Throw the insides of a couple of dried up markers into your meths and leave them to soak.I always seem to forget to replace the caps and it actually makes decent layout fluid.I just keep throwing in old markers and a little meths to keep it thinned out.

Thank you for the tip. By the way, you can also use "Methylene Blue", which is a powder that gives a very deep blue coloration and is soluble in ethanol.

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. I have seen a few other people recommend this, and it looks like it could be a great alternative too. I must admit, it did not occur to me as I have only encountered methylene blue in dilute concentrations and didn't know about it in powdered form. Cheers

@SpaceMarshalGyorni

3 жыл бұрын

Fun science fact: Live eucaryotic (human or animal) cells will not absorb methylene blue, while dead cells will be stained by it. So it's a very common chemical you'll encounter in almost any lab that does some sort of cell culture, since this method is an easy, quick and cheap way to determine the viability of your culture.

Your channel is so pure and delightful. Thank you wonderful person.

I love your ingenuity! Make it if you can’t get it. That’s what home Machinist do.

Thank your for such an easy solution to Lay Out fluid! I am currently moving my stored machinery and tools, and actually jumped for joy when I "found" my Large Black MarksAll !

G'day everyone. I hope this video is helpful. I would like to point out that the loose tool holder nut problem (starting at 0:00) that I have had in a few problems with in the past has since been fixed with a wing nut and should start appearing in new footage. Cheers. EDIT: Great to hear some alternative solutions in the comments and I will have to look into some of them . If you are looking to deviate from the gentian violet approach, be sure to check that the dye to you choose to use is soluble in Ethanol (or your choice of solvent) and will not react with said solvent. Cheers.

Clever. We featured this video in our homemade tools forum this week and people really liked this one :)

Thank you for this one. I am definitely going to try it out.

Great work around for making your own layout fluid, I love it! Cheer's from the State's!

I'm glad I randomly came across this video. I was thinking of coming up with a layout fluid using shellac but ,like you, Prussian blue is expensive here in NZ. I have a large container of shellac that my dad would use to bond grind stones to a concrete grinder disk after heating the disk and melting the shellac onto it.

@danp1224

3 жыл бұрын

You can make Prussian blue for about $150 you will have heaps. Enough for a life time. You need potassium ferric cyanide and a iron chloride. Check my KZread channel

Using food colouers: you could dry them first, and then resolve them in alcohol bevor adding them to the shellac base

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

I am sure there are many ways to get a dye for this. Wouldn't surprise me if this method worked as long as most of the water was removed. Cheers.

One of the features of layout fluid is that you can mark it without marking your part. It looked like you needed to use enough force to mark the part to get through the shellac, so could be worth testing an even more diluted ratio now you’ve got the building blocks in place

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. I must admit, the shot of the aluminum at the end was scratched much harder than intended. A lighter line, which I would normally do, didn't show up on the camera too well, so I make a much deeper line to better show the line contrast, more akin to what I was seeing in the workshop, rather than what the camera was picking up. A good indication of the line contrast would be on the brass in the final shot.

Thanks for the tip. Yeah was looking for layout fluid everywhere. Nuts!!

Hi temp exhaust paint works great for a extremely fast drying, spray on marking medium. I use it any time I need my layout lines to remain intact when high temp is involved, wont fade when using a cutt-off wheel, plasma cutting etc. Available in almost all auto parts stores:)

Very nice, was looking long time for this kind of excellent video 👍

Everclear and bug juice... this will be a piece of cake 😁 Thanks for another great, helpful video!

Hazar. I've been searching for a good diy marking fluid recipe. It's also fantastic you used products we can source here in Australia.

I suggest using the ink from the permanent marker in your solution. Open up the marker take out the insides and soak it in the shellac mixture. I don't know if it will work but since it's alcohol-based it might work just perfectly.

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

I have seen this method used and it works brilliantly, it gets super saturated, probably more so than what I achieved here. The only down side is that it is not as cost effective as by dye method, but this method is certainly one to recommend.

Thank you for this video. We have the same problem here in South Africa, so I am definitely going to make this.

@moejasss

3 жыл бұрын

Out of curiosity, where would you find shellac? Out of about 10 hardware shops in my town, none of them have shellac

@johanvanrensburg9433

3 жыл бұрын

@@moejasss I have not yet tried. I live in a small town in Limpopo (Modimolle) so I imagine that I will also struggle a bit. Where are you?

This information is gold!

Excellent video! Thanks for the recipe.

