Help with a Desert Smock

[Rabbitsmacker]

Really good job, can u see the print thru it at all? Looks like a complete take on the dye!

 

[Badger74]

You can see the pattern just, BUT, only if you look very very closely and know it was desert camo to start with.

 

[The Lord Poncho]

tried this with a newer cotton dessie smock and the irr coating stopped the dye from taking, now trying to work out how to remove the coating.

There is no IRR coating as such on smocks, the actual dye used has IRR properties. The reason the dye didn't take as well would be becuase the newer ones are not 100% cotton, and have a lot of polyester in the mix (and if the water repellent treatment is still present, this wouldn't have helped either).

 

[spandit]

That's interesting, Lord Poncho. My 94 pattern smock says "wash as cotton" on the label so hope it will take a dyeing. I'll give it a wash anyway so hopefully that will strip some of the waterproofing away

 

[spandit]

It's boiling in tea (160 teabags) right now, if it doesn't turn it darker I'm hoping it strips the IRR/waterproofing off

 

[spandit]

Well, that didn't work

Might be slightly darker but difficult to tell as still wet. Will try a proper dye in due course

 

[Rabbitsmacker]

Like to see it when you've dyed it? Being all cotton it should take well.

 

[andybysea]

I dyed some jungle dpm (stuff from dragon supplies to bright at first) olive green, again it didnt really do much but make it darker,but it is better than how it was before.

 

[spandit]

Well, it's in the machine. Using Dylon "Fabri Colour" black. Quietly confident

 

[spandit]

Hmmmm... when I took it out I was initially impressed but after a couple of minutes you could quite clearly see it was a camouflage jacket. Put it back in to wash the excess out & will then take photos. At least it will be clean...

 

[Wildgoose]

I had the same with some arctic mitts. I wanted the dpm backs to be black. Initially the dye took well, but after rinsing just ran off. Left me with a darker almost greyed dpm.

 

[spandit]

It does look a bit darker but it's not dry yet. I wonder whether I should've used two packs. I think the tan has mostly disappeared but the dark green is still there. Photos to follow

 

[spandit]

Before:

After:

You can see the tan turned dark green, oddly. Still looks camouflage but not so DPM.

 

[Rabbitsmacker]

Hasn't taken as well as I thought it would, surprised that so much green shows up, I thought those 94 patt smocks were all cotton. Strange. U gonna try another packet?

 

[spandit]

I might do. At £5 a time + salt + washing machine power it could get expensive. Wish I'd used 2 packets originally now...