Stinky guns.

[Frozen North]

As I do every year, I am preparing for MN's firearms deer season by checking my gear over and preparing. A big part of this preparation is eliminating scent from my clothing and boots. We all know that big smart deer trust their nose and stinky hunters seldom see them.

Then it occurred to me that I spend all this trouble to make myself smell invisible, but my gun smells like Hoppe's and CLP.... hmmmm?

It there a product that will lubricate and protect my rifle without the pungent odors? I am not worried about storage, I will tear my gun down and clean it with CLP again after the season.

Any home brew tricks out there?

 

[Skyshot]

That's one of the very reasons I never fell into Scent Lock marketing theme. There is no way to become scent free, you just use common sense in your clothing and storage of your equipment. I've had deer walk within touching distance and never spook. And I manage to fill my tags every year on PUBLIC LAND also. Wash clothing in scent free detergent, Store clothing in a sealed container. Wash your pack also. Don't use loud smelling lubricants. WD-40 has worked for me for over 35 years and my equipment is not rusted. Just be smart about what you're doing.

 

[Sav .250]

One thing for sure, you (anybody) can spend a lot of time getting ready
trying to cover all the bases to eliminate any scent only to smoke a ciggie
just before entering the woods or using your favorite tooth-paste which can be whiffed by deer for who knows how far away. Hey,it happens.

 

[solvability]

My local DNR guy tells me the biggest buck he ever saw came out of the woods and looked at him while he was running a chainsaw - likely a scentless chainsaw.

 

[Freedom_fighter_in_IL]

likely a scentless chainsaw.

Bet that saw was wearing a scentlock suit!

There are a few reduced scent cleaners out there for firearms. That Remington Bore Foam is great stuff. Works well for cleaning fouling and it doesn't have that heavy kerosene smell like Hoppes. As fare as oil goes, 3in1 oil is what I have used for over 40 years on the outside of my guns. Just a lite coat and a wipe off and you are set to go outdoors in rain or whatever. Just wipe down your firearm when you get in. Hunt the wind and you will be fine. Don't over think things like the marketers want you too.

 

[interlock]

my best advice is to not worry about scent at all. just hunt into the wind

 

[W.E.G.]

my gun smells like Hoppe's and CLP.

Try Ballistol.

 

[Pony Express]

There is no way to become scent free

Exactly my feelings on the matter. One morning, while filling up my car with gas on the way to the woods, I spilled some all over my hands and instinctively wiped it off on my pants and jacket. Even someone with a sinus infection could've smelled me from a ways off.
However despite this I had a doe and her fawn walk up to me, about ready to shake hands, until I twitched and spooked her. Now I'm no Davy Crockett, but after this instance I realized that I just happened to be walking straight upwind.

My point: PLAY WITH THE WIND deer have thousands of years of evolution on their side, but with all their powerful sense of smell comes a lack of higher-order brain capacity. That's where we, as humans, come in.

Good luck in the woods!

 

[KodiakBeer]

I use equal parts beaver fat and weasel tallow to coat my entire body, then roll around in a pile of cedar sawdust. Then I put on my clothes which are impregnated with deer semen which I gather all summer from my captive buck, who has grown very fond of me. My rifle is thoroughly coated with porcupine oil with just a hint of squirrel poo and frog urine.

I won't discuss the bear saliva enemas, because a guy has to keep a few of his hunting secrets to himself.

Or, sometimes I just hunt upwind...

 

[Freedom_fighter_in_IL]

I use equal parts beaver fat and weasel tallow to coat my entire body, then roll around in a pile of cedar sawdust. Then I put on my clothes which are impregnated with deer semen which I gather all summer from my captive buck, who has grown very fond of me. My rifle is thoroughly coated with porcupine oil with just a hint of squirrel poo and frog urine.

I won't discuss the bear saliva enemas, because a guy has to keep a few of his hunting secrets to himself.

Or, sometimes I just hunt upwind...

I see someone found his sense of humor again!

 

[juk]

Why not just lubricate it with Tinks or Estrus. Awful powerful smell, but the kind of smell the deer might pay attention to.

 

[ridgerunner1965]

i know the big hunting pros hawk a lot of scent reduction stuff on tv.they make it look like a big deal.i never really got into it.i got a buddy that believes in but seems like i kill more and bigger deer than he does for sure.but then i spend more time in the woods and am a better shot also.wind and movement are the 2 big keys in deer busting you.but also ive shot tons of deer with the wind blowing straight at them from me.dont really understand that. at bow range it can be critical but at 100 yrds they just dont seem to wind me.

 

[Frozen North]

Ha, I hunt with a few of those guys who worship the outdoor channel too

MN only has a 9 day firearms season in my zone. From spring till opening morning, the deer don't pay much attention to people. After the sun cracks the horizon on the first Saturday in Nov and nearly a million hunters start shooting at them, that all changes. They become spooky to the extreme, especially the big ones.

Two things that we have found that separate the opening morning only guys and the guys that fill all their tags during the week is special attention to scent, and the use of deer urine collected from a local game farm.

