# Old traps.



## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

I've got about 35 or so old reasonably rusty traps. Mostly Oneida Victors. Long springs and a few coil and jump traps. 
I'd like to clean them up a bit. Not so much to use them but just to be able to identify them. Some of them look different or interesting.
Any ideas how I might go about this without breaking the bank or going through each trap with a wire brush? I already threw away about 20 traps that were too far gone or missing parts.
Thanks.


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## Wyobuckaroo (Dec 30, 2011)

Some gunsmiths will treat a rusty gun by cooking it in boiling water... This somehow stops the rust, and gives a base to any existing finish on the metal... 

I'm told trappers will routinely boil new traps to remove oil and such to not interfere with baits, lures and scents.. Sounds like you have nothing to loose by trying it..


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

Wyobuckaroo said:


> Some gunsmiths will treat a rusty gun by cooking it in boiling water... This somehow stops the rust, and gives a base to any existing finish on the metal...
> 
> I'm told trappers will routinely boil new traps to remove oil and such to not interfere with baits, lures and scents.. Sounds like you have nothing to loose by trying it..


I thought about boiling the traps with some kind of non-flamable recipe to clean the up. Then I realized I didn't have a suitable pot to boil them in. I very briefly eyeballed one the pots my wife uses for soup or canning. I've done stupid stuff before, but that might get me in serious trouble. Again.


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## Wyobuckaroo (Dec 30, 2011)

I thought about boiling the traps with some kind of non-flamable recipe to clean the up. 
+++ +++
Get a cheap disposable steel, stainless steel pot, NOT aluminum at your local thrift store... Boil traps in water over a camp fire, HOBO stove, camp stove...


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

Wyobuckaroo said:


> I thought about boiling the traps with some kind of non-flamable recipe to clean the up.
> +++ +++
> Get a cheap disposable steel, stainless steel pot, NOT aluminum at your local thrift store... Boil traps in water over a camp fire, HOBO stove, camp stove...


Not a bad idea. I have read that traps can be boiled in lye. None of the articles mentioned what ratio of water to lye or how long to boil. They would be cooked outside. 
The light bulb wrnt on in my head that wife lady and I are going to the trappers convention in Spencer, IA this weekend. I need some new dp traps, too.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Electrolysis.
This video is for cast iron but the methods are the same.
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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

I don't recall the name but they make a product specifically for this purpose.
Your issue is not uncommon at all in the trapping community.

Any of the major trapping supply houses such as F&T will have products to do what you need.


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## ScottOz (Mar 10, 2020)




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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

a 55 gallon drum cut it in half now you have 2 pots if it had the bung type or one if it was an open top barrel then soem cinder blocks to set the barrel on and build a fire under it 

boiling rust turns it black nd stops the loss of metal. blueing a gun is rusting it , boiling it and polishing the black iron oxide 

boil the traps , then if you have them walnuts just green toss them in the water the acid from the husks helps with the darkening of the metal and stopping rust 


then wax sold at trapping supply or unscented at craft stores can work in an old crock pot from a thrift store , I just bought a new used crockpot for this at good will last week 4.99 and I had a coupon to make it even less 

you need some wire and nails that about it a wire brush to knock scale off 
knock of loose rust with wire brush and scraper just get what you can get 
put the traps in the boiling water , you can use the logwood dye or walnuts 
the wire is so you can get the whole trap submerged and get it out easily wire through the end of the chain and hang them over the side of the barrel
the nails are to put between the jaws to keep them just a little apart really any nail will work roofing nails are common
pulling those boiling traps you hang them just till dry but not to cold then lower them in the crock pot of wax 

they turn black from the boil and die then are sealed and fire more easily from being waxed 


there are other methonds like the video above he is using vinager to get them very clean then dipping in a paint product called full metal jacket .


boil and wax is the traditional method other methods are to trade time for money in most cases


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

A wire brush to the pan is the best way to see stampings to find out what you've got. The big problem with old traps is coyotes and otters. For about a century you could trap in most of the US and not worry about coyotes in your fox traps or otters in your coin traps. A lot of those traps are very undesirable today.


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## 1shotwade (Jul 9, 2013)




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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

Thanks, all.
I did try the vinegar bath. I put an old #1-1/2 long spring in vinegar just to try it out. I took a wire brush to it first just to get the big stuff off. Let it soak for about 3 days. I read somewhere that you should wear latex gloves when you take them out. Apparently, it was wasted reading because I grabbed it with bare hands. I deserved that.
It did a decent job. I may cut a drum in half and try that. Might be a bit quicker.
It would be nice to buy some new traps. I was looking at some of those dog-proof traps. Kind of like those Freedom 2 traps.


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## 1shotwade (Jul 9, 2013)

The reason you are to wear gloves is to keep human scent off the trap. That is just anal if you are water trapping but essential for land dwellers such as coyote etc.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Vinegar burns if you have any open wounds. I think the vinegar scent would effectively kill any human scent for several days.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

Snowfan said:


> Thanks, all.
> I did try the vinegar bath. I put an old #1-1/2 long spring in vinegar just to try it out. I took a wire brush to it first just to get the big stuff off. Let it soak for about 3 days. I read somewhere that you should wear latex gloves when you take them out. Apparently, it was wasted reading because I grabbed it with bare hands. I deserved that.
> It did a decent job. I may cut a drum in half and try that. Might be a bit quicker.
> It would be nice to buy some new traps. I was looking at some of those dog-proof traps. Kind of like those Freedom 2 traps.


