The Da Vinic Code of Dyed Parts.

[ToaTImeLord]

For those who don't know much about recoloring Bionicle and LEGO pieces in general. It is a process in which you dye or paint a piece permanently into a new color.

 

I use a steeping Sharpee method.

You bring water to almost a boil and put the ink sponge of a Sharpee into the water. Once the color is spread evenly in the water drop your pieces in and watch the magic as it changes color.

 

But I have been trying to crack the two great dying mysteries.

Creating clear pieces and recoloring trans parts into new trans colors.

 

In order to create new trans colors you must be able to remove the existing color.

 

So members of BZPower has anyone been able to remove color from a trans piece, or create new trans part colors?

Edited October 15, 2016 by ToaTimeLord

[Kopekemaster]

I don't think you'd be able to recolor a trans color piece in that way. The color in them (as with regular blocks) isn't just printed/painted on, it's the color of the plastic used. Therefore, you can't simply remove it.

My best guess as to how you'd be able to achieve a similar effect would be to get a clear piece and use the same technique you do with others. I don't think you'd be able to get the ultraviolet-light-glow that some of the neon trans pieces have (eg, you put them under a black light and they glow brightly), but it'd probably work decently overall.

 

(Also, this should probably be in LEGO Discussion, not Bionicle.)

[Jeffery Mewtamer]

Yeah, I'm about 99.9% sure nearly all mass produced plastic parts, regardless of manufacturer, have pigment mixed into the plastic while its liquid. Unless we're talking very thin, porous plastic parts, no dye method is going to achieve more than a surface recoloring, and mass-produced plastics aren't porous(if you want porous, you generally have to go for 3-D printing, and even there, the porousness is more of a limitation of the printer than an actual feature of the material).

 

If you want to make custom trans parts, your best bet would probably be to make some silicone molds of the part in question and then cast a copy using a clear resin mixed with the appropriate dye. Sadly, such parts would likely be less durable, and given the precision with which Lego parts fit together, the results might not fit properly with official parts. Not to mention that many parts have details that would make them unsuited to a two-part mold.