tinting shellac

[Austin Clark]

I am finding that my shellac isn't going to be dark enough to darken my top as much as I want before it gets too thick....
Can I tint my shellac a bit with behlens solar lux (non grain raising)? It is alcohol based, I am just worried that it may have too much water in it and may soften my fp too much.
The label says it can be used to tint laquer finishes, but says nothing about spirit varnish. (imagine that...)

thanks,
austin

[sunburst]

Try a small batch on a scrap.

You might want to keep some orange and garnet shellacs around.

[Austin Clark]

believe it or not, this is actually a nice garnet shellac (wax free) and my test strips that I always do beforehand came out just right.

I may have gotten more yellow in my staining process than I had in my strips though, because it hasn't ambered as much as the test strips did and is still very bright. Again, I only need it on the top. The rest of it looks great.

are the aniline dyes ok for tinting shellac?

[sunburst]

are the aniline dyes ok for tinting shellac?

I don't really know for sure, but I suspect they'll work.
That's why I suggested mixing a small batch with some of your shellac and trying it on a scrap.

Don't ya just hate it when the test works and the actual event comes out different? Keeps it interesting I guess.

[Luthier Vandross]

There is no stain on the rest of the instrument? If I wanted something darker, and already had a bunch of finish on, I think I'd...

just shellac?

I'd start over, and get the color on the wood.

M

[Bill Snyder]

I finished a mandolin with shellac I had tinted red. I used universal tints I got from a paint store. Just a little tint goes a long way. I wanted it almost opaque so I used the tinted shellac for all of my coats. If I had just done one or two coats with the tinted shellac it would have shown the grain very well.

[Austin Clark]

Thanks for the help, problem solved. When in doubt, go with what you know.
I ended up getting some analine dye and using it to tint the shellac (with great clarity, too!) to get the right color blend with my original stain. I ended up with a really nice dark amber color that I am very pleased with.
Anyway, the analine (aniline?) works well, dries hard,doesn't hide the wood and works fine for f.p.

thanks again,
austin

[sunburst]

Austin,
Thanks. Now I know it will work.

[Lynn Dudenbostel]

Try the StewMac ColorTone stains. They aren't cheap, but they work in alcohol, lacquer, or water. Probably oil too. Easy to handle and measure. I understand they are very lightfast too.

Lynn

[Chris Baird]

During the winter I have a little tin on top of my stove and I throw a little pinion sap into it every morning for a good smell. Anyway, every few weeks I scrape that tin of all the cooked down resin and dissolve it in alcohol. I then reduce that down on the stove, strane it, and that is my shellac toner. It is a rich dark tabacco color.

Admissions of an alchemist.

BTW most dyes used for lacquer and shellac don't work in oils because the oils instantly breakdown the dye and bleach it. Mineral lakes are the thing for coloring oil varnish.