Dyeing Deer-Antler Powder Measures with McCormick Food Coloring

Had trouble with my old eyes discerning the markings on some of my deer-antler powder measures. They came originally from October Country and are actual hand-made items made in America?!!! My solution was to enlist the aid of McCormick, who make food coloring. These can be used to dye eggs, so I figure calcium is calcium, so it should also work on deer-antler. McCormick has a color-mixing chart on their website. I have not tried this on powder horns, but I see no reason that it would not work... at least on a white horn. I have one like that, so perhaps I will give it a shot next time it comes up empty.

The main benefit, other than for decoration, is that the numerals and any other carvings on the measures are considerably darker. Red seems to be the most "dramatic" of the colors I tried, blue and purple being more subdued. I didn't try to mix brown, but it should be possible and might lend itself to muzzleloading accoutrements better than something like hot pink.

Enjoy, and lemme know whatcha think.

EDIT: Last image has a Minwax ebony stain over the dye on the red and green measures... which were just a bit too gaudy for my taste. Took them both down just enough I think.

They look great! I’d still need write down the color/gr size and keep a copy in my shooting bag to remember!

Um,,,,, as I read along I wasn't expecting to see the whole thing dyed, lol. A bit startling, lol. I thought you were just dying the markings.
Interesting idea and reasoning behind it. I will be curious to see how it holds up over time. Please get back to us after a few uses. I'm not just curious as to how the measures look over time but also as to if they will rub color off on any other gear.

Is horn more calcium or collagen?

It did work but will the color transfer to a sweaty hand? Those bright colors make the horn look like plastic to me.

Phil Coffins said:

Those bright colors make the horn look like plastic to me.

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Reminds me of a couple of years ago when Jon Townsend was on the “Kelly Clarkson Show” doing 18th century cooking. Kelly’s sidekick made a remark about “eating the 18th century food with our ‘18th century plastic spoons’”, not realizing it was a horn spoon.

might seem more native american. maybe ???

I might have dyed them on the inside. But if you like the looks that's all that matters.

I rubbed my antler measure with wet coffee grounds to bring it back from the dead.
That works well for a natural look.

I might suggest you rub them with a wet paper towel to see if the color stays.

Back in the early 50s my mother had us paint our pedal car and a Smith-Miller truck with white oil base paint to which she had added blue food color. The blue faded or washed out in a short while.

I tried coloring some bore cleaner I made up with food coloring but it wouldn't mix. I don't remember the ingredients but it did contain garage floor cleaner, probably some detergent and something else too. I also tried to color some bullet lube I made up and it didn't work either but I don't remember what was in the lube. I'm going to mix up a batch this spring using beeswax and olive oil and I'll be trying candle wax dye (Hobby Lobby).

Well, as they are food coloring, I doubt that McCormick was concerned with color stability, so it will certainly fade over time and exposure to UV, but powder measures are usually stored inside the possibles bag, so maybe that won't be an issue. In any case, no pigments are especially permanent, so over time I do expect the colors to change.

The colors DO rub off on a wet paper towel, though it does take some effort. I'm thinking an artist's matte fixative, wax, or other coating might mitigate this, but as they are powder measures and therefore generally kept dry, that might not be too much of a problem. Also, while the exterior surface might have an issue with rubbing off, the dye that penetrated the pores of the material would not be as subject to that kind of wear/degradation. In any case, I plan to leave them as they are. If NA people dyed something like this with natural products (blood, red ochre, tarnished copper and whatever else), the colors would have also faded and/or rubbed off with or without water.

What's nice about this stuff is that the dye is very cheap, not toxic and easy to acquire. If it ever does rub off, I can always re-dye it.

hawkeye2 said:

I might suggest you rub them with a wet paper towel to see if the color stays.

Back in the early 50s my mother had us paint our pedal car and a Smith-Miller truck with white oil base paint to which she had added blue food color. The blue faded or washed out in a short while.

I tried coloring some bore cleaner I made up with food coloring but it wouldn't mix. I don't remember the ingredients but it did contain garage floor cleaner, probably some detergent and something else too. I also tried to color some bullet lube I made up and it didn't work either but I don't remember what was in the lube. I'm going to mix up a batch this spring using beeswax and olive oil and I'll be trying candle wax dye (Hobby Lobby).

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Yeah, the dye does rub off with a wet paper towel, though it takes some effort.

You'll probably have better luck with the candle wax dye or even children's Crayolas, maybe "oil crayons", or some other oil-based dyes... maybe printer's ink or ink from a ball point pen. Food coloring is water-based. Oil and water... you know the rest.

pacanis said:

I might have dyed them on the inside. But if you like the looks that's all that matters.

I rubbed my antler measure with wet coffee grounds to bring it back from the dead.
That works well for a natural look.

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That's something that Native folks in the Americas might have done. It wouldn't be permanent either and would probably be subject to rubbing off when wet, but it would work.

2 shots said:

might seem more native american. maybe ???

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Maybe...

TDM said:

They look great! I’d still need write down the color/gr size and keep a copy in my shooting bag to remember!

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Y'know, a little bound notebook maybe with water-proof paper is something I might need to add to the possibles bag....

Dale Allen Raby said:

Y'know, a little bound notebook maybe with water-proof paper is something I might need to add to the possibles bag....

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Pm me your address and I’ll make sure you get one

Dale Allen Raby said:

That's something that Native folks in the Americas might have done. It wouldn't be permanent either and would probably be subject to rubbing off when wet, but it would work.

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I had to Google it.


I made this about five years ago. It was bone white and dried out before the coffee rub.

Phil Coffins said:

It did work but will the color transfer to a sweaty hand? Those bright colors make the horn look like plastic to me.

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Maybe, but it should wash off and won't hurt you.

Brokennock said:

Um,,,,, as I read along I wasn't expecting to see the whole thing dyed, lol. A bit startling, lol. I thought you were just dying the markings.
Interesting idea and reasoning behind it. I will be curious to see how it holds up over time. Please get back to us after a few uses. I'm not just curious as to how the measures look over time but also as to if they will rub color off on any other gear.

Is horn more calcium or collagen?

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I think antler is like finger nail material, not bone. There was a mention of it in one of the horn-making books, I think, but they're not bone. Maybe someone will post to clear up my memory.

springfield art said:

I think antler is like finger nail material, not bone.

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so than... nail polish?

Dutch7 said:

Pm me your address and I’ll make sure you get one

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Thanks, but I got one around here someplace, just never thought to put it in the possibles bag before TDM mentioned it.

springfield art said:

I think antler is like finger nail material, not bone. There was a mention of it in one of the horn-making books, I think, but they're not bone. Maybe someone will post to clear up my memory.

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Yes, I know they aren't bone. Hopefully most folks do.

I was asking of horn, not antler, is more calcium or collagen, based on the o.p.'s theory that the food coloring would work on antler due to the calcium content being similar to eggshells,,, and his further supposition that it might also work on horn for the same reason.
Horn, not antler, being more like finger nails than bone or antler, I think is more collagen based.
Could be wrong.