coon trap question

[.17HMR]

I got a lot of 1.5 Jumps and #1 coils, will these be good wnough for coons on the water line where about 95% of my sets are on slide wires or could they pull out of such a small trap?

I also got a lot of #2 double longs would these be better?


thnaks guys

[Bogmaster]

 #i coils will hold your coon just fine,the only problem with them,is the small jaw spread.I am not a big fan of the jump traps for coon,but your #2 longsprings are the same size a(jawspread wise)as a #1 1/2.They will work just fine on your coon.Just make sure you have plenty of swivels on all of your traps.
 Tom

[catdaddy]

if youre using manly drowning sets than swivels arent maddatory,but if you trap on land then its mandatory to use swivels,in drowning sets there alive for no more than 10 minutes,in land sets there there for 8 hours

[Bogmaster]

 Only a fool,does not swivel all his traps.many times,animals do not head down the slider right away. Swivels are the cheapest insurance there is.
 Swivels do not cost---they pay!!!!!
 Swivel every trap you own.
 Tom

[wormbobskey]

Amen on the swivels. I think I spend more in swivels every year than on any other modification parts for new and old traps. All my traps carry at least 2 swivels and up to 5 on my traps set up with drags. Worm

[jim-NE]

Swivels are a must, and I believe you can never have enough of them. Should be swiveled points at the trap, in the chain or other connection length itself, and at the attachment point. Coons roll, twist, grab with all four feet, etc. and it is amazing the strength they have for their size. They also have tough, rubbery feet, that are tapered with not much of a "wrist" or "ankle" area per se. They can also rotate their back feet 180 degrees backward, a feature that enables them to climb so well, even up straight trees by the bark only.
Swivels are essential in coon trapping.
I too tend to shy away from jumps these days. Hope that statement doesn't ruffle any feathers. If the #1s you have are still strong-springed, and the jaws are either double or are singles that close completely with little to no gap in the jaws when the levers lock up, those #1s are just fine for coon, and especially on drowners. The #2 longs will also work well on drowners, and for a back foot catch would hold well. I use a lot of #2 longs on land here for coyote, fox, and cat and they hold just fine. They have a similar jawspread to the 1 1/2 coil, which has been a standard coon trap on the water line for many, many years. Use lots of swivels on them, and I also cut that spring clevis attachment off completely and go to a mid-frame attachment point. I never had good success with a spring attachment on longspring models...center mounted swiveled chain attachments are the way to go, especially with coon.
Jim

[pickles]

I have a farmer that is over run with coon, he lives in the mt. very ittle water. Whats isd the best set, and just any good lure to attract them. He wants the off his farm. I have not traped for coon, just passer bys water trapping. any help would be apreciated.


Semper Fi

[jim-NE]

I trap most of my coons with dryland sets. I like double dirthole sets (one trap, two dirtholes about 6" to 8" apart, with trap bedded directly between and in front of the two holes, about 8" to 10" back from the lip of the two holes).
You can do a lot with this set for combos of baits, lures, urines, etc.
Bed the trap tightly as if it moves coon will flip it out of the bed. If they work both holes you get a lot of hind foot shuffling by the coon changing positions to work both holes...very few misses.
Make sure you have a big backing or no backing at all or else the coon will reach into the holes from behind the set...get them in front of the holes. Use a lot of swivels and a decent staking system. I use #11s with a lot of success at this set.
Other good dryland sets are #220s in trails, snares, and then just about any decent fox or coyote type set will also find interest by coons. Live traps work OK too if they are still interested in food and you have a decent trail or den to set up near. Blind sets also work well on hot trails.
Anyway, just some ones to start with. Your own creativity is about your only limit with dryland coon sets! Best tip I can offer though is don't make sets too far away from trails or other coon sign. They seem to tend to stick close to routine travel routes. Be careful to observe if the sign if fresh, too. A beaten down path in dry climates may actually be rather old, if little rain or other weather has had opportunity to deteriate the sign much. Trails generally go from home, to food, and back, etc. Sometimes the food source goes away quickly, like a picked crop field...then the trail will also go very cold as a result. Once smoking hot trails found in early season can go very cold in later seasons. Anyway, just keep the sign in mind.

