I "brown" mine leg holds 
Power wash the traps and degrease them
I then get out enough clean 5 gallon buckets to hold the traps 
Then with gloves on 
I take the husk off Black Walnuts and pack the traps in the husks and add a little water ( maybe 2 cups per 5 gallon bucket of traps and hushs)
Make sure the buckets are heaped with husks 
Set the buckets out of the way for 2 - 3 weeks .....yep that was the hard part 
After a few weeks dump out the buckets and again with gloves dig out the traps 
Hang outside to allow the traps to dry 
Lots of blackwalnut trees around , so I figure the coon , fox , rats and Yotes don't fear the little smell left on the traps from the blackwalnut husks 
The blackwalnut husks seem to leave a coating on the traps , helping at least a little to not rust 
OH , if you forget the gloves , your hands will be a interesting shade of yellow/brown for at least a week 
The traps will now be a nice shade of brown , not rust 
Also have no human smell
John