Scully Posted March 13, 2016 Report Share Posted March 13, 2016 I've had enough of paying good money on expensive trousers for shooting so am economising. I have a pair of Laksen trousers ( cost about 100 quid about 6 years ago ) and they have served me very well indeed; extremely waterproof and warm. They are now a bit worse for wear, having picked up a cut in outer shell ( patched ) and despite treating with Nikwax pre season they did on one occasion let me down badly, but then again so did everyone elses. They are quite a soft cotton and rather than just reserve them for drier days, which would mean buying another pair of some type or another, was considering treating them with Barbour wax and then blending it in with a hair drier as per usual. I have a couple of pairs of waxed over trousers and find them very resilient, but cold unless something is worn underneath, and these would be ideal if this worked as they are quilted internally. I'm assuming Barbour cotton is just ordinary cotton before being treated with wax so can't see why it shouldn't be done in theory, but just wondered if anyone has done this in practice and with what success. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vmaxphil Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 If you have nikwaxed them check if it's silicone based as the wax may not take Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McSpredder Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 No experience of Laksen, but I have successfully waxed a supposedly-waterproof jacket. It was on sale several years ago at a game fair for about £15, described as "possibly waterproof". The stallholder explained that he had them made specially, they were quite expensive, some were OK but many had been returned because they leaked. If I remember correctly, the manufacturer had gone out of business, the stallholder was left with a pile of almost-unsaleable stock, so he decided to offer them cheaply with that explanation. Having been born with short arms and deep pockets, I could not resist buying that jacket. It turned out to be quite OK in light or moderate rain, but leaked in heavy storms, so after a few months I gave it a good coating of wax. It has been perfect ever since, but the wax made it a lot stiffer than when it was new, and also seems stiffer than normal Barbour-type wax clothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 hello, i bought a very large spray bottle of water proofer off ebay and did a cotton fishy coat and that worked ok. i also did my old canvas trout bag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 hello, i bought a very large spray bottle of water proofer off ebay and did a cotton fishy coat and that worked ok. i also did my old canvas trout bag hello, i did the coat on a warm day outside hooked on the washing line and left to dry a few hours, i cannot say it was 100 % waterproof but shower proof yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moorvale55 Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 You could try the 2 stage washing machine technique. Go to your local Milletts / outdoor store and for a few quid buy the cleaning / waterproofing kit. I used this method on an old jacket and it completely restored it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saddler Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 What about TX10 instead? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westley Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 Polythene longjohns ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harnser Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 Years go I used to wax trousers and jackets with wax floor polish . Used to work quite well ,used to stink of lavender for a little while . Harnser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted March 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 Many thanks all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_Roo Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 Had a very old outdoor coat (non waterproof) which reacted very well to the 2 stage washing machine approach of using the NikWax TX products. It's now waterproof and has been used quite a few times recently without any leakage (label says its a poly cotton mix but that's all). Just make sure no taped seams as they can come unstuck! All the best with your 'project' Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphant59 Posted March 14, 2016 Report Share Posted March 14, 2016 Could try soaking an old pair of jeans in waste oil! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFN Posted March 15, 2016 Report Share Posted March 15, 2016 I think it depends on the material and coarsbess of the weave, but for what it's worth I have an old cotton coat that I use for dog walking, I wanted to waterproof it so applied Barbour wax with a hair dryer. It worked fairly well but leaked at the shoulder seams in very heavy rain. I re-applied a second coat and it is rainproof but not fully waterproof as I think the cotton weave is too coarse. Just to add, recently I sprayed the same coat with aldi waterproofing spray and the wax seems to have almost rubberised and the water now just beads off - I don't know how long it will last, but at £1.50 a can it seems good value. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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