Can white decals be dyed with RIT dye?

Drew sorry I forgot my email. scifi77@att.net

Ed

Drew, Send me a photo of what you need. I can help. I make decals. No charge for you.

 Ed Bisconti

Thanks, that answer was what I was looking for.  Hadn't realized the dyed water would be trapped on the clear film of the decal, which, as you said, wouldn't match the (green) paint of the boat it would be applied to.

I still don't understand how "overspraying" with gray wouldn't also overspray the black portion of the shaded numbers, and my hand-painting the white portions gray would be nearly impossible -- these are pretty small numbers.  If you're familiar with the Revell 1/72nd scale PT 109 kit's decal sheet, it is the smallest "109" number on the sheet, intended for the stern 20mm pedestal, which I'd be using three of.    

step back and think about what you just said.

what happens when you introduce a decal to water?  it comes off the backing paper and you will apply it that point, Rit dye and all.

I dye enough costume parts to know that I passionately despise dying anything and that the dye winds up on things never intended to be dyed. The water, dye and all, will be trapped under the decal and any clear parts of the film will show the grey dye which i can pretty much guarantee wont match your paint, and will prevent the decal from properly adhering. As chance would have it I was using RIT grey last night in the sink. It looks nothing like what you would think when it is mixed up. The water looked black-green! 

Best just to lightly spray with grey when done, or apply a very thin filter of grey to tone the white down. You can mask the black areas with graphic low tack tape or even a sliced up yellow sticky pad.

Right, but...I had intended to let the (gray) water cool...

Just didn't know if the colored water would transfer, or dye, the white part of the numbers. 

A fine overspray of paint would also finely overspray the black portion of the shaded numbers, which I don't want.. 

I think it would be far easier to apply the decals and then give them a fine overspray of the grey paint.

Dyeing the decals will not work for one good reason... Water.

• Mix the dye iwith water and heat the mixture.
• Put decals in the hot dyw mix and watch them float off the backing paper and self-destruct in the hot water.