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Post by Sunshine on Jan 31, 2007 0:33:39 GMT -5
come share............. your tips and shortcuts that youve found work for you on the line.. make someone elses trapping experience run a little smoother with the benefits or your experience
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Post by whitetailaddict on Feb 6, 2007 20:24:59 GMT -5
Tip #1- avoid shortcuts, they are called that for a reason. Do it right and you will be rewarded. Not saying it should take longer or be harder (trapping context ) but do it right. Be efficent and proficient, and it will pay off. WTA
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Post by Earl8656 on Feb 6, 2007 20:27:52 GMT -5
get your equipment ready ahead of time(not a shortcut). Plan your sets and checks so there is no backtrackin!!
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Post by cajunbill2 on Feb 6, 2007 21:47:52 GMT -5
take a kid trapping and teach them the true meaning of life
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Post by Sunshine on Apr 11, 2007 0:15:35 GMT -5
Tip #1- avoid shortcuts, they are called that for a reason. Do it right and you will be rewarded. Not saying it should take longer or be harder (trapping context ) but do it right. Be efficent and proficient, and it will pay off. WTA short cuts to me are the easiest and quickest way to reach the best result..a short cut should never compromise the end result..only help you to get their quicker..if you compromise the end result..its not a shortcut.. its just stupid
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Post by deerhunter65347 on Apr 12, 2007 20:17:20 GMT -5
Here'a short cut to finding your beaver. Find agriculture fields next to streams and add traps.
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Post by predator145 on Jun 11, 2007 16:49:13 GMT -5
always let your kids dispatch your animals.
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Post by Sunshine on Jun 16, 2007 14:12:53 GMT -5
i wouldnt have my kids dispatch anything if they werent ready..thats something they need to chose to do for themselves and shouldnt be required of them. Theres no surer way to make someone hate something than to make them do something they hate to do.
when your kids are ready , IF theyre ready to take that much of active role in your line, theyll let ya know..i dont think you should ever require it of them .
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Post by powerhouse on Jun 18, 2007 9:01:45 GMT -5
I won't say that I disagree with Predator........if the kids are old enough and responsible enough to do it properly. They need to understand the whys and reasonings of a proper dispatch. When ready, it is a good way to keep them interested!
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Post by predator145 on Jun 20, 2007 16:52:53 GMT -5
Sunny, I said let them, not make them. Big Difference. Sometimes my son wants to and sometimes he does not. He wont trap in the future if he gets all soft and dont want to dispatch the cute little furry animal. I involve him 100% and he'll be a better trapper because of it!
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coop
Rat Trapper
Posts: 74
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Post by coop on Jun 20, 2007 20:11:05 GMT -5
Paint or tape the handles of your tools bright red, orange, yellow, etc. Not a new idea but a good one .
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Post by mink1574 on Jul 4, 2007 13:54:01 GMT -5
I dont have any down here with me for pics. this all preseason.
take chicken fence wire 2x2 feet lay down a section,rake leaves on it lay another section on top and use cage clips to secure. makes a great way to block down a trail set for 220s that is too wide open,will help hide your catch also.
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Post by mink1574 on Jul 4, 2007 15:10:01 GMT -5
when trapping where ya have lots of rats,and noone else around. put a piece of styrofoam with a piece of fishing line attached to yourtrap,inbetween the jaws,talkin conis here.if the foams not floating ya can bypass that set and go to the next.