I like using permanent marker and for others that do here is a tip. I use an Artline 130 marker as it has more of a wipe than a tip. The wipe is 30mm wide so it covers a large area quickly. It also has a removable cap on the back so it’s easy to refill. I got a couple of the big 330ml jars of Artline ink at half price so I won’t need to buy a new marker for a long time. Great video with good narration and an excellent way to make a more durable set out ink. Cheers Stuart 🇦🇺

@3goldfinger

2 жыл бұрын

Where do you get refill from

What a great idea 💡 👏 thanks I'll be having a go

Potassium permanganate dissolved in methylated spirits or acetone,toughest layout fluid I have ever used

Great video. I have not seen this content before.

When I was in high school in the early 1980s, my shop teacher made layout fluid by putting sheets of carbon paper into a container with isopropyl alcohol. Leave it overnight and pull out the paper the next morning. I still have a little toolbox that we made in class and some of the layout is still visible. Of course, carbon paper is a rare commodity these days, but maybe it's available in art supply stores for tracing.

@AndrossUT

2 ай бұрын

Carbon paper, solvent, and brake fluid was an old school way to make graffiti mop and marker fluid. They used blackboard erasers for the mop heads too

Never would have thought Dykem would be hard to get outside the US. Always fun to save some money and come up with alternative solutions regardless. Dykem does make a layout marker but it's kind of pricey for what it is. If you buy a 10 pack they end up about $4 each, a whole quart (almost 1 liter) of Dykem runs about $25 USD.

Excellent info, thank you.

So cool! Ive been looking for a source of marking fluid but this will do much better!

Great video, thanks for sharing.

@artisanmakes

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching!

The strange thing to me as a Brit is your methylated spirits ( rubbing alcohol for our American friends ) is clear, whereas in the UK our methylated spirits are either of the colours you used to make the layout fluid. Thanks for the recipe, great idea.

@gatekeeper84

3 жыл бұрын

In the US methilated spirits is sold as denatured alcohol. Rubbing alcohol tends to be isopropanol based. Denatured alcohol has bitterants added to discourage consumption, and in most countries a dye is added too for the same purpose.

@wernerhiemer406

3 жыл бұрын

@@gatekeeper84 In Germany it is clear with bitrex and MEK and it costs 1 € in some shops if they are open.

@darnstewart

3 жыл бұрын

@@gatekeeper84 Thanks for the correction, it was an assumption I made years ago.

Excellent idea for sure. Your channel is quite nice. Good video Thank You

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you very much!

Looks very much like Dykem blue. Nicely done

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Near enough is close enough. Cheers

I live in the US where Dykem is available, but not real cheap. I had a bad experience with a Dykem applicator -- one of those small bottles with a felt on one end. I tipped it upside down to apply it and the felt cap came off, drenching my bench and floor with blue. Since then, I've used a large felt-tip pen. The boys at Dykem need to do some product testing.

In my day, there was available small tubes of 'blue paste'. It was used while setting the bearings of the main journal of a crank shaft . The paste was applied to the main journal, put in place, cap tightened. Blue spots on the surface of the bearing was gently scraped off and the process repeated untill most of the bearing surface was blue. Ready for the final assembly .

@fredfarnackle5455

2 жыл бұрын

You are confusing marking blue with engineer's blue. Marking dye for layout - engineer's blue for bearings etc.

Thank you for sharing!

Good idea with this dye!

Gday, thanks for explaining all this, I’m almost out of layout fluid and I’ve been thinking of getting some from the states but the shipping is to bloody expensive, I might be giving this a go I think, cheers

Good solution to a common problem with a well made video. Thumbs Up and a Subscription to support an Aussie battler.

as long as you're going to an art supply store you can find out if they carry alcohol based inks. They're common in the US for artists who use refillable alcohol markers, so ymmv. The inks are also used to dye epoxy resin without adding water to the resin.

Gonna have to remember this

Very good video. I also make my own dye using crystal violette, shellac and alcohol. The rit dye is an interesting option I will try. Thanks

@3goldfinger

2 жыл бұрын

You dilute the shellac in alcohol?

@spicecandies

2 жыл бұрын

@@3goldfinger yes. Both the dye and the shellac are dissolved in alcohol.

In the USA, we have lacquer thinner, which dissolves lacquer instantly and dries much faster than methyl alcohol. It's primary use here is cleaning paint brushes and spills. The fumes are quite nasty but fine in small amounts like layout dye.

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. I am sure that most alcohol solvents should work here.

@markfryer9880

3 жыл бұрын

Paint thinners comes in different grades with different evaporation rates. The automotive paint thinner evaporates the fastest but can and does make your head spin and catches you in the back of your throat from the fumes to a far greater extent than ordinary painters thinners.

