ETA:  This being 2019, I am revising my comments.  I no longer advise dyeing "As-New" USGI gear.  WHY?  Because if one's gear/item is in "As-New" condition, then it is likely worth more to a collector as-is, than it is worth to you as a dyed item.  Assuming "As-New" condition, it's value will only increase as time goes by.  I strongly suggest re-considering dyeing any "As-New" USGI, or otherwise Top-Tier Mfr item, because they will likely increase in value as they become scarcer.  YMMV, but my experiences as a long-time collector of USGI field gear bears out this conclusion.  In short, stash away your Excellent condition USGI item, and cash-in some day in the future.  If your item is in [/i]less than Excellent condition, then read on.  YMMV.

I've been experimenting with dyeing the terrible ACU pattern of issued MOLLE gear, as well as 3-color Desert, with
various colors of Rit dye.  With surplus and commercial UCP items being everywhere, and usually cheap, it seemed like a good idea.  What with the Army's eventual switching-over to another camo pattern, UCP items will probably come down in price compared to today's cost.  Besides, companies like London Bridge and Tactical Tailor have occasional sales on UCP items, often at a significant discount.  Why not take advantage of the situation?

ETA: Jun 2019.  I have come to the conclusion that the UCP gear benefits greatly from the contrast between the lighter pixels, and the medium and darker pixels.  The camouflage effect of the breaking-up the silhouette of the gear is enhanced by a very-light dyeing of the lighter pixels, which accept the dye more readily than the medium and dark pixels.  I posted the following on another thread, and this represents my current thoughts; YMMV.

"The straight apple green Rit dye gives a better contrast, but some might find it a bit much, so the 4 to 1 apple green/dark green ratio is an alternative.  For brownish terrains, taupe is the only answer.  Since the lighter pixels will take the dye more than the darker ones, solution strength (amount of dye) and immersion time control the end result.

I have come to think that when dyeing UCP, maintaining the contrast between the lighter pixels and the darker ones is most important.  What color one uses (Green vs. Brown) is important only as regards one's AO.  What really matters is dyeing the lighter pixels the desired tint, but NOT going overboard.  

In any event, some contrast between the various pixels is extremely important, lest the contrast be lost, and the "break-up" of the pattern also be lost.  IOW, some experimentation is extremely useful, and such should be done on "discardable" items.
When dyeing UCP, select the right tint, and go by the maxim that "Less is More". "  END ETA



First, Rit's site:www.ritdye.com  Lots of good info there.  Click the "Techniques" button, then "Basics" and "Tips For Success" buttons.  Read up.  Reading the instructions is seldom time wasted.  Remember: One can dye light colors darker, but never dark colors lighter.  In dyeing UCP camo, the greatest color absorption will be in the lightest areas, tapering-off as the original camo colors get darker.  The darker areas will often take on a color tint of the dye used, but they will also get a bit darker.  So, the trick is to dye UCP with fairly light colors so as to maintain some contrast between light and dark areas, while obtaining the overall color desired.  I've switched from Rit Dk Green to Apple Green for just this reason.

Next, some inexpensive, sacrificial test pouches:http://www.unclesamsretailoutlet.com/MOLLE-II-ACU-Pocket-Set-8465015247624-p/869.htm.  If you're going to experiment, why destroy something useful, more costly, or potentially saleable/tradable?   Disclaimer: no financial interest.  Note: all dyeing was done in a 3-gal enameled stock pot bought at a thrift store.  Water was brought to a near boil, and then dyeing commenced.  As per Rit, Vinegar was added to the dye solution, since nylon was being dyed (Add salt for cotton blend fabrics).

Lessons learned.
1)  HOT water.  Right off the boil.  Speeds the process considerably.
2)  What you see is what you get with nylon gear.  Pull the items when just a tinch darker than you want them.  They will dry and lighten up a little bit.
3)  Have something alongside for a color guide.  Use something physical to refer to, even if just a picture.  Don't depend on memory.  If you're trying to match a particular item, have it there for quick reference.
4)  The concentration of dye matters.  As you dye items, the dye is transferred to the items, and removed from the water.  If you're dyeing a lot of items, you'll probably have to add dye occasionally to replenish what is extracted from the solution.  And also re-heat the solution.
5)  It's usually possible to go darker, but never lighter.  If you dye some items, and they are a bit too light, you can do-over.  OTOH, removing dye from nylon is very problematic, and don't plan on being able to do so.
6)  Be able to manipulate the items while dyeing.  Turning them over and over helps the dye to access all points of the item, and makes for a more even dyeing job.  Make sure you can pull items out of the dye bath quickly and at will.  Tongs, a couple of stainless spatulas, long rubber gloves.  Getting the right shade is very much dependent on pulling the item at the right time.
7)  Read the info at the RIT site.  A lot of the above is stated there, and a lot more.
I try to take all my pix outdoors, under natural light, and in the shade, as I have found that that gives the best (although sometimes imperfect) picture.  If discrepancies between pic and eyeball are observed, I try to compensate with text comments.

