[pianotech] Need help with TransTint

[Chuck Behm]

Hello, everyone - I need some advice on how to best use TransTint for dying
sharps. I'm writing a segment on various approaches used to refinish sharps
that will appear in the September Journal, and have tried numerous products
recommended by other technicians. Most of the products mentioned by others
work well to varying degrees. The TransTint has given me fits, however, and
I'm ready to leave it out entirely, or just recommend that it not be used.

Here's the situation to date. I ordered a bottle of the stuff, and was given
some recommendations over the phone by the supplier. I made the mistake of
not writing everything down that I was told, which came back to haunt me
later.

When the TransTint arrived (in a bottle that seemed quite small for the
price), I foolishly followed label directions and mixed the entire bottle
with water. The effectiveness of the product when mixed according to the
directions was not great, to say the least. It was simply not very opaque,
at least when compared to the other products being tested (Flebing's Leather
Dye, Kiwi Leather Dye, Higgins Calligraphy Ink, and General Finishes Ebony
Dye Stain)/

Assuming I was doing something wrong, I called the supplier again, and told
them what I was doing. "No, no, no!" was the response. Mix the TransTint
with denatured alcohol, not water. Less that 50% alcohol. (I was probably
told this the first time I order, but as I stated, I hadn't written anything
down. My bad.)

"Okay," says I. "Send another bottle."

A second bottle arrived shortly after, along with the bill, and I had at it
again, this time judiciously mixing half the bottle with denatured alcohol,
and saving back the other half in case I blew it a second time.

The results were not good at all. With the other dyes and ink being tested,
drying times of 5 to 10 minutes were observed. With the TransTint
formulation, the stuff was still wet *the next day*. When it finally did
dry, two or three days later, it was splotchy in appearance. Again, I was
positive that I was doing something wrong. Certainly, technicians would not
be recommending this stuff if this was how it was suppose to work.

With a half bottle on reserve, I made one more call to the supplier,
explaining what I had done.

This time I was told that I had left out shellac. You apparently need to use
shellac as the base, Transtint as the colorant and denatured alcohol as the
thinner. (Possibly that was mentioned in the second phone call, possibly
not. I do remember that it was recommended for use when the keystick needs
to be dyed, but I don't recall that it was recommended for the sharp
itself.)

"Aha!" said I. "What ratio?!"

At this point communication became difficult, in that the supplier was
either unable or unwilling to give me a simple recipe for mixing the stuff
up. After asking several times for some idea of how much of each key
ingrediant to mix together, I got the impression I was being stonewalled.
For some reason, I was not meant to partake in this information.

So, here's my question. With a half a bottle left, can anyone give me a
tried and true method of using the stuff that actually produces results.
Otherwise, my recommendation will be not to bother with it. I've bought 2
bottles, and don't plan to buy a third when I can't get a straight answer of
how to use it.

The other products are all easy to use and produce results. Given my choice,
I would choose easy.

Thanks for any info you can share with me. Chuck Behm
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