I have always dyed and waxed my traps, new or old....they are all still in service. I have an old 4 1/2 Wolf trap that never seen anything other then dye and wax, still as strong as the day it made.

With a couple of the questions on dips...yes they coat the trap if there is any moisture in the there you will have rust under the dip...I have traded for a lot of traps that were dipped to find severe rusting under the sticky dip....won't trade or buy another one that has been dipped. Just my take on it.

Dye and wax only here. click on the trapperman links in my signature to see how I and others have done it...lots of pictures and discussion. Tom

I just wax my land traps.I've never found a reason to dye traps that I bury nor have I ever had any problems.Wax protects and speeds up the traps and thats all I need.I have tried dips in the past and had probems with all except formula one.if you can find lye, thats the best for cleaning traps.Just make sure you wash them off good to get the lye off or they will rust like crazy.meth addicts have made finding lye next to impossible

I bought some speed dipped traps I am a little like swamp wolf I trap on the coast near salt air if you buy cheap conis and do not coat them they will be useless in 2 seasons I did not care for the stickyness of speed dip I like walnut hulls because they are free to me I have a fair amount of pine resin in my wax because I trap under mostly pine I think a little of what ADC said holds true as far as the greys I trap seem to like the way the walnut hulls smell I set uncovered a fair amount and it seems to get them quicker this way

Dyed 9-10 doz. yesterday in about 5 hours. Me and the dog had a great time. Cooked hot dogs on the fire once we were done!

Going to wax next week. It'll be nice to have everything done so early, gives me plenty of time to get everything else in order.

Also new to trapping. Can someone put up a picture of a "lightly rusted" trap to dye? I just finished dying and even boiled in dye two hours I don't seem to have much coloring. I bought some used traps and those things are solid black.? I am thinking I am not rusting them enough but am pretty hesitant to abuse my brand new traps.

......and they can smell gasoline dips too !

Amen....Well put LT !

Warm fuzzy feeling , some just wax , some dye and wax , some dip in the numerous kinds , it's what makes one confident in the set



It's not the animal as much as the equipment

spray paint and wax

I just dyed waxed approx 16 dz traps last week. 10dz land traps and 6 dz water traps. Pictured are the land traps. I have 3 dz new DP's. Half of them I spray painted and the other half I dyed. Both got waxed. Curious to see which holds up the best. I good dye job removes the rust and the wax protects them while the set buried in soil or water. That is why I choose to do my traps.

So LT GREY you say you dip your coyote traps? Do you use formula one?

Thanks

Your inbox is full

Ned,

is this you???

No. Let me clarify that...

I dye my predator traps. I'm "old school !"

Light rust, wire brush them off, adjust/fine tune, into a barrel of LOGWOOD DYE they go...

I also wax my predator traps.

I use a propane torch and tank for doing this !

Now, if I were just beaver trapping or bobcat trapping, I would just spray paint them and let them air out. It isn't as important as with coyotes.

I have caught a lot of animals in traps that were not as clean as many suggest they should be.

I've also had fox and coyotes dig up traps..

I use Formula 1 for other type traps and have also found that D.O.A. trap dip by Scott Rainbolt ( both are water based dips) is a very good trap/snare dip !

I never cared for trap dips that use white gas, coleman fuel, or regular gas.

I spent 2 hours the other day scraping and wire brushing dip off of some bridgers I traded for. Don't know how long the dip was on the traps before I got them, but it was still tacky in areas and bone dry in others. Tuned, boiled and waxed them and they look good now. I have a pot of wax that is several years old and has taken a brownish color from the dyes I have used in the past. I add a couple pounds of wax each season. I think I could take a brand new trap, boil it to clean off the factory oil, let it dry and put it in my wax and it will come out with tan look that would pass for a dye job. I can see using dip on water traps, but will never use it on my k-9 traps. Dye and wax here, although I do use F-1 on my snares after I spray paint them.

Good looking bunch of traps, Job well done. Tom

http://www.trapperman.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1463672.html#Post1463672

I agree, but will not use petro dips on land traps. Can't get that smelly, gummy mess to completely dry even when thinned more than directions say. Hadn't used any in a few years. Use F1 on all traps now.
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Gasohol has bit us all. My truck likes it like a drunk likes whiskey. It guzzles it. Makes petro dips gummy. In my area there is one station that sells straight gas.

Thanks LT

I use 1 gal colman fuel to 1 qt KBL dip.nice light coat @ rock hard finish.

I am 70, my dad, and my grandfather dyed & waxed all their traps. I am sure my grandfather learned from his, as I think I remembering him telling me about he & his dad getting hemlock to dye with.
It has worked for a long time and I am not one to change what has worked for a long long time. With that said, once I saw Speed Dip and tried it, I used it on all my traps - with the exception of canines which I still dye & wax. I feel dipping works better and last longer, especially for water trapping.