I have found that most indoor, artificial light pix are far from representative of the final item, and I don't post such pix.

With near boiling water/dye solution, and a decent dye concentration, I have found that most DCU and UCP items are dyed within minutes, given constant agitation.

Agitation is the key.  When agitated, the item picks up the dye quickly, when the item and the solution are both hot, and dye transference is optimal.  With a cool solution, and/or without agitation, results are far less than optimal.

Just letting the item sit in a steadily cooling dye solution, without agitation does not allow the item to come in contact with enough of the dye, nor in the most effective manner, since the item and the dye solution are not at the optimal temperature.  In addition, agitation serves to expose the entire item to the dye solution, thus preventing portions of the item from not being exposed adequately to the dye solution.

The secret to dyeing is HOT dye solution, sufficient concentration of dye, and be prepared to yank the item once the desired shade is reached.  Simple as that.

Again, even a whole pack just takes minutes to dye green, not an hour.  See my post in the EE on LBT ACU pack dyed green.  That dye job took about 15 minutes, tops.  But that was with HOT dye solution, and constant agitation, using rubber gloves and tongs/spatulas.  (Giving myself an exception about mentioning an item for sale outside the EE because it is directly pertinent, and also a great illustration of what a poster needs to know).

Finally, some pix of early experiments, with comments.

Pic 1) Below is a pack dyed with straight Rit Dk Green; note the undyed ACU item atop the dyed pack.  This pic was taken with a different, and much better camera than following pix, and is a very good representation of how the item appears to the eye.  Pic taken in the shade.


Pic 2) All the items in the pic below were dyed with straight Rit Dark Green dye.  The left side of the picture is more properly exposed than the right side, and consequently the ACU items, in real life are similar to the colors on the left side of the pic.  3-Color Desert item came out more-or-less greenish khaki, a bit like coyote tan.  Sling shown was originally light tan, and straps at the very top of the pack on the right were originally white.



Pic 3) Items in the pic below were initially UCP, and dyed with straight Rit Apple Green dye.  In reality, all the items appear darker and much greener than in the pic.  Some close-ups of the Apple green items tomorrow.



Pic 4) Same items, but from a different perspective.  Note the difference between shade and direct light, which makes a big difference to the camera, but not so much to the eye.  Again, much darker and greener to the eye.


Tomorrow:  How to dye UCP items brown[/i].  They said it couldn't be done.

Taped-up old newspapers can be your friend.  Long rubber/latex gloves are often useful.  Some straight bleach may remove some dye stains.  I use long (barbecue) stainless steel spatulas and spoons (the ones with holes/slits are preferred) to stir and manipulate the dyeing items.  When removing items from the dye bath, two implements are better than one, and have a small tote right next to the dyeing pot so you can drain the item over the dyeing pot, and transfer to the empty tote for transfer to the rinsing station, usually the stainless steel kitchen sink.  Rinse thoroughly.  It is hard to overdo the rinsing part.

More like foliage green, I would say.  Maybe a tinch greener, overall, then typical foliage green.

I once dyed a Blackhawk chest rig with Dk Green, and left it in the dye bath for so long, it was almost indistinguishable from black, except in good, strong light.

Hold off on using the tan dye by itself.  Comes out quite orange, while using brown comes out reddish.  Neither, alone, is useful on nylon UCP gear.  Stay tuned.

As promised, some more dyeing pix, including brown.
Pic 5) Paraclete UCP chest rig below, dyed with two parts Rit Tan and one part Rit Black.


Pic 6) Below is, again, UCP dyed with straight Rit Apple Green, undyed UCP, Coyote Brown, and UCP dyed with 2:1 Rit Tan:Rit Black


Pic 7) Below is UCP dyed two parts Rit Tan and Rit black.  The more orange pouches on the upper and lower right were initially dyed with straight Rit tan, and came out way too orange/red for my taste.  I re-soaked them in the same dye bath that was used for the more brownish pouches, and that killed a bit of the orange/red cast.  I may give them a rinse in some pure Rit Black to see if I can get them to look more like their browner counterparts.


Pic 8) Below is 3-Color Desert, dyed with two parts Rit Tan to one part Rit Black.  Undyed 3-color Desert for comparison.


