Vinyl Dye is a special kind of paint that is used to paint plastics. Unlike normal paint which puts a color coat on the surface vinyl dye 'seeps' into the plastic and colors it from within. This means that the surface detail of engravings/reliefs is not affected and the paint can not be scratched or peeled away. Vinyl dye does not adhere properly to some surfaces, such as those made of metal and those that have been spraypainted before. It needs some plastic to soak into and form a bond there.
Applying Vinyl Dye
- PAINT IN A WELL VENTILATED AREA. WEARING A MASK IS SUGGESTED.
- Make sure your can is properly shaken up.
- Clean your surface from dust and dirt with some soap and warm water. No priming or sanding is necesarry.
- Spray from as far away as possible in very light coats- dont cover the whole surface.
- Try to avoid running paint. If it runs do nothing about it. It will seep into the plastic.
- Spray several light coats on your surface until its fully covered. Then add a few extra coats for often-touched areas. Allow 5-15 minutes for the paint to dry between coats.
- After you are finished your plastic can be soft for another 12 hours.
If you want to remove spray paint and vinyl dye something try using brake fluid as paint remover. [Have not tested this personally]
If you want to dye some dark plastic, from black to yellow for example, you have to dye it with white dye first, then dye it again in your final color. If you use non-white dye the final color will be a mix of your first and second color.
Vinyl dying acrylic is possible and gives very good results. Painting it from the backside gives you a nice mirror finish. Lightly sanding the surface before painting gives a deeper color.
If you want to paint your IntelliMouse Explorer you have to sand down the surface first so the dye can get into the plastic.
Use vinyl dye to paint cables. The paint will not flake off when bending the cable.
To touch up small areas you can spray vinyl dye into a (non-plastic) container and use a q-tip to apply the paint.