Maybe I'm late to the party on this and it's well known about the use of alcohol ink to color beads...?
My wife was at a craft store (I was tagging along) and they were demonstrating the use of alcohol ink on metal trinkets. This got me wondering about coloring tungsten beads. There are a lot of different colors of alcohol ink and it's relatively cheap for a bottle ~$4.
Here's what I came up with.
The base tungsten bead was silver-
I colored one bead with crimson alcohol ink-
And one with green alcohol ink-
The stuff is supposed to be waterproof. I put it under the sink and ran water over it and tried scrubbing if off. It appeared to not lose any of its color.
I'm looking forward to playing around with the stuff.
Maybe I'm late to the party on this and it's well known about the use of alcohol ink to color beads...?
My wife was at a craft store (I was tagging along) and they were demonstrating the use of alcohol ink on metal trinkets. This got me wondering about coloring tungsten beads. There are a lot of different colors of alcohol ink and it's relatively cheap for a bottle ~$4.
The stuff is supposed to be waterproof. I put it under the sink and ran water over it and tried scrubbing if off. It appeared to not lose any of its color.
I'm looking forward to playing around with the stuff.
I just tossed a fly that I'd knocked all the chartreuse paint off the bead by missing the water and hitting a rock or barnacle (more than once) - oh, and the fly did get torn up from some teeth and the hook was a bit rusty I can see a use for this, thanks for sharing!
The only problem I see is when someone asks you what color the bead that you're using is and you have to tell them Meadow.
Seriously though, interesting tip!
At the very least, you could keep those asking terribly bewildered . . . "They seem to be liking Latte, Honeycomb & Poppyfield" . . . . Looks like another trip to the craft store is in order, but I want to try it on bead-chain eyes.
Thanks Paul,
Going to the craft shop today. May just be a “hot spot” confidence thing for me, but the PNW rocks cause me to change the weighted bead head due to chips long before the feathers wear out. Not loosing as many flies to poor back casts these days due to Skagit transition.
Really nice find. I have always found satisfaction in fooling a fish with something I've either made or modified. I can see the application in silver bead chain as well. Thanks for the tip.
What about chipping or cracking when it its rocks and other stuff ??? Would really like to know because this is something I would do Because I have time on my hands ...
Steve-stabgnid
Since ink is so thin, I I doubt that "chipping or cracking" would be a problem, however I assume that scratches in the finish may be a distinct possibility pursuant to frequent contact with gravel/rocks.
This us what I like about this forum. The creativity of those who are generous to post the flies they craft, the products they find and adapt and the ideas they come up with. It blows my mind!
I found some of this in a local art shop today and will try it soon. Also want to try it on hooks.
I was thinking about this stuff the other day & the idea to colour a fly reel with it popped into my head! If anyone has tried this or is going to try it? I & i'm sure others here would like to know how it went or goes!
I was thinking about this stuff the other day & the idea to colour a fly reel with it popped into my head! If anyone has tried this or is going to try it? I & i'm sure others here would like to know how it went or goes!
Cool stuff guys,
Just pick some of this stuff up, tried it on some aj hooks and lead and non lead eyes. It also works ok tinsel but don't hold on to the tinsel cause it wicks up the material, now I have purple finger tips. Sorry for the picture quality!
Hey guys,
I thought i would play around with this ink and add it to my solarez epoxy and it works like a charm. It didn’t impact the curing and it opens a whole lot of options, the one thing it didn’t work on was my glow in the dark solarez. It did change the color of the glow in the dark epoxy, but it would not glow.
Tight lines
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