcK wrote:Gateway doesn't use foil hotstamps. Dave Mac employs a neanderthal with a chisel and a loveless childhood.

Maybe, in addition to a list of pro plastic good/bads, we should have a list for each separate company that is a sliding scale from best to worst for dyeing.

Homebrew, I updated the FAQ by stealing your post, with a bit of editing for general applicability. If that's not cool then let me know and I'll write another answer. I predict it would read just about identical to your answer, though. Actually, what could be interesting is having numerous personal answers for each question. I could add individual responses with color codes, or just add quotes around answers. The quotes would get a bit bulky, though.

What do you think, should I just leave it all with one anonymous, agreed-upon answer, or go for multiple responses?

Speaking of "agreed-upon answer", at any time suggest a modification to an answer if you see fit, or have more to add. Most likely I will make the change unless it is ludicrous. I want this to be a document with many authors. I'll just stitch the pieces together.

We are not like those other golfers. We throw our clubs and keep our balls where they belong. -Ol' Bob

ChUcK wrote:Maybe, in addition to a list of pro plastic good/bads, we should have a list for each separate company that is a sliding scale from best to worst for dyeing.

Homebrew, I updated the FAQ by stealing your post, with a bit of editing for general applicability. If that's not cool then let me know and I'll write another answer. I predict it would read just about identical to your answer, though. Actually, what could be interesting is having numerous personal answers for each question. I could add individual responses with color codes, or just add quotes around answers. The quotes would get a bit bulky, though.

What do you think, should I just leave it all with one anonymous, agreed-upon answer, or go for multiple responses?

Speaking of "agreed-upon answer", at any time suggest a modification to an answer if you see fit, or have more to add. Most likely I will make the change unless it is ludicrous. I want this to be a document with many authors. I'll just stitch the pieces together.

At least for things that are fact we do not need multiple responses. Some more personalized methods would seem fine with multiple answers. I really don't care either way as long as it seems complete.

ChUcK wrote:Gateway doesn't use foil hotstamps. Dave Mac employs a neanderthal with a chisel and a loveless childhood.

I went to the very first pages of the forum and dug through them for some nuggets. Where's Disctribution been? I copied/pasted numerous of his posts. He should be dyeing some stuff again, he knew his shit.

We are not like those other golfers. We throw our clubs and keep our balls where they belong. -Ol' Bob

Plotters:Using a plotter to cut out your designs can be done for as little as few hundred dollars, or can go up into the thousands easily depending on your preferences. A plotter will cut your design out of vinyl, saving a large % of your time and giving perfect lines, perfect circles, and a picture quality image depending on how you go about it. You will still have to weed the negative of the image by hand though. Some computer knowledge is needed as you will now be manipulating your images with software instead of drawing by hand. You will need software that can save to .eps (Encapsulated post-script), a file type that tells your plotter what to cut. And possibly some software that can be used to manipulate your images. Some free programs are MSPaint, Inkscape and Irfanview. But other programs such as CorelDraw, Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator can also be used.