Post by ozarkmountainman on Dec 26, 2016 20:34:15 GMT -6
I had quite a few questions at the clinic Saturday from newer trappers concerning coil spring trap modifications. I tried to stress during my program that there are a lot of things to work on that are more important (you know, like LOCATION), but as I thought about it yesterday while doing some trap work, I figure that it might do to at least cover the basics for the new folks here that may have questions. Ya'll please weigh-in with your thoughts, especially if I miss something.
By definition, we'll say that "trap modifications" are intended to make the trap do a better job at catching critters. Another consideration is that some mods also help to make the catch easier on the animal. Trap mods can help increase your catch, but are not a necessity, especially if you're still learning the basics. Like LOCATION.
The first thing that every trap needs, even for you newbies, is extra swivels added to the chain. Your first swivel is the attachment point at the trap. I then go four or five links of chain and add another swivel, followed by the same or more chain and a final swivel. To me this is the most important addition you can make, and is as important for the beginner as it is for the old-timer. AND I believe it's important no matter what kind of critter you catch (the exception maybe being a drowner rig for rats). A lesser consideration would be to change out the original chain to a stronger style. For coyotes (the strongest animal you'll generally catch in a CS trap) many feel that the cheap chains (like those on the Duke traps) are not enough. In thirty-something years I've never had an animal destroy a chain. Hurt one, yes, but that's all.
The next mod that you'll hear most about is "four-coiling". This is adding another set of coil springs on the opposite side of the trap. This mod increases the jaw speed, and adds leverage that will help the trap fire thru heavy/frozen dirt. It is also a big help when adding weight to the jaws, like with laminations. It only slightly increases the holding power. I like four coils, but do not think it's a necessity. It's not as important, for instance, as trap LOCATION. Four-coil kits are available from most suppliers, and are pretty easy to install.
"Base-plating" is the act of welding or riveting another strip of metal to the bottom of the trap, stiffening it considerably. This is especially useful on 'yotes, which can actually bend a trap out of shape.
When you "center-swivel" a trap, you move the anchor point of the chain from under one side to the middle of the trap and is also used in conjunction with base-plating. Theoretically this makes an animal pull straight-away from the trap (thereby fighting both jaws, and not at an angle that may take the stress off the opposing side). I like center-swiveling, but it's not all that important in the scheme of things. Trap LOCATION is way more important.
When you "bubble-tip" the jaws of the trap, you are adding small mounds of metal to the very ends of the jaws where they extend outside of the trap frame. This prevents an animal from "popping" the jaws out of the frame. It sounds impossible, but a hard-fighting critter (almost exclusively a coyote) will fight a trap enough to bend the frame (see "base-plating") which can allow the jaw to pop out. I've only had it happen once, but I still like the bubbled jaws.
A "double-jaw" trap is just that- it has another set of jaws welded on the inside or outside of the existing jaws. This can help prevent a critter (mostly 'coons) from chewing out of the trap. In my opinion, this is one of the least important mods, and most folks just buy them already made up anyway.
"Offset jaws" basically have a "gap" between the jaws, rather than having the jaws come completely together when closed. This should allow blood flow to reach the critters' paw, hopefully keeping them from doing damage to themselves. Offset jaws may also help the trap to grab the paw instead of sliding down to the toes. Most traps are bought as offsets, as this is a tough modification to make yourself.
When you "laminate" a trap you are simply adding metal to the jaws to increase their surface area, usually by at least double the amount of jaw, and I prefer more than that. Benefits here are less stress on the animal, and maybe (probably) more holding power.
I really like a "night-latch" firing system on my predator traps. The night-latch is made by carefully filing a notch in the pan of the trap where the dog contacts it. This notch will have less weight-bearing surface than the original dog/pan area and if done properly, the notch acts as a hair-trigger. You set the trap like usual, then you slowly pull the pan down until the dog slips into the new notch. It will do this with an audible "click". The night-latch is also a feel-good mod for the trapper- you just KNOW that that thing is ready to go! Good night-latch filing is not hard. It just takes a little bit of practice to keep everything square.
Adjusting "pan-tension" is not all that critical, but I still do it on all of my traps. I want my predator traps to have some tension, i.e. I want the animal to put some pressure on the pan before it depresses enough to fire the trap. I adjust tension by first making sure the pan will be setting almost perfectly level at the time it fires. This is done by bending the tab that the dog attaches to until the dog is the right length to bring the pan level. On some traps you can also bend the pan itself slightly up or down to get it level.
From our Archives, December 2007. Maybe it'll help someone?
To adjust tension you can simply tighten the pan nut & bolt, or you can bend the dog, or both. I want the nut tightened enough so I have zero wobble side-to-side. I then bend the dog up slightly in the middle. This makes it contact the pan at an angle, which means it puts more pressure, or tension, on the pan. I also file the front of the dog square, and I file the bottom 1/16" or so at an angle upwards to the front, theoretically giving it less contact area with the pan. This can all be a balancing act to make the whole system work together, which is why I say that for the novice there are more important issues. Like animal LOCATION.
For 'coon traps I do just the opposite. I fix my pan for no wobble, then I bend the dog DOWN slightly. A 'coon is fairly heavy-footed, and I want the thing to fire easily. If you do the dog this way the pan will just fall off of it, and the animal's foot will be too far down to recover.
Another modification I do is too file the corners off of my jaws, if they are sharp. Sharp edges are tough on an animal.
What we are looking for here folks, is for our traps to fire fast & easy, and I especially want all of my traps to work the same way. Continuity with my trap setting makes be a better, more efficient trapper.
Sorry this is so long-winded, and if it's a little blotchy it's because I've written it all day while being interrupted by dumb things like work. I also used to post pics & drawings of this kind of information, but I don't have that capability right now. All of these mods, and the other ones that I'm sure some of the others will mention, are nothing without LOCATION. You've gotta put that 2" of pan under the animals' foot. Period.
Dale
By definition, we'll say that "trap modifications" are intended to make the trap do a better job at catching critters. Another consideration is that some mods also help to make the catch easier on the animal. Trap mods can help increase your catch, but are not a necessity, especially if you're still learning the basics. Like LOCATION.
The first thing that every trap needs, even for you newbies, is extra swivels added to the chain. Your first swivel is the attachment point at the trap. I then go four or five links of chain and add another swivel, followed by the same or more chain and a final swivel. To me this is the most important addition you can make, and is as important for the beginner as it is for the old-timer. AND I believe it's important no matter what kind of critter you catch (the exception maybe being a drowner rig for rats). A lesser consideration would be to change out the original chain to a stronger style. For coyotes (the strongest animal you'll generally catch in a CS trap) many feel that the cheap chains (like those on the Duke traps) are not enough. In thirty-something years I've never had an animal destroy a chain. Hurt one, yes, but that's all.
The next mod that you'll hear most about is "four-coiling". This is adding another set of coil springs on the opposite side of the trap. This mod increases the jaw speed, and adds leverage that will help the trap fire thru heavy/frozen dirt. It is also a big help when adding weight to the jaws, like with laminations. It only slightly increases the holding power. I like four coils, but do not think it's a necessity. It's not as important, for instance, as trap LOCATION. Four-coil kits are available from most suppliers, and are pretty easy to install.
"Base-plating" is the act of welding or riveting another strip of metal to the bottom of the trap, stiffening it considerably. This is especially useful on 'yotes, which can actually bend a trap out of shape.
When you