Umbers are one of the oldest pigments used by mankind, based on the naturally occurring Umber ore. These natural Iron-Oxides are known for their durability, being both lightfast and chemically resistant. As such, they are considered permanent pigments. Raw Umbers such as Hoover Color’s 414RU, balance the need of product quality and cost. This pigment disperses on a high-speed disperser to a lower level than Hoover Color’s best grades, but can still be media-milled to the desired grind specification. By eliminating Hoover Color’s premium grinding step, Hoover Color can pass the cost savings on to our customers.

One of the characteristics that make Raw Umbers such useful pigments, is that they are a “neutral toner.” Often brighter colored pigments are too bright (or have too much chroma) for a given application. Adding a black pigment to darken these colors add an undesirable color component from the black. Raw Umbers maintain a neutral tone, reducing a brighter pigment’s chroma without affecting the hue. As a result, Raw Umbers are a major component in today’s Architectural Coatings coloring systems and other tinting systems.