I know it comes to a point of diminished returns with the scent reduction, but it does work. I usually wash my clothes with the scent free/no UV brighteners detergent and hang it outside for a few days. No sprays, no carbon stuff. I walk through the farm yard on my way out to make my footsteps smell like everything else out there.

As far as Tinks, I think my own urine brings them in better! I have never seen it bring a deer in for anyone. There is a game farm in my area that bottles freshly collected doe in heat urine. Yep, they come in for that! The best part of it is that the bucks pay no attention to anything when they come in for it. They rub their faces in it and only have one thing on their mind.

Maybe trying to get rid of the gun smell is past the point of common sense. I've just seen so many guys make small mistakes that really put the hurt on their season. I wonder if I am making a few small mistakes myself.

 

[slicksleeve]

I use Lucas Gun Oil on all of my hunting rifles, and every other gun I own. It is odor free. You might still have the smell of Hoppe's on the rifle, but if you cleaned it well before season it seems to dissapate.

 

[nathan]

The hogs love the smell of diesel fuel and creosote. SOme hog hunters mix some diesel on their corn bait. Even bears love the smell of rotting flesh and frequent dumpsites.

 

[okiewita40]

Just clean your gun as usual a couple of weeks before the season and the smell of hoppes will dissipate. Then just a couple of drops of rem oil on the moving parts and work the action to spread the oil.

 

[rcmodel]

i know the big hunting pros hawk a lot of scent reduction stuff on TV.

Ever notice who the big-$$$ advertisers are for the TV show?

I have hunted for going on 60 years now, and we never even heard of scent-loc or camo clothes for the first 30+ years.

Until the more recent TV hunting experts told us we needed to buy $500 dollars worth of special hunting clothes, deer stalker boots, and an invisible gun to even get close enough to see a deer!

I smell something fishy there!!
And it ain't body oder or gun oil.

rc

 

[AKElroy]

You can wear a body condom & shrink wrap the gun if you like, but if you aren't downwind it is not going to matter one bit unless you can somehow avoid exhaling for the duration of your hunt as well.

 

[Frozen North]

I understand the wind.... Thanks for the other tips.

Even the old timers (the smart ones) payed attention to scent. At least my grandpa and great uncles did. They are all dead and gone, but the antlers are still around.



Approach an idea with an open mind, there is no need to ridicule. Thanks for assuming I am an idiot.

 

[Sheepdog1968]

I use equal parts beaver fat and weasel tallow to coat my entire body, then roll around in a pile of cedar sawdust. Then I put on my clothes which are impregnated with deer semen which I gather all summer from my captive buck, who has grown very fond of me. My rifle is thoroughly coated with porcupine oil with just a hint of squirrel poo and frog urine.

I won't discuss the bear saliva enemas, because a guy has to keep a few of his hunting secrets to himself.

Or, sometimes I just hunt upwind...

That's milk comming out of my nose funny.

 

[AKElroy]

Approach an idea with an open mind, there is no need to ridicule. Thanks for assuming I am an idiot.

What was meant to be funny came across as snarky. Sorry for that. My clearly unfunny comment was simply meant to convey that there is not much we can do to mask our scent. If we are upwind, I don't think a stalk will be successful no matter how diligent we are to scent-mask. I follow the obvious stuff; avoid cologne, use scent free soap, I even make sure the wife avoids the dryer sheets for my hunting clothes. In the end, I have still lost game if I was up-wind. Heck, maybe it was the hoppe's!!

 

[rallyhound]

Frozen, please PM me your source of MN deer pee please.



And where can I buy weasel tallow?

 

[Frozen North]

I don't think a stalk will be successful

9 year old kid with me this year, no stalk will be successful.

I will be primarily stand hunting in an old, large, but very secure tree stand. It can be tough to play the wind when anchored in one spot. It sits on a very established escape route from some state land. It is located by a tall gravel hogs back and a river crossing. If they want out, they gotta go by me.... unless they KNOW I am there. The stand is about 75 yards to the SE of the opening, and the prevailing wind is from the NW. The deer will be approaching from the NW and cant see me till they are around the end of the hogs back. It is a perfect ambush location.

rallyhound, I will see if I can find a website for you. If not, they are located just north of Princeton on HWY 169.

The best source weasel tallow I have found is on John Ireland Blvd, across I-94 from the cathedral in St Paul. Just look for the big marble dome with golden horses on top.

 

[Cosmoline]

FWIW you can certainly ditch the modern oils and just coat your firearm with simple beeswax and vegetable oil mix, old school. With most manual cycling rifles there's no requirement for lubes at all. Some folks think there is, but there isn't. A bolt action needs no lubricant to function for hunting purposes. Neither does a well fitted lever action. So you can just apply the wax mixture to protect it from the weather and leave the moving parts as is.

 

[Frozen North]

Food grade milk pump lube....

No scent, no taste, USDA approved. My Dad was a milk truck driver for 30 years, there are a few cans in his garage

I can't believe I didn't think of this before! I can apply a light coat on the blued metal with no worries of rust.

I just want to do well this year above all others. This will be my oldest boy's first time out and I want him to see deer. I realize I am being a little paranoid, but I want to cover the bases the best I can.