So this season I saved the fat off the nice little buck I got in November rifle season, deer I harvested in bow season have quite a bit less fat on them.
So I chopped the fat into 1/4" pieces or smaller and put them in a pot on low heat. After around 2 hours all the fat has separated into a liquid and small crunchy things. I strained out the liquid with cloth into quart sized jars, 1 buck produced 2 jars. As it cooled the liquid hardened into wax.
I applied this wax to my leather hunting boots by rubbing on a layer and heating it up with a hair dryer to allow the wax to soak into the leather, I repeat this process several times until the wax will no longer soak into the leather but stay on top. At this point I put the laces back in the boots and they are ready to go. 100 percent water proof even after a season of hunting.
On a side note I put a wick in a small jar of the wax and it burns just as a candle with no weird smell or smoke. Pretty amazing stuff and another great way to utilize your kill.
I think deer lard (rendered fat) does have some potential. It does burn nice. When still hot and in a liquid state a person could blend in a piece of bee's wax. Then the lard won't smoke at the wick. I used a 1 inch wide lantern wick in a only deer fat candle and it did smoke a very little bit if the wick wasn't trimmed. I noticed it has a brighter flame than a wax candle.
Deer lard is pretty slick stuff. Add a drop of fragrant essential oil to the lard when it's a hot liquid, then put it in a fancy labeled jar and give it to the wife as an exotic organic skin conditioner.
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This country was started by voyagers whose young lives were swept away by the currents of the rivers for ten cents a day... just for the vanity of the European's beaver hats. ~ Red Bullets
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It is when you walk alone in nature that you discover your strengths and weaknesses. ~ Red Bullets
I used grizzly bear fat ten years ago on a pair of la spotiva boots that where bright yellow color. They are pretty brown now and I didn’t find it worked any better than the nickwax that I usually use.
I have used Mink Oil on my work boots for over 30 years nothing better!
Buy a can of Mink Oil when you buy your boots, get a pair of rubber glove grease the "H" out them, I mean 1/3 of a can per pair. put them someplace warm. I put mine in the oven in one of those tinfoil baking pans, on the lowest setting with the door open part way for 10 min.s, or until all of the mink oil soaks in to the leather.
My buddy had a custom made leather motorcycle seat that he treated with Mink Oil, We were camped around Jasper many years ago, he crawled out of his tent one morning and found a Bear chewing on his seat, My seat was just factory vinyl and it wasn't touched. Beware the Bear
Great way to destroy gore-tex. That stuff has to be able to breath if you don’t want sweaty feet, use the wrong conditioner on your boot and they’re no longer breathable. If you had old school leather boots do whatever you find works.
I’ll stick to grangers on my hanwags and leatherman boots. After all these years they’re both not only waterproof but still breath.
Or balistol. I have a pair of 8 year old red wings that have been resoled twice. The leather gets scrubbed and soaked twice a year in balistol. They've got a nice walnut patina and aside from the scrapes, scratches, bumps and bruises you'd expect on a pair of boots with the mileage these have seen, they look pretty darn good. And they slide on like a pair of socks.
Balistol - I put that $#!7 on everything!
Colin
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Check out my new book on Kindle - After The Flesh.
Leather boot conditioner
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