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Post by mj3006 on Jul 11, 2007 15:52:48 GMT -5
Take a garden hoe with ya water trappin. Plain ol goose neck hoe like ya use in the garden. If ya dont have one you can buy em cheap at yard sales. Heres some of the uses and Im constantly finding more . Locating and Retreiving traps from deep water. Use as a walking staff to measure depth of water. Hook it behind a root or tree to help climb slick or steep banks. Make a fake run or wet trail. Widen existing runs enough to acomodate your trap. Chop roots and pull debris out of the way. Make small breaks in beaver dams,just enough to make the water gurgle,slick up otter slides and use corners of hoe for fake claw marks. Run handle through the spring eyes of conibears or springs of big long spring traps. If youve caught a few beaver,tie their front feet together and hook rope or wire with hoe blade and drag behind ya through The water. Lot easier than totin or using a cord. If your makin baited beaver sets,take the hoe to chop off tender willow or poplar sprouts,you can get a bunch quick. Oh yeah, If you trap down south like I do you will find snakes on warm winter days, nothin beats a hoe for killin snakes. Try takin one with ya, youll see what I mean
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Post by Sunshine on Jul 12, 2007 1:18:14 GMT -5
ill take one just for the killin snakes feature
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Post by Earl8656 on Jul 12, 2007 12:06:22 GMT -5
i can't hardly remember my trowel....lol...I use a hammer with a how head on it for my water and land lines. Works great for pounding in those stakes and digging the trap beds, have a carpenters hammer loop on my belt. We don't see any snakes after the first of December ;D
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Post by mink1574 on Jul 22, 2007 21:07:05 GMT -5
Get a topo. map and a plat book for your county or counties that you trap. Plus a county road map. Look for areas that funnel your K9s travel,Long fence lines,power lines,rivers,etc. Look at the plat book to see who owns the property you would like to trap.Then go ask permission and get on the ground confirmation to see if the sign is there. The road map will cut out backtracking to different locations. Then if possible you can set up all the bridges and culverts for mink,coon, rats. These will be your expense money makers.
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Post by Earl8656 on Jul 25, 2007 7:55:23 GMT -5
scout ahead of time so that u know how many sets u will need to have ready for a certain location!
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Post by mink1574 on Jul 29, 2007 19:16:33 GMT -5
If your regulations allow it set up your drowners ahead of time at your sets. The amount of time saved is unbelieveable, it will allow you to set 3 times the amount of traps openiong day.
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Post by mtbadger on Aug 2, 2007 16:05:32 GMT -5
I have an old single bit ax head welded to a short shovel handle for chopping through ice and roots... Also I have a section of sickle bar mower (about 4" wide) welded to a short shovel handle also for chopping beds or roots.....
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Post by Sunshine on Dec 3, 2007 0:05:40 GMT -5
good tips guys
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Post by Earl8656 on Dec 3, 2007 1:52:31 GMT -5
Keep a 'little black book" of everything you did from the season before on certain changes or adjustments you may have made. sometimes we can forget the simplest things that we often take for granted. Without the notes we may forget for a week or so, missing valuable fur!
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Post by backwoodsman on May 20, 2010 14:16:36 GMT -5
Well not for sure if its a shortcut or not but we try to keep our sets simple. Unless an obvious set/blind set presents itsself we use 3 sets for mink and coon. Pocket set(obviously), PVC set and "Tinfish" set. For fox we use Timber Cubby and dirthole mainly. Alot of our fox, yote, badger traps have the drag attached and its used as a backing. I can make a dirt hole type set with that setup in 30 seconds or less if rushed. Saves tons of time driving stakes or cables/anchors. The critters can usually move the logdrag far enough the set can be reused. One of the metal flower bulb planters really cuts down on digging time too. We've got them as cheap as free and rarely more than $1 at yardsales etc. For rats the standard feedbed, runs/dens, floats, pullouts, slides are used. One set we use on those waters where obvious sets arent present or the "toilet bowl" ponds is we just smear our boot vertically on the bank making a fake slide which we call the set. Wide as our boot and down to the mud. Foothold set at the bottom with a little lure etc at the top is all there is to it. Not the best set if coons are present and not a target as many coons wont walk past it either. We took over 20 keeper coons in just a few ponds last year with this set and 1 1/2 LS stoploss traps. We'll gangset a bank with this set and thin the rats and coons pretty quick. Always keep a log/journal of sets and locations, phone numbers, successful setups, baits/lures etc. Referring back is alot of fun too during the off times and little tidbits can put alot of fur in the shed that you may have missed. Ive set forgotten farms this way to that I forgot I had permission or hadnt ever set before due to time constraints etc.
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Post by huckleberry on Sept 17, 2010 22:21:40 GMT -5
Take a kid trapping number one. Or even a "newbie". Will pay off more then anything else.
As far as trapping yourself. Have a plan for each area you are going to trap. Know when you will be there, what you will be after, what traps, and what lures/baits you will want for that particular area. (No need to lug a bunch of #4's into an area when all your after is coon or smaller critters.)
have your vehicle set up for trapping. (Dorothy is lhaf that I wrote that) A truck bed full of gas cans, oil, pesticides, and other crap aint gonna help ya one bit. If you must keep that stuff in the truck with your traps, put your traps in a sealed container. Don't have to be vaccuum tight, but a good seal.
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