new to the flock Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 Well it has been a very nice Ice Storm over the past few hours....enough that school was cancelled for the boys today. :o So what to do today then...I could let them sit infront of the TV and veg all day OR we could have another one of Dads learning days Many of these days happen randomly through out the school year and cover such topics as fishing, deer hunting, squirrel hunting, horseback riding and turkey hunting. Well have decided to give them another lesson today, but what shall it be...especially as it is still freezing rain outside ..... what can we learn in the house today ....more importantly what can we get away with teaching in the house today while Trix is at work :o ....already did the how to skin a bunny class earlier today ....and then it came to me Trix will never know if we clean up before she gets home .....I hope .......we need to re-dye and wax my traps, if we are real careful we wont make a mess So here goes with the help of the littles, trap dying class on Moms stove and sinks First of it was add some lye to a pan of cold water and than bring it to a boil.....never add lye crystals to hot or boiling water as they will cause the water to errupt all over including yourself. we then placed a very dirty rusty trap in this case a 330 into the mixture and let boil for 10 minutes...this removes the dirt and oils from the trap. It is then over to the sink for a nice clean rinse bath or two. you will notice that you have a very clean looking rustry trap This next picture shows what the water looks like after you do half a dozen traps....yuck After all of the traps have had a lye bath it is time to switch over to dyeing and waxing. You can see the wax sitting on top in this picture before it melts down. You can buy crystal log dye, but I usually just make my own by boiling black walnut husks....do not spill this as it will stain everything :o After a 10 minute boil in the dye bath the trap is lifted up through the wax coating it..it then is placed in the sink with tongs.......very hot......to cool. The color darkens as it cools. After they have cooled to be handled they are set aside while we do the next lot. and then all packed away in the trap basket ready to be set :o Now if the pan of trap dye and wax will just cool enough before Trix gets home :o Better than science class at school :( NTTF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fulltimeshooter Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 Well nttf certainly look's like you've had your work cut out for you children and highly stainable mixtures ' Wonder what could go wrong?' Wish i didn't have to go to school lucky *******!!!! :o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pavman Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 Oh my are you in trouble I suspect that all the ingredients are carcinogenic, add to that I know what Mrs NTTF is qualified in, and I cant see her giving you the seal of quality stamp for this latest scam and use of her best roasting tin. Now we have lines of communication established between our respective spouses I trade off my misbehaviour by informing Mrs P of your latest bad deeds……..along the lines of, it could be worse sweetheart cause NTTF just ruined the baking dish with chemicals and wax and I would never do such a thing to you (I know its cheap points but heck if it takes the heat off me I have to use it) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new to the flock Posted January 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 I would expect no less Mate :o Just remember though not only do I have Mrs. P's email address, and cell phone number, I have her Dads number aswell and we all know how much he already hates you NTTF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancs Lad Posted January 15, 2007 Report Share Posted January 15, 2007 laughing my head off................ bit like me doing things the missus shouldnt know about............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highlander Posted January 16, 2007 Report Share Posted January 16, 2007 Don't worry NTTF I reckon between us we've got more on pavman than he'll ever know AND one of these days it's gonna get used :yp: probably on his wedding day! Congrats on the lecture all very interesting and informative but forgive the question...why not just leave the traps in their dirty state? I thought the less clean the less likely your quarry will smell a rat (so to speak) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new to the flock Posted January 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2007 Don't worry NTTF I reckon between us we've got more on pavman than he'll ever know AND one of these days it's gonna get used probably on his wedding day! Congrats on the lecture all very interesting and informative but forgive the question...why not just leave the traps in their dirty state? I thought the less clean the less likely your quarry will smell a rat (so to speak) We clean and wax them for a couple reasons, first they carry very little of your scent when handled this way, and second they will continue to work in the ice and snow and not stick. That second rabbit was taken in a trap that had been waxed and sat out in atleast 8 hours of freezing rain. I had an unwaxed one out aswell, I had to nock off a 1/2 inch of ice to get it to fire. It also protects the trap and keeps them working smoother, faster, and longer. :yp: NTTF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quercus Posted February 5, 2007 Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 Hi NTTF, very interesting. Thank you for taking the time to put that together, it looks like something I'll have to have a play with Couple of questions. Is there any reason that this sort of treatment would not be suitable for fox snares? How frequently do you need to repeat the process? Many thanks, Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new to the flock Posted February 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 Hi NTTF, very interesting. Thank you for taking the time to put that together, it looks like something I'll have to have a play with Couple of questions. Is there any reason that this sort of treatment would not be suitable for fox snares? How frequently do you need to repeat the process? Many thanks, Q Quercus, My snares are all made out of aircraft cable, and will not take the dye. However if you are using a twisted wire snare it should dye fine. The wax will help them run smoother, just be sure that when you pull them up through the wax that it, (the wax), is good and hot so that you only end up with a nice light coating that will not flake. I clean and wax my traps once a year, usually just before the season starts, and they last out the winter and spring season on that. NTTF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quercus Posted February 5, 2007 Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 Thanks NTTF, I've done a bit of a search and now I'm confused Could you please explain the difference between "speed dip" and your dye/wax method? Thanks Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new to the flock Posted February 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2007 I have never used the speed dip, and know very little about it other than most people that I talk to that have used it reverted back to the dye and wax method above. You can ask here if you like, a friendly bunch of guys with a wealth of trapping knowledge; http://trapperman.com NTTF IamCdn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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