My wife says my nose doesn't work! when i first opened the can of "Formula One" that was the first thing i done, was sniff it. it darn sure doesn't smell like paint, if it does have a smell i can't smell it. i don't have the can here now, but you mix it 3 or 4 to one with water. (1qt. dip with 1 gallon of h20.) i thinned it a little more than reccommended, because it was like gravy. i first wanted it to break the outline/shine on my snares. my snares look really good, Newt told me to dunk them 2 times. 3 times would probably slow down the snares? that's one of the biggest reasons i posted this thread on this site, i wanted different opinions. i've only dipped my snares, and about 2 dozen water traps so far. i had to dunk my mb-750's 5 or 6 times but they look good, i have about 3 gallons mixed in a 5 gallon bucket, it only takes 5 minutes to dip a box full wait about an hour and dunk em again. i like it so far. still would like to have more info.