Dying and Waxing Pot Sizes

[Mattypotpie8s]

Blind sets on small game trails took 2 fox and the coon, 1 fox in a dirt hole @HeavyUser

[HeavyUser]

Little slow to start here, I have everything I need except the pots. Those have been the most difficult to track down for some reason. Im hoping to start laying out some traps this coming Sunday. 

[HeavyUser]

Dying and waxing tonight 

For anyone reading this, I bought an 8 qt pot for the way. 5lbs of wax wasn't enough to even fill half the pot... I'm going to work with what I have and make the best of it but I think about 7-8lbs of wax would have been best for an 8qt pot.

Edited December 30, 2023 by HeavyUser

[HeavyUser]

All done, no explosions. 

I think everything came out ok. Some of the traps had issues with the dye holding in different areas. I did leave them outside to rust for about a week, not sure why they are patchy the way they are. The wax was also a pain in the ass because I didn't have enough in the pot to fully submerge the trap.

If anything incorrect sticks out, let me know.  

[Water Rat]

I don’t mean to sound critical but you shouldn’t rush the process. It’s better to take your time and sacrifice a few days than to rush it. I can tell you’re itching to get trapping and I hope you’re successful. Did you remember to order trap tags ? I can’t see any in the pictures. By law you need your name and address on each trap. As far as the wax goes , you can reuse it year after year. It’s important to do the wax process correctly. You’ll be able to see the trap go from a black color to a whitish color and then it turns back to a black color. That’s the steel heating up to the same temperature as the wax. I probably have 35 pounds of wax in my pot and add to it when needed. I always use hot tap water from the sink and pour it into the pot I’m going to boil my traps in. It saves time and propane. I’m glad you didn’t burn down your garage. I hope you stick with it because it’s a lot of fun checking traps first thing in the morning. It’s like Christmas morning. Going trapping tomorrow ? 😂 Good luck 👍🏼 

[riverrat]

16 minutes ago, Water Rat said:

I don’t mean to sound critical but you shouldn’t rush the process. It’s better to take your time and sacrifice a few days than to rush it. I can tell you’re itching to get trapping and I hope you’re successful. Did you remember to order trap tags ? I can’t see any in the pictures. By law you need your name and address on each trap. As far as the wax goes , you can reuse it year after year. It’s important to do the wax process correctly. You’ll be able to see the trap go from a black color to a whitish color and then it turns back to a black color. That’s the steel heating up to the same temperature as the wax. I probably have 35 pounds of wax in my pot and add to it when needed. I always use hot tap water from the sink and pour it into the pot I’m going to boil my traps in. It saves time and propane. I’m glad you didn’t burn down your garage. I hope you stick with it because it’s a lot of fun checking traps first thing in the morning. It’s like Christmas morning. Going trapping tomorrow ? 😂 Good luck 👍🏼 

I'll second this.

Be sure you clean the knotch on the dog and where it contacts the pan before you try to set them. Good luck!

[HeavyUser]

34 minutes ago, Water Rat said:

I don’t mean to sound critical but you shouldn’t rush the process. It’s better to take your time and sacrifice a few days than to rush it. I can tell you’re itching to get trapping and I hope you’re successful. Did you remember to order trap tags ? I can’t see any in the pictures. By law you need your name and address on each trap. As far as the wax goes , you can reuse it year after year. It’s important to do the wax process correctly. You’ll be able to see the trap go from a black color to a whitish color and then it turns back to a black color. That’s the steel heating up to the same temperature as the wax. I probably have 35 pounds of wax in my pot and add to it when needed. I always use hot tap water from the sink and pour it into the pot I’m going to boil my traps in. It saves time and propane. I’m glad you didn’t burn down your garage. I hope you stick with it because it’s a lot of fun checking traps first thing in the morning. It’s like Christmas morning. Going trapping tomorrow ? 😂 Good luck 👍🏼 

Apparently I completely missed the part about tags on my traps. Guess that is next step instead of setting them out tomorrow. 

Did my dye/wax job looked rushed? I don't have the itch per se, I just didn't think what I did was a poor job so I continued. Do the traps look bad?

 

Edit: please be critical, I'm completely new to this so all the constructive criticism is welcome here!

Edited December 31, 2023 by HeavyUser

[Water Rat]

16 minutes ago, riverrat said:

I'll second this.

Be sure you clean the knotch on the dog and where it contacts the pan before you try to set them. Good luck!

Way to go riverat…. I forgot all about that.

[Water Rat]

I used to use a small file but now I use a small butane torch lighter from the Dollar stores.

[Water Rat]

15 minutes ago, HeavyUser said:

Apparently I completely missed the part about tags on my traps. Guess that is next step instead of setting them out tomorrow. 

Did my dye/wax job looked rushed? I don't have the itch per se, I just didn't think what I did was a poor job so I continued. Do the traps look bad?

 

Edit: please be critical, I'm completely new to this so all the constructive criticism is welcome here!

I think you did a good job but the real test will be when you set them. I’m sure you’ll connect on coons , skunks, possums etc…. The real test will be whether you can fool the noses on the canines. You’ll know then whether you did a good job on the cleaning , dyeing and waxing process. I’m rooting for ya !

[Mattypotpie8s]

18 minutes ago, HeavyUser said:

Apparently I completely missed the part about tags on my traps. Guess that is next step instead of setting them out tomorrow. 

Did my dye/wax job looked rushed? I don't have the itch per se, I just didn't think what I did was a poor job so I continued. Do the traps look bad?

 

Edit: please be critical, I'm completely new to this so all the constructive criticism is welcome here!

They’re fine! 

[Water Rat]

If you find your traps dug out without them firing , something is wrong. Foxes are notorious for doing that. By the way , make sure your trap is bedded firmly. Any wobble under their foot and they’re gone.  You might want to invest in a good trapping book to help you. It’ll be worth it’s weight in gold and save you a lot of time and frustration.

[HeavyUser]

2 minutes ago, Water Rat said:

If you find your traps dug out without them firing , something is wrong. Foxes are notorious for doing that. By the way , make sure your trap is bedded firmly. Any wobble under their foot and they’re gone.  You might want to invest in a good trapping book to help you. It’ll be worth it’s weight in gold and save you a lot of time and frustration.

I've been using youtube, but I should probably pick up a book or two.

 

I also picked up some flake anti freeze but I'm not sure if I will need it with all this warm weather we are having. 

[Water Rat]

Here’s a good book.

[Water Rat]