[Macthediver]

If you have lots of coon as you say and the right kind of cover. Nothing is quicker than to walk the edge of a corn field and put a trap in every good trail you see. It takes maybe a little more scouting and looking closer than just putting in a bait set the day trapping opens.
     I trail set almost all the coon I catch and very rarely use bait or any fance set.  I stake a short chained multi swiveled 1 1/2 double jawed coil spring in the trail with a couple stepping sticks and I'm on my way.  If I have a good trail I sometime put in as many as 3 or 4  traps in one trail, spaced so animals can't reach each other.  I regularly get doubles set up like this and have had as many as four coon in one trail the next morning. Trail setting with foot holds don't get much attention as most guys use coni's in trails and there is always the foot chewing issue. Hence for me the DJs.
     Trail setting with foot holds really does have it's place though.  I find I  can set a trail with a foot hold that is on as open of ground as a putting green and still catch coon without bait.   
     I do also use 160s in trails where I have good pinch points or don't want to deal with live animals spinning in a trap. I have places where I set up only with Grizz traps.  I'm not nessaraily using just one kind of coon set on my line or say trail set are the only way to go.
     But if you have high numbers like you believe you have. For me the quickest way to put a good hurt on the coon in short order is setting trails.  You can always bait the tough guys if you want to really clean them all out.

jmtcw
Mac

[RdFx]

Mac, you only gave the fellow half info.... how do you set your traps in trail?  Coon comes over the jaw or  in between jaws?   Do you bed your traps  snug so they dont wiggle as in canine traps?  Or do you  leave  on top of ground like western cat trappers do and just put stones or sticks under jaws to firm up trap?  Im going to leave these questions up to you..  give us your method....i do the same as what you did in informations as i take it for granted as you and i   do it as second nature....

[pickles]

Thanks for all the advice, I still have a little time here in Pa. so I am going to go check out the farm this week and see what is up. after I walk the place I will have a beter idea myself. Trail sets sound good but till I see what is in store no one knows what is instore.

thanks for the responces


Semper Fi

[Macthediver]

RdFx
Your right I often forget when teaching that I need to teach to the newest student.
I learned to set trails with 1 1/2s for coon back in the mid 70s. I was really interested in fox and more interested in keeping the coon out of my fox sets. I tried taking the coon off my line  early with baited/lured dirt hole sets made close to or in the woods. I thought I could get the coon out of the way before I set for fox and had them messing up sets. Anyway I still caught more fox than I wanted to in coon sets. Being fox season opened a couple weeks after coon I had to let the fox go. Thus educate fox or wait and trap both later.
Long store short I learned to use my fox traps 1 1/2s coils later I bought DJs to trail set coon.  I did  demonstrated my trail set method once years ago for a trapper ed class. I have showed others on my line and some in just a grass spot in the yard.
It is so simple it is pathetic really.  I take my 2 pound hammer drive the trap stake in the center of the trail. I then pound in a trap bed with the hammer, that puts the trap pan pretty much center in the trail. The trap gets whiggled in the bed till it sets tight with no wobble and the jaws are level with the trail. I then place maybe one leaf on the pan, a dusting of dirt, or some shredded grass. There is next to no cover on the trap as double jaws can plug real easy. Just enough cover is used to blend the trap a little. As for the between or over the jaws. I usually have the dog at like the 11-o-clock position to the trail center. If the trail is on the flat I don't pay much attention to which way the loose jaw lays up or down trail. If the trail is on a hill or slope, which many are here I put the loose jaw on the down hill side. This keeps a coon that might step short coming down the hill. From flipping the loose jaw over on the trap firing it, or leaving the trap unfired but unable to catch the next coon to comes along. I also use guide sticks across the trail. I have used as little as a few blades of grass or sticks up to the size of a broom handle. Theses I place kind of just by eye thinking how a coon might step. If I had to give a mesurement I'd say maybe and inch  outside the trap jaw.
If you have any more question feel free to ask. If you get to the WI convention this weekend look me up and I'll show you on the grassy knoll. Maybe next week after convention I can figure out how to post some pictures. I do have quit a few pictures of different locations and I even took some once of a remake. Yes you can remake some of even the really bomb crattered trails. Some coon may avoid a remake but I do catch coon in remakes.