Thanks, very useful.

great video

I really like blue Sharpie brush pens for touch-off or scratch pass marking. The brush pens are a lot wetter than the standard markers, so they'll give a good dark mark even at fairly high RPM on the lathe. Their mark isn't very durable, though. For proper layout I use the heady solvent cocktail known as Dykem. As stated in the video it's easy to get in the USA. The shellac stuff doesn't look too bad, but I'm spoiled and would want a more saturated dye. I wonder if the spots are solids that could be filtered out. I'd also want to experiment with mixed solvents to speed drying.

Thanks - I did not know this. 👍👍😎👍👍

Nice….I use the Monster Sharpies. You can get a pack of 4, two blue and two black for 7 dollars. They work wonderful and last a long time.

Fantastic

good tips ironically my first thought was Food Colring as Well but as the Video played i kept thinking about different Inks diluted with Petroleum based Spirits or Thinners comparable for those Inks years ago i worked at a Printing Shop and then they purchased Inks that came in a Paste we scooped onto the Press Rollers for equal Distibution onto the Press Plates FYI this was years before InkJet and other Printing Methods had been developed to be comparable with PersonalComputers

The 'old ways' are sometimes the best and cheapest...like a copper sulphate solution.

Use the ink from am inkjet printer. Pour it into a jar and allow it to evaporate snd thicken a bit. You can also lightly heat it, bu let it cool before the next step. Mix shellac and acetone or nail polish and pour it into the jar. Mix and ass more acetone until the mixture is the proper consistency. Let it evaporate a bit more to thicken and add denatured alcohol. The alcohol allows it to dry slower. You can mix acetone and alcohol to reach an ideal drying time. You can use only alcohol for entire mixture from step one, but alcohol slows the process.

Fabulous idea shellac. The question is will Ali Bright cleaner remove the shellac?

Great video man, I would have never thought about using shellac in this sort of application. Thank you for sharing. When I need a more durable layout and I don’t have dykem I usually would just use a fast drying spray paint from a rattle can. What is your opinion on the spray paint for layout and how do you think it compares to the shellac based layout you make? Again thanks for sharing mate this is awesome and has opened my mind to think up some other uses for shellac in the future.

Thanks man.

G'day, I use a very similar formula except for the dye I use "Liquid Spray Marker Dye". This is the dye you put in herbicides (like Roundup) so you can see which weeds you have sprayed. It is a very intense dye and I bought a 500ml bottle from Bunnings for about $20 and it has lasted a long time. You can get it in different colours as well I think. I also filter the shellac formula through an old stocking or open weave material to get the lumps out. Don't get it on you though, it stains real good.😊

@motorolaarsenarsenysergeye7401

3 жыл бұрын

Pet and Livestock Friendly (Yes/No) No Selective (Yes/No) No Organic (Yes/No) No Fruit and Vegetable Friendly (Yes/No) No

Engineers blue we used to use, comes off easily but that’s good !

Thanks for that, I have been using a marker because Dykem is so expensive. (I try not to use anything more expensive than beer in my shed).

this is a good trick

Maybe helpful to you, I've been getting dy-mark p20 paint marker pens from total tools and have been really happy with its use as a layout fluid, cheap and convenient, big range of colours, handles really well and marks like a layout fluid should

Thanks heaps for sharing this mate I only tried to buy some at my local hardware 2 days ago. If you do small machining jobs I need one done ? NSW Aus.

A shellacking good video 👍

Oil-based polyurethane clear lacquer can be diluted with mineral spirits and adding pigment to that(heavily diluted) may be an easier to obtain alternative since in many places art-stores are the only places that 'might' have shellac...

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah it wouldn't surprise me if this works well, and may be a great alternative. I think it is great that there are so many different ways to make this layout dye. Cheers.

I make mine from weed killer marking dye mixed with metholated spirits. Weed killer dye is a very strong dye.

Food coloring also comes in dry powder form. Precisely because the extra water can throw off the consistency of certain recipes. Give it a shot

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. I didn't see any in the store, but I will keep an eye out. I am sure it would work.

@chadpendt2863

3 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes you usually see them more in confectioners sweets cuz of the icing. try asking your local pastry or bakery where they get theirs?

If prussian blue is available to buy (an artists pigment), then phthalo blue, phthalo green, & dioxazine purple are likely also available and are more staining than prussian blue.

