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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 10,833
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 10,833 |
Been using Snoseal since the middle 80's on boots and gloves
Put it on and hit it with a hair dryer and your good for a long time
Snoseal for me
Maker of the Frankenstud Sling Keeper
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 20,683
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 20,683 |
Hi my name's Sitka Deer
beeswax is your friend You could never be this pretty! Even though you are a hairdresser! Dang I wonder if all those young ladies in Anchorage didn't believe me when I told them my name was Art???
I'm pretty certain when we sing our anthem and mention the land of the free, the original intent didn't mean cell phones, food stamps and birth control.
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 22,884
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 22,884 |
Pure beeswax.
SnoSeal rots the seams out sooner than they should.
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Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,564
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,564 |
Mostly Sno Seal for me too. Hair dryer in the winter to warm the boots and melt the stuff but in the summer, it makes for a great afternoon setting on the porch with a cold beer while the boots warm and bake in the sun.
Dale
This space for rent
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Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 60,149 Likes: 11
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 60,149 Likes: 11 |
Montana Pitch-Blend, though Obenauf's is good too.
“Montana seems to me to be what a small boy would think Texas is like from hearing Texans.” John Steinbeck
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Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 4,147
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 4,147 |
When I was a kid, there were 10-15 mink farms near me. You could get all of the raw, unprocessed fat and mink oil you wanted for cheap.
Smelled like the back end of nasty old camel, but that stuff worked very well.
I always wanted to think it might have help with my muskrat trapping too. Probably not, but at 14 you can dream that it did.
James Pepper: There's no law west of Dodge and no God west of the Pecos. Right, Mr. Chisum? John Chisum: Wrong, Mr. Pepper. Because no matter where people go, sooner or later there's the law. And sooner or later they find God's already been there.
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 86,252 Likes: 25
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 86,252 Likes: 25 |
Sno-Seal ain't expensive, it's easier to use than beeswax, and a can will last you a year or better even if you're wearing your boots out in rough weather all year. Won't soften boot leather like mink oil or lanolin. It's the only thing I'll use on my outdoor boots. I've used the same "can" for more than a decade. Works great. I wish I could give a "+1" to you good gents, but my experience with Snoseal is very different. I've had it whipped off boots by wet, tall, grass in a matter of hours, after applying to warm boots and followed with a hair dryer. It does work well for me on the leather uppers of Sorels....that are covered with pants.
If you take the time it takes, it takes less time. --Pat Parelli
American by birth; Alaskan by choice. --ironbender
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Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 18,243
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 18,243 |
This, http://www.obenaufs.com/Or what Doc said. Good boots treated with Obenaudfs, I have worked walking in and out of a creek for three weeks, and went home with dry feet everyday. +1 I use Obenaudf's because it's a family business right down the road from me but there's others also made with Bees Wax and Pine Tar that work too... By the time you chase down all the products needed to make your own (if you can even find it) you'll spend twice as much and it won't work any better....
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Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 4,216
Campfire Tracker
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OP
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 4,216 |
Many years ago back when there were "surplus" stores, I bought a can of boot treatment/waterproofing the Govt used. It had a distict smell of wax but had other stuff in it. I would heat the can on the stove and stir it up then wipe it on. Worked good, but if you put it on too thick, it caked, which supports the wax content.
I have plenty of beeswax, do you heat it to apply? I also have lanoline. I never heard of Obenaudfs, but I'll look for it.
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Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 823
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 823 |
It's messy, but neatsfoot oil and paraffin wax melted together until the wax pretty much stays in the oil, applied hot, will waterproof the heck out of stuff. Leaves a wax "shell" of sorts that looks ugly. This stuff used to work well on my leather work boots in CO, WY, UT winters- ranch work, power line stuff. All winter, all day, every day. Used to be cheap, too. You can brush or put on with rag, and even buff it in, to a point. Got a pair of loggers in the closet so soaked with it they're kind of armored, last treatment was early 90s. I'd put them on and wade ankle deep, right now.
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,066
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,066 |
Another fan of Obenauf's. It's not that expensive, and a small can/tub lasts a long time.
I tend to treat my boots around this time of year, or a little later...usually after turkey season and again before archery season. I put them in the sun on warm day and let them get pretty warmed up, then just rub the Obenauf's into all the leather surfaces and it's done.
