Looking for dye color conversion between different suppliers of Procion MX dyes

Name: Cindy

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Message: I am looking for an alternative dye supplier (I have had some difficulty with Pro Chemical & Dyes) and am looking at Dharma's Procion MX dyes. Do you possibly have an updated comparison chart? I called Dharma and they actually refer people to your site! There are many colors I have purchased from Pro chem that are not represented on your current (2006) version. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Most of the one hundred and fourteen Procion MX type dyes sold by PRO Chemical & Dye are proprietary mixtures, mixed in-house, whose formulas are a big secret. The same is true of Dharma Trading Company and of Jacquard Products, but their proprietary mixes are different ones. The availability of these in-house color mixtures is one of the factors that makes these three the most popular sources of Procion MX type dyes, as it's a convenience to be able to order special color mixtures, instead of just the dozen or so unmixed single-hue dyes that are available. A proprietary dye mixture is available from only one source; there is no equivalency between a proprietary mixture at one dye retailer and even the most similar-looking dye mixture at another dye retailer. There will always be some differences.

Each company also sells single-hue unmixed dyes, in their Procion MX type dye lines. These are the ones on my chart that are the same regardless of whether you buy them from one supplier or another. Different batches of these dyes may be more or less dense, older or fresher, or more or less dusty, but the dye molecules that produce the color are the same, regardless of source.

The two new unmixed single-hue dyes introduced by ProChem in recent years are boysenberry and grape. All of their other new Procion MX type dyes are proprietary mixtures, different from any color mixture available elsewhere.

ProChem's Grape is Colour Index reactive violet 14, and is also available from Dharma, Jacquard, and other sources. It's an extremely useful red violet, quite a pretty color, and good for mixing other colors. ProChem calls it Violet MX-GN, but that's a meaningless designation; the true MX code for this lovely dye is Violet MX-2R. (To understand the MX codes, see my page, "What do the letters and numbers in the code name for a Procion MX type dye mean?".)

ProChem's Boysenberry is pinker than Grape, purpler than Fuchsia. I like it very much, though not as much as Grape. Boysenberry is especially useful for mixing blood reds. My best guess is that its Colour Index name is reactive violet 13, but I can't be sure because the ProChem people told me they didn't know what its generic name is. It is certainly a single-hue, unmixed color, but as far as I know no other retailer is selling it yet under any name. ProChem calls their Boysenberry Violet MX-BR, which is no more meaningful than the made-up MX code they apply to violet. If it really is C.I. reactive violet 13, then its MX code should be Magenta MX-B.

A few of ProChem's pre-mixed Procion MX type dyes are what are called manufacturer's mixes. These mixtures are made in the factory, rather than by ProChem, and can be sold to multiple retailers. Unlike the proprietary mixtures, the manufacturers' mixtures are the same from one supplier to another, like the unmixed single-hue colors. The manufacturers' mixes I know of from ProChem are PRO Black 608, called Black MX-CWNA, which Dharma sells as New Black and Jacquard as Warm Black, and PRO Strongest Red 312, called red MX-GBA, which Dharma sells as Chinese Red. You can safely assume that all other dye mixtures you can buy from ProChem, the ones that are not manufacturer's mixes, are available from no other retailer.

The unmixed single hue dyes that ProChem sells, which you can find at most other retailers, as well, are just these few: Golden Yellow (Yellow MX-3RA), Sun Yellow (Yellow MX-8G), Tangerine (Yellow MX-GR), Lemon Yellow (Yellow MX-4G), Strong Orange (Orange MX-2R), Mixing Red (Red MX-5B), Fuchsia (Red MX-8B), Basic Blue (Blue MX-R) Mixing Blue (Blue MX-2G 125, which is 25% stronger than a standard strength of Blue MX-2G), Intense Blue (Blue MX-G), Turquoise (Turquoise MX-G) Deep Navy (Blue MX-4GD), and Burnt Orange (brown MX-GRN).

As you can see from the charts on my page, "Which Procion MX colors are pure, and which mixtures?", which has not been updated recently because its information is still correct, ProChem's Lemon Yellow is not sold by Dharma at all; however, ProChem's Sun Yellow, which is the most popular cool yellow, is available as Dharma's Lemon Yellow. ProChem's Golden Yellow (Yellow MX-3RA) is not available in quite the same form at Dharma, but the exact same dye with a different density is available as Dharma's Deep Yellow (Yellow MX-3R). ProChem's Burnt Orange (brown MX-GRN) is not sold by Dharma, but it is available from Jacquard as Rust Orange, assuming they have not replaced it with a mixture. ProChem's Deep Navy (Blue MX-4GD) is not available at Dharma, but the very similar Mixing Blue (Blue MX-2G) is available everywhere else as Cobalt Blue.

That leaves eleven single-hue pure dyes that are equally available at Dharma and at ProChem, and two more manufacturer's mixes that are the same between the two suppliers. For all of the other colors you've been ordering from ProChem, you will have to either find a substitute among a similar dye mixture from Dharma or Jacquard, or continue to order from ProChem. Since you are located in California, it does make sense to try to order from one of the California suppliers, for shipping that is both less expensive and faster. Note that you can mail-order dye directly from Jacquard Products in California, by phone, but only for package sizes of eight ounces or more per color. Their small two-thirds ounce jars are available only from other retailers that they supply with dye. Dharma and ProChem sell jars as small as two ounces per color.

For a much more detailed list of many different suppliers for dyes and the supplies to use with them, see my page, Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World. For equivalencies among the Procion MX type dyes sold by a number of different companies, see Which Procion MX colors are pure, and which mixtures?.

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Posted: Wednesday - February 16, 2011 at 07:46 AM

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Looking for dye color conversion between different suppliers of Procion MX dyes

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