Mac   

[RdFx]

Thanks Mac, your detailed descriptions will surely help   new trappers as well as  older trappers trying something new.  Okay trappers, get your knives sharpened and your stretchers ready... Good Luck.

[trappnman]

Those using #11 and #1 have a lot smaller coon then we do here. While both work, you are going to get a lot of snapped traps. I find the #11 to be frankly a worthless overall coon trap. I'd never recommend them for any northern midwest trappers. Its terrible in dirt and both a front foot and a back foot will span the jaws.

As far as trail sets- sure, they work good early when the corn, etc is still up- but fail to put up numbers of coon for me in later season, when coon aren't using trails and are, for all practical purpise, aimlessly wandering. 

Give me a good line of dirt holes with a good lure for maximum harvest all season.and make that trap a Duke 1.5.

[MChewk]

#11 worthless? Gary Armstrong, John Wilson,  might argue with these guys routinely trap 400 plus coon ...in the water. The #11 in my mind is a fine coon trap yes I do agree it might have some limitations on land but then so does the 1 1/2....darn weather.

[trappnman]

I don't know John Wilson- but Gary Armstrong isn't trapping northern coon.

In over 400 coon this past season- if 25 of them were under 20 lbs- I'll eat my hat.

I used #11 in water periodically over a 3 year period trapping otter for te dnr, in all seasons. I caught a ton of coon- for every one I caught, I bet I had two that snapped the traps.

People not in the northern midwest tier don't realize how big our coon are.t

[Macthediver]

trappnman
     Your right about coon wandering more as season goes on and crops come off. I was in no way saying trail set are the cure all and I do use other type sets. I use the trail sets early in the season where woods meet crops, or coon are traveling from bedding/feeding/crops, etc to water.  It is just a quick way to take the easy coon out of the field so that my fox/coyote set weren't messed up as much by coon.  We both know that for many years now the coon are probably worth as much or more that a coyote or fox. Most times coon are more plentiful easier to catch too, at least around here.     
     But back when I was work on $75.00 or better average on fox. I actually used to say dang just a coon, even thought some of them coon were $45.00 or more LOL! Funny how a person view on things changes over the years. Back when I thought I was a big time fox trapper, Now ain't that a hoot!.  I kept possum worth maybe $1.00 if I skinned them.
     Back in the day,, even though I caught dozen in my fox sets, I wouldn't think of  keeping or dealing with a skunk.  Skunks then, like now were around $5.00. It should have been a no brainer money wise. But I didn't take the time to learn to deal with Skunks. Now I've learned to deal with them and keep every one of them little stinkers I catch. Like the fox however I don't catch near the number of skunks I used to back in the 70s. I swear there were days back then when I caught as many skunks in a day as I do in a week now and I'm running more sets now.
     O-well things change and we try to roll with the punches.
So Steve!  See ya in Marshfield??

Mac

[trappnman]

You bet- we will be there sometime thursday afternoon- got 106 gopher traps to pull before we go.

Looks like you learned the lesson on skunks before me. I took 36 last year...and did nothing with them.

Did you have spotted skunks years ago? as a kid we called them civit cats- and we use to catch 50/50 with striped . We got $2 bounty. Haven't seen one for 30 years now.

This year- for sure dispatch and collect essence.

[Macthediver]

trappnman
I don't recall even as a kid seeing spotted skunks. They may have been here? but I can't say I ever seen one. Not sure that this was even part of their historic range? 
I have over the years however seen some what I'd call really cool skunks. Some almost all white others black or almost all black. One of the neater ones I caught years ago was a chocolate brown color with white spikes in his tail. I know if I caught one like that now days he'd come home in the truck with me. If I didn't have it mounted it would at least get tanned.  I've come to like the odd stuff even if the fur buyers don't.

Mac