I've used it on my Meindl boots and my Asolos and it's kept them looking great through fairly hard use. I also use it on my Montana and M1907 slings, with good results.
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 22,884
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 22,884 |
At least around here, it takes a lot more than just sunlight to melt the beeswax into the leather.
Think oven, hair dryer, and heat gun.
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Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,278
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,278 |
Sno-Seal ain't expensive, it's easier to use than beeswax, and a can will last you a year or better even if you're wearing your boots out in rough weather all year. Won't soften boot leather like mink oil or lanolin. It's the only thing I'll use on my outdoor boots. I agree with Doc 100%. Sno-Seal is mostly (I think) beeswax but much more easy to apply and comes in both cans and tubes. Why would anyone mess with mixing your own when this is so handy and cheap? It keeps the leather stiff and stable and works on all kinds of leather including boots, tack, holsters, etc. I have tried most alternatives, including even French-produced mine oil, and they really mess up good leather. Maguiars car seat spray works well for its intended purpose, but not for outdoor waterproofing. I have a pair of Russell's bird shooter boots that I have worn all over the world including Africa, through streams and snow and 100-plus degree temps. I have had them since the 1970s and while they look a bit scruffy, with Sno-Seal applied regularly, they may never wear out!
Norman Solberg International lawyer, lately for 25 years in Japan, now working on trusts in the US, the 3rd greatest tax haven. NRA Life Member for over 50 years, NRA Endowment (2014), Patron (2016).
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Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,278
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,278 |
All the above works BUT it works better if u heat(tiny) your oil/wax of choice,then ... Toss your striped down boots in the oven at low temp and rub/paint it on ...in it goes...paint again ...in an out it goes ....u will know when they are ready....PS u didn't have to pay for this info ...but u are now in-riched ! Exactly right.
Norman Solberg International lawyer, lately for 25 years in Japan, now working on trusts in the US, the 3rd greatest tax haven. NRA Life Member for over 50 years, NRA Endowment (2014), Patron (2016).
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 39,301
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 39,301 |
Many years ago back when there were "surplus" stores, I bought a can of boot treatment/waterproofing the Govt used. It had a distict smell of wax but had other stuff in it. I would heat the can on the stove and stir it up then wipe it on. Worked good, but if you put it on too thick, it caked, which supports the wax content.
I have plenty of beeswax, do you heat it to apply? I also have lanoline. I never heard of Obenaudfs, but I'll look for it. If you can't find it let me know.
The first time I shot myself in the head...
Meniere's Sucks Big Time!!!
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 20,683
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 20,683 |
Snoseal ? Btdt
No staying power ime
Would like to try obenaufs
I cuss that dang Sitka deer every time I put on a beeswax treated gloves that ain't been sitting in the sun
But once those gloves are broken in. Pretty skookum
I'm pretty certain when we sing our anthem and mention the land of the free, the original intent didn't mean cell phones, food stamps and birth control.
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,066
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,066 |
At least around here, it takes a lot more than just sunlight to melt the beeswax into the leather.
Think oven, hair dryer, and heat gun. All I do is basically follow the Obenauf's recommended process. Not sure what is best, but what they've suggested has always seemed to work well. Here's what they recommend: http://www.obenaufs.com/category-s/127.htm
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,635
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,635 |
Sno-Seal ain't expensive, it's easier to use than beeswax, and a can will last you a year or better even if you're wearing your boots out in rough weather all year. Won't soften boot leather like mink oil or lanolin. It's the only thing I'll use on my outdoor boots. Sorry, but Sno-Seal is the worst of the commercial crap out there. If you want to waterproof your boots every time it rains and have wet feet in the process, every time, get after it. Might work in West TX...
Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,635
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,635 |
Obenauf's is better than most by a long shot, but far short of straight beeswax. In serious Kodiak rain they will keep your feet dry for weeks of horrible weather. Sno-Seal will not last a day.
Far more important than staying dry though is boot stretch when they get waterlogged. Sno-Seal will leave you with dangerously loose boots if you are in tough country.
Plus, it lubricates the leather far better against abrasion. I have worn out new Danner boots in a single sheep hunt in bad shale. Since switching to straight beeswax many years ago I have had my three pairs of Danners resoled multiple times, tops still looking good...
Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,635
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,635 |
One caveat about straight beeswax is the fact it does not work well on leather that has been tainted by other products.
Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
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