I will start by saying I had switched to all MB550s a while ago. When the Duke 550 came out I asked around to get information and there seemed to be none. I was at the Barnes customer appreciation days last Friday and got to look at the 2 traps side by side. The Duke seemed to be well built so I bought 2 dozen to experiment with. I will tell now what I noticed. The Duke has the normal bump of the levers on the frame. No big deal just not a smooth setting trap like the MB. Next, every pan had to be adjusted and most had a slight twist to them which again no big deal. Nest I set all pan tension to 3-4 pounds which is my preference. While doing this I noticed there is a bur where the dog contacts the pan on the pan. All of them had this, I filed it smooth. Next I got paint and acetone to make a paint dip, I have never dipped before, I am normally a dye and wax guy. I mixed 1 to 1 and dipped 8 traps. Paint looks nice but I think it is to thick and I quit after 8 traps. When it dries I will report my findings there. I have a feeling I will be dying and waxing the rest. Stay tuned........

I'm not sure, but from your post so far, I think you identified yourself as a female tranny. Nevertheless, I'm sure you'll enjoy your new traps.

My thoughts too . lol

Yup!!

Guess that is why you review posts before posting. I hate auto fill. I fixed it. Anyhow I will try to pass on results. Paint looks better as it is drying. Not sure of the smell though. Waxed traps don't need to air out.

Looks good to me Srike2x I bought 6 dozen to try out. Thanks for the heads up on the bur on the dog! Big MB fan so I’m looking forward to getting them setup.

I love my mb550s. I will not buy duke 550s, for just a little more money I can have MB’s that are ready to go out of the box, no filing or adjusting at all.

NOW.... unfortunately MB doesn’t make a 650 version just like the 550.....so I have a dozen or two of those on my shopping list. I really wish mb would make them because I’d Gladly shell out a bit extra for theirs but they don’t.

I'd like to know more about the dip...been using thinned latex, I like it, but doesn't seem real tough. Thanks in advance!

I will post more pictures and anything I notice about these traps and the dip process.
Bob, I agree on the MBs I have only MBs and my purchase was not money based but rather curiosity. I wanted to try dipping traps and figured better on them. Also not much info on this site about these traps so I was using them to experiment. Also, I tune every trap out of the box. I even tune MBs. Granted I don't have to do much but I do adjust pan tension to my preference.

When I dipped mine I did 60/40 paint thinner to paint. I figured the thinner the better, worst case I have to dip it twice. I did this on my water traps and it held up well, granted they were only rat traps.

One to one is too thick on paint dip - 2-3 parts acetone to 1 part paint works great.

Traps dipped in properly mixed paint/acetone dry immediately and there is no odor. You either used the wrong type paint or did not have enough acetone. LLL

I use 2 quarts of paint to about 3 to 3 1/2 quarts of acetone. The paint I used was oil based bare metal primer. Dries in about 10 minutes. Keep it mixed up. Try to avoid doing it on super hot days or you will have to add more acetone it evaporates quicker the hotter it is outside. Or spray paint works very well just more time involved.

bare metal black primer always looks good as well.

I need a like button for your pictures Hammer. I have 220s I painted 8 years ago that are still like they were when I painted them. Coon wear off anything but paint gets inside the springs and does not get rubbed off. This is making me want to work traps and I have no idea if I am going to trap this season. LLL

I use exterior latex paint thinned with water on my killpoles and it holds up great.






A few used ones there...

Haha thanks. I dip all my traps in fmj 2 to 3 times holds up to coyote after coyote pretty well most the time I just just pressure wash and reset them the following year. When I catch a coon they don't wear it off that easily either. Normally get 2 seasons out of a trap before I just touch the chipped up spots with a rattle can then redip in fmj 2 more times. In rocky soil or just a old rocky log road then they get worn down pretty good them end up needing a full redip in paint.

Those are some nice pictures.
Paint on mine covered well but still not dry. More like still soft. Hoping it will cure out to hard. Like I said, first time paint dipping. If I every try again I will add more acetone. It rained this morning so trap has water from that.

Not to hijack the thread but has anyone used zep floor wax in place of FMJ? Have read that it the same based on Safety Data Sheets. Thinking about trying to paint and then dip in zeps. Thank you.

Zep's and fmj are not the same. Fmj will hold up better then zep's I've used both I prefer fmj. Will say zep's work just fine never had issues catching coyotes using it.