Could have used this a few years ago but found some locally in Tas, where it's hard to get anything more technical than a teatowel🙄 DyMark made in Aus $40 for one litre

Interesting, thanks for the recipe. Have you tried using isopropanol? As a solvent it is similar but it evaporates faster.

@motorolaarsenarsenysergeye7401

3 жыл бұрын

Costs significantly more compared to methylated spirits... 100ml/$10

Great, Thanks you, I can use fountain pen ink, or refill catrige from ink jet printer.. to mix with your alcohol

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

I have many different fountain pen inks, but as far as I am aware they are all water based so it won't work. I am not sure about the make up of the inkjet ink, I believe they are oil based inks so they could work, but that would get pretty expensive. Cheers.

Try soaking the ink holder/wick thing from the marker in your alcohol then add that to the shellac.

What if one purchases shellac at a paint store and adds the dye to it? Possible down side set-up time. For ferrous metals in my opinion nothing beats Blue Vitrol or Copper Sulfate solution.

I cleaned out a rental unit a few years ago, and salvaged at least two litres of gentian violet powder. Guess this gives me a lifetime supply of layout fluid. Lol.

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Now I have to jealous of that. Cheers

Potassium Permanganate, also known as Condy's Crystals, dissolves in methylated spirits, so it might work too. Please try it and let us know if it works in a solution of shellac, and if so how well it serves as a layout fluid.

Here in America we have oil base sharpie that stain very well even into metals

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. Sharpies are great too. I have seen people make great layout dye using them.

All those products are available here in the States very cheap and RIT clothing dye is sold all over the world so it's very accessible and cheap

Hey there, have you seen or used the Dymark brand layout fluid? I've seen it on a few Australian sites for about $35/L

Here in the states it was known as bluing dye. At least that is what my father called it as he was a tool and die maker for 35 years.

@Z-Ack

3 жыл бұрын

Bluing is a process used to treat metal for rust.. is a stain kinda they used a lot on guns back in the day.

@freemab222

3 жыл бұрын

@@Z-Ack You're confusing bluing of steel with laundry bluing.

@freemab222

3 жыл бұрын

Yes, laundry bluing is Prussian blue. I've only seen water solutions of it in the markets, but it might be available as the dry solid.

Blue layout fluid contains Methylene chloride, which is thought by the state of California to be a carcinogen. Probably explains why it can be hard to get. But it's readily available in the UK.

Would Condy's crystals (Potassium permanganate ) work as a colouring agent? It is usually easily accessible at Pharmacies as an antiseptic here in Aus/NZ, and tends to give a rich purple colour in a saturated solution.

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

I had my doubts so I did some research and it looks like it would not work as the permanganate would react with the ethanol

I started making very small pieces of metal from bigger ones in 1970. Never really got into using layout fluid for anything. I must say, however, that even though this was before DRO, every machine had some sort of dial indicator that was set up on it. Every lathe had Trav A Dial, and the mills had optics. Maybe this has something to do with why nobody in that shop used layout fluid.

@jacobjacob5898

2 жыл бұрын

in my experience, it's used for oddball stuff; like indicating a single one off radius that you need to hit with the anvil grinder, making the aluminum soft jaws did in fact get faced off, or random 2nd ops on manual machines that just need to be eyeballed (like cutting a length between a double threaded part on a lathe) in reality, a solid caliper and micrometer will help you more with making quality parts than any layout fluid, but having a bottle is super handy.

great recipe. I will try it out I'm wondering why not buy the 500ml of the Permanent Marker Refill, and apply it with the brush if you need thicker deeper colour layout and/or use it to refill your permanent markers as well

@artisanmakes

2 жыл бұрын

I have heard that it works too, im sure that there are lots of recipes that work. This just works for me

@TigerCarpenter

2 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes thanks for your reply! I've just ordered 500ml of the Permanent Marker Refill, and I'll test it as soon as I have it. who knows I will have to add something to it, to make it dry faster and be more resistant to wiping off (maybe your ingredients like Shellac + Isopropyl / Rubbing Alcohol) it might work as it is, time will reveal the results, and I'll update my comment here

Nice video, quite interesting, maybe the RIT dye washes off hands and clothes easier as well? Local Aus options include Dymark, who manufacture and sell 1L packs of layout fluid for $30. Postage is $10 or something :) Cheers

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers mate, I'll keep an eye out. Last time I saw some for sale it was about $50 a bottle. If see it again I'll have to grab some and compare with the shellac layout fluid. Mine seems to be more affordable tough.

