Blue Range!
Posted: 14 Feb 2017 09:50
In another topic, I mentioned that I was going to paint my pistol pad blue to see how the brass stood out. I did that yesterday as I was spraying weeds ahead of a frontal system we were expecting. The "blue" is an agricultural dye that is used with water based solutions so that you know where you have sprayed whether the application is by hand or boom.
I tried it at a 1% solution but it was a bit light so went to 2%. It was a very dark morning, darker than the pictures would suggest, but the small 32 Auto brass stood out like a sore thumb! While spraying, I found a mix of 32 Auto, 9mm Luger, and 45 Auto that I missed two weeks ago. As soon as I sprayed the die, the brass stood out.
I buy this dye by the gallon ($40) but you can buy it by the quart as well. By the gallon, it is 31¢ an ounce. It took no more than 3 gallons of solution to cover the pad so a bit less than 2 ounces of dye or 62¢ and it took two minutes to spray the pad. So, if I pick up six extra cases it would be a win. I noticed the blue was a lot easier on the eyes as well and I bet if I'm shooting in the sun it will be a blessing as the glare off the white rock can be bad.
It will also be interesting to look at the longevity of the dye. You must use a detergent to remove it, and even that requires a few days of scrubbing. Blue hands in my area is a common thing. I do use a 1% solution of Dawn Ultra in my spray mix to act a surfactant, making the water wetter, so I don't know if that will help the rain dissolve it once dried.
I tried it at a 1% solution but it was a bit light so went to 2%. It was a very dark morning, darker than the pictures would suggest, but the small 32 Auto brass stood out like a sore thumb! While spraying, I found a mix of 32 Auto, 9mm Luger, and 45 Auto that I missed two weeks ago. As soon as I sprayed the die, the brass stood out.
I buy this dye by the gallon ($40) but you can buy it by the quart as well. By the gallon, it is 31¢ an ounce. It took no more than 3 gallons of solution to cover the pad so a bit less than 2 ounces of dye or 62¢ and it took two minutes to spray the pad. So, if I pick up six extra cases it would be a win. I noticed the blue was a lot easier on the eyes as well and I bet if I'm shooting in the sun it will be a blessing as the glare off the white rock can be bad.
It will also be interesting to look at the longevity of the dye. You must use a detergent to remove it, and even that requires a few days of scrubbing. Blue hands in my area is a common thing. I do use a 1% solution of Dawn Ultra in my spray mix to act a surfactant, making the water wetter, so I don't know if that will help the rain dissolve it once dried.
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