Pic 9) Below is a close-up of UCP dyed with straight Rit Apple Green dye.

this is a tag for future.

Can you show members your soaking set up and have you tried leather dyes at all?

Not much to show, just a big pot with a lid, set on the stove.

Haven't tried leather dyes.

I haven't tried dyeing red material, nor do I have much experience with using black dye alone.  I imagine that the worst that could happen is that it would darken the red.  I'd go to the Rit site, and use twice the amount of dye they suggest for the weight of your pack.  Let it sit for a long time, and stir often.

After you've rinsed the thing but good, then let dry.  Apply the appropriate waterproofing stuff to the pack, which you can get from McNett or NikWax.

The color balance on your screen might be a little off.

I've used both.  No difference except that one bottle of liquid dye is the equivalent to two boxes.  So, it's cheaper to use the liquid, all other things being equal.

There can be some differences in how the dye "takes" to the material amongst articles from different gear mfrs  I presume this is because the material used by various mfrs differs slightly.  The material used by, say, SDS and other Berry-compliant mfrs is probably much more alike compared to foreign-made material.  This is not to say that the foreign-made material is necessarily inferior to domestic material, but slightly different in some cases. SDS, Paraclete, and Tac Tailor show some very slight differences in taking the dye .  As with reloading, best to segregate items from the different mfrs, and dye items from the same mfr all at the same time.

Coming soon:  The perfect shade of green for ACU, and Coyote Brown based on 3-color desert--or at least close to it.

Stuff is just rinsed and drying as I type.  Need to let it dry out 100% and take pix.  This stuff takes time my friend.

I started a thread on the subject in the NV forum on this Site, and the conclusions were as the above poster says.

So far, NO observable/posted negative results to using Rit dye on otherwise GTG gear/garments.  If the gear/garments have been washed with non-GTG detergents with optical brighteners, then all bets are off.  Have yet to see pix of clothes/gear washed with NG detergents, and subsequently dyed.

Forget about color removal.  I've tried everything, including 25% bleach/water solution with agitation.  It removes a little bit, but nowhere near enough to start from scratch.

The best you can hope for is to re-dye after bleaching, and go MUCH darker, and that usually winds up being very nearly black.

As promised, some further pix of dyed items.  The below pix show  formerly 3-color desert items dyed in Rit Taupe dye:.  The chocolate brown Medic's pouches came out so dark as a result of letting them sit too long in the dye solution.
ETA: Or maybe not.  turns out the dark, chocolate brown Medic's pouches were made for SDS in Vietnam.  They probably have different material than US-made pouches.  In all observable respects, they appear to be better made than GI issue pouches made in the US. For example, they have tan colored zippers (instead of GI black), and the edges of the fabric inside the pouch are bound with tape.

Rit Taupe dye is now my choice for dyeing items brown.  I have some UCP grenade pockets coming from USRO, and I'll test the Taupe on one of them.  I think Taupe will work fine on UCP, as seen in pix by another poster on Pg 1 of this thread.

Pic 10)


Pic 11)


Pic 12)





The next series of pix show formerly UCP items ( with the exception of the formerly 3-color desert radio pouch) that were dyed with 4 parts Rit Apple Green to 1 part Rit Dark green.  
This formula has now become my standard for green dyeing of ACU items.  The two pouches on the lower left of the first pic were originally UCP, and first dyed with Rit Apple Green; I swished them around in the new formula to darken the green a bit.  The other, grayish/foliage colored pouches were originally UCP, and dyed with Rit Dark Green.  I swished them in this new color solution to "green them up" a bit.

Pic 13)


Pic 14)


Pic 15)


Pic 16)


Pic 17)

I would begin with Rit Dk Green dye, and go from there if dyeing 3-color desert items and if one wants a color close to foliage.  It is simpler to use UCP items and Rit Dk Green to get a foliage-like color. though.  

Another poster already posted such pix on Pg 1 of this thread.

I doubt it.  The darkest areas of UCP will always be dark, but will change a bit from dk foliage to dark brown.  Most of the change will occur in the lightest areas if UCP.  I think it perfectly feasible to dye UCP so that it is eminently compatible with Coyote brown, but the pattern will always show through unless one dyes the thing chocolate brown, which would be going too far, IMHO.  With the exception of Taupe, all the tans and various browns offered by Rit turn out WAY too reddish.  So, we are apparently stuck with Taupe as a basis for experimentation--at least for now.  Right now, a bagful of UCP grenade pouches is on sale at USRO.  Buy a bag and experiment.  Post your results here, please.