@7duser10

3 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes I would definately be interested to see a comparison. Certainly easier just to mix up a different colour. I have heard that the 'new' Dykem fluid is not as good as the old. Could be interesting if you get your hands on some 👍

@qantse

3 жыл бұрын

@@7duser10 Thanks, ill keep my eyes out for a deal then. I have heard quite a few complaints about dykem too, especially the spray on version. I should have also noted before the shellac was the best option for me since I already had the bottle. Cheers

@EvilGTV

3 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes If you're in Melbourne Cost Less Bolts has it for $33, AA Industrial supplies in Bayswater have it for $35. If NSW Gasweld also list it for $33, although they show out of stock on the website I'm sure they can get it in. Failing that any decent industrial supplier or bearing place should be able to order it in. If they try and stiff you $50+ bucks for it, tell them to sharpen their pencil.

@HM-Projects

3 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes www.bstgroup.com.au/engineers-layout-ink.html

Have you tried stamp pad ink?

What about using a new marker (the inside sponge) as a dye for your sellack mixture?

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

I have not tested that out. I am not sure how it world work, if the shellac would dry out inside the marker or not. I do not think it would suit my application as I tend to apply a pretty heavy layer to get a deep and saturated coating, hence why I use a brush. Cheers

Nice work 👍 I think you are used too much shellac but I love your great idea

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. It may be possible I used slightly too much but it seems to work really well for me. The ratio I used is still much lower than what is recommended for a French polish, this this ratio is still very low.

G’day champ, no one else in the comments asked, but what’s with the shellac? Cheers

Looking at the way this dries it seems quite close to the layout fluid I have here. One option for coloring could be to try some ink, not sure how much you would need and how cost effective it will be though

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. I could see ink working depending on the type. I have seen some people use sharpie oil based ink to dye the layout fluid, however that option can be a little expensive.

!00% Methylated Spirits ... shellac .... Prussian Blue which is available from Art Suppliers. Prussian Blue is a very fine powder and you will need to stir your concoction each time you use it.

Hi mate, Im not sure what part of Australia you're in, Im in SE Queensland and Autobarn in my home town sells Prussian blue 22ml tube for $21.99 and I found 500ml Dy-mark engineers layout blue at Sympac or Wilsons ( not sure if you have that shop ) for $53 🤙

Rit Dye? (Mentioned later in the vid.) How about Transtint?

J'utilise un feutre servant à marquer le bétail c'est efficace et vraiment pas cher dans un magasin agricole, moinss de 2 €. Cdlt

Why wouldnt you break open the marker, denatured alcohol and shellac?? With just enough alcohol to dissolve the shellac...

Thank you for sharing. 1 question, Can Isopropyl Alcohol be substituted with Methylated Spirit?

@artisanmakes

2 жыл бұрын

I am quite sure that Isopropyl could be substituted, so as long as the dye you use is soluble in it. Cheers

@pgsibilo

2 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes Thank very much 👍👍👍

Wonder why it's so hard to find out of the US??

Shellac! I tried to make some fluid with Quinacridone magenta and metho but that just didnt work. Too strong.

Sweet cheese and bacon this is exactly what I needed(only I dont have shelack anywhere I live even in lowes😓)

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Cheers. Shellac is also commonly sold as French polish, although the exact concentration of shellac to alcohol would be an unknown. Alternatively they can be sourced from the internet

@nullsnaggle5198

3 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes nice thank you my lad

@mrman1536

3 жыл бұрын

Try your local paint store "not automotive" .

@nullsnaggle5198

3 жыл бұрын

@@mrman1536 sadly the closest one of those is about 100+ miles away😌

what is shellac made from is their any substitutes for it

@andyl3361

2 жыл бұрын

Shellac is the shell of a Lac beetle, yes I am serious. It has many uses but traditionally used as a finish on timber furniture.

But does this have the same ohhhh sooo sweet fragrance of Dye-Chem?

Curious if you are able to pick up Prussian Blue from your auto parts store in Australia like you can in America?

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

Australia does not a great range of auto store brands. I had a quick look online and sadly auto stores are not an option for finding it. Cheers

@squatchhammer7215

3 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes damn, I was hoping that it would be a good source for Prussian Blue.

@andyl3361

2 жыл бұрын

@@artisanmakes Repco have a product called "bearing blue" in a tube by permatex which is oil based.

good morning I used: 97% ethyl alcohol shellac and prussian blue - powder are the same products you used? thank you Greetings valter

@artisanmakes

3 жыл бұрын

The ethyl alcohol here in Australia is 95% and I used an off the shelf fabric dye, but Prussian blue pigment has certainly been used. I linked a recipe in the video description to a post about a forum user making layout dye with prussian blue.