So I finally got around to dying Ratchet after doing my test run with Minor/Repaint: - OC Targetmaster Testshot thinking that I used too little dye when in fact I actually used too much. So thinking that I doubled what I originally used hoping to get a nice cherry red but instead got a red wine. These pictures don't really do it any justice since in person its really more of a deep deep red instead of the purple-ish color that my camera picked up. But while not the color that I wanted it still looks nice enough that I can live with this mistake. So when dying plastic always start out with a little bit and work your way up to your desired color because you can go darker but not lighter. But all in all I kinda like it because he now a certain charm about him like it's not quite right but it still works, kinda. Cool part is that I originally had the cross on his waist painted red and it ended up flaking off after the dye dried but left the plastic in its original color, so that's something to think about for future projects. Update: So I stripped the red stripe on the forearms and he looks kinda better. I also messed around with some lighting and filters on my phone to get a more accurate representation of how the dye came out.
I used Rit dye all purpose cherry red. You see my problem was now that I realized it was that I was measuring in tablespoons instead of teaspoons so I doubled my mixture that was already tripled what I needed. So that's way he's a deep red wine instead of cherry red.
Yeah it was the liquid dye so definitely start with a small amount and work your way up. And if you have any spare battlemasters lying around you can also practice on them too.
Oh dear.... I'm terribly sorry that this happened. hopefully you'll get better, so don't be so hard on yourself.
Well I have been toying with the idea maybe going down a G2 route, maybe change some of the red paint apps blue. I mean I don't think there's an official color scheme for G2 Ratchet other than that CW botcon figure.
There's two things to watch out for when dying Siege Ratchet. 1 - the amount of dye used, less is more here 2 - how long you let him cook in the dye Don't spend too long on the process, mine came out a darker red than I would have wanted, and while I still like it, definitely would have preferred a lighter cherry red.
Yes it was the stovetop method. I used a small stainless steel pot filled with just enough water to submerge the parts and well just don't measure out in tablespoons. But you want to bring the water to a low boil add your dye and dish soap(instructions on the bottle calls for that, I just used a drop or 2 of Dawn) give it a stir then add your parts and let them soak for 20 minutes with a low heat while stirring occasionally and then remove from heat and soak for another 40 minutes. Just make sure you're wearing gloves while your doing all this rinse off the parts and let them dry. For the hand I just rolled them up in some paper towels but for the waist piece I just dumped it into a bag of dry rice to speed that process up.
Is it weird that I like the purple on him from the camera messup? Almost like a G2 deco or a Darkwing-into-Hydra type of character.
Yeah.. this almost happened to me. I wonder if adding some yellow to the mix would've helped, but maybe I'll try this on the next character that needs it. The darker red adds something new.
Actually that's almost exactly how mine looks in hand, its just my camera really sucks and is making that dark red look purple. So I can improve this by giving the forearms an alcohol bath... This is good to know.
This is one of the reasons I haven’t tried this on mine. I’m afraid I’ll screw it up. That, and I don’t have the time or patience
Man, that's a bummer. That said, that shade of purple is really beautiful; it'd work great for a Decepticon.