I run mostly Bridgers fr DPs , it was the thing at the time to buy at a good price , stores like cabela's will sell trapping supplied but get a real premium for them 20 dollars a DP is nuts

f&t is a good place , you can get the freedoms for a good price , look a the stabilizer also would be real nice for barn floors and hay lofts , zip a couple screws in and have a solid trap





Freedom Brand FB1 | Dog Proof Raccoon Trap | F&T Fur Harvester's Trading Post


The Freedom Brand FB1 dog proof raccoon trap is efficient, innovative, & perfect for catching raccoons. Order our FB1 traps in bulk options of 6 & 12 & save!



www.fntpost.com




If I buy any more I will probably go freedoms

with the price of racoon so low the demand for the traps is not there

DP's are a trap you don't wax , they fire so fast when you wax them you start catching mice

you can spray paint them , some guys claim white or hot pink attract the ***** to the color

a Gatorade bottle with the bottom cut out makes a good weather cover for the DP's orange cap is easy to see , bottle is clear so you can see your bait is full without touching it
they are durable enough to reused several times.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

don't say C o o n s the bad word blocker blocks *****


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

1shotwade said:


> The reason you are to wear gloves is to keep human scent off the trap. That is just anal if you are water trapping but essential for land dwellers such as coyote etc.


You are correct. Thank you. When I handled the trap from the vinegar, it left a very black, oily stain on my hands. It didn't come out easily. I was warned though so, my bad.


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## muleskinner2 (Oct 7, 2007)

We never cleaned our traps, just buried them in the manure pile when not in use. And always wore rubber gloves when setting them. The coyotes, *****, and skunks were used to the smell of cow manure, and never paid it any mind. I used to save the afterbirth when a calf was born, best bait ever. Always had bags of it in the freezer.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

City and suburban raccoons pay no attention to human smell on traps.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

never worry about boiling , waxing or anything else on DP's

clean with the hose , hang to dry , bait and use come season

c o o n s are not picky


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Pack as many oak leaves as you can get in between the traps, fill it with water and then forget about it for 6 months or so. They will come out rust free and dark colored. That works on almost all rusty metals. Once they hit the air they will start rusting again so be ready to treat them. 

I used to wax mine with parafin but there are new options that are simpler. I can't remember the name but you dissolve the dye into unleaded non-ethanol gas and dip the traps into it. Then hang them out of the rain. Check with the trapping supply companies.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

Danaus29 said:


> City and suburban raccoons pay no attention to human smell on traps.


You are quite mistaken.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

barnbilder said:


> You are quite mistaken.


Over 50 raccoons now sleeping in the local dump would beg to differ with you. I never bother to try keeping my scent off my traps. I have caught every raccoon I have set out to trap.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

Danaus29 said:


> Over 50 raccoons now sleeping in the local dump would beg to differ with you. I never bother to try keeping my scent off my traps. I have caught every raccoon I have set out to trap.


I trap professionally. Yes, in a tiny sample size of 50 a beginner might tend to believe that. If you are using footholds, you wan't them to smell neutral. If they have human scent, food scent, etc. you will find a lot of them flipped upside down or sprung. People blame foxes and coyotes, but nine times out of ten it was something with hands, and it smelled the trap or felt it wobble underfoot. With cage traps, in urban areas, you will see a lot of cage refusals. They get caught and hauled and released a couple times and they are done. A huge percentage of urban raccoon have been caught by a homeowner, and released at the city park a few blocks away. They can still be caught, but you have to up your game, and using odor control is a part of this.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

I am not a beginner. I have been trapping raccoon for over 20 years. 

Legholds are not permitted in some parts of Ohio due to the possibility of catching a pet. I use box traps exclusively. While I am not a professional trapper (I don't charge people because of Ohio's strict licensing for "professional" trappers) I have trapped raccoon for neighbors.

I do not trap and release. I am quite aware of how difficult it is to retrap an older raccoon. It took a few years before Ol' One Eye got hungry enough to go after some chicken bones. She had avoided my place for quite a while after she escaped a flimsy box trap.

If human scent scared off urban or suburban raccoons, they would not go into houses or raid trash cans. Those things reek of human scent.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

Danaus29 said:


> I am not a beginner. I have been trapping raccoon for over 20 years.
> 
> Legholds are not permitted in some parts of Ohio due to the possibility of catching a pet. I use box traps exclusively. While I am not a professional trapper (I don't charge people because of Ohio's strict licensing for "professional" trappers) I have trapped raccoon for neighbors.
> 
> ...


This post was about foothold traps. Human scent on foothold traps set on land will get you flipped traps, sprung traps, and raccoons that get caught by a toe while they mess with the trap. Has nothing to do with fear of human scent, has to do with detection of foreign object. Sometimes licensing is a good thing, it often includes training, or testing that ensures proficiency. It is doubtful that a raccoon avoided any part of it's home range because of an escape from a box store trap. It most likely just avoided the trap.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Yes it was about foothold traps. It is also 4 months old and I have no idea where my mind was at the time. My mistake. 

Ol' One Eye did avoid my property for several years. I have surveilance cameras and if she did come around it was well away from the house.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

It's a little late this year but some people use black walnut hulls to dye leghold traps. You have to gather the nuts when they start falling in September and October.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

You can use walnuts, staghorn sumac berries, or hardwood leaves and or bark of trees high in tannins. Or any blend of those. Most add a few evergreen boughs, whatever is endemic to the area. You can also buy a product called logwood dye, which is made from the heartwood of a tree that grows in southern Mexico. You are acid treateing the oxidized metal and giving it a dye job. There are various paints, dips and coatings for sale from trapping supply companies, I've tried several, I would recommend it for water traps but not as much for land traps. If you do use it on land traps, do it well ahead of use and store in a scent neutral are, they will give off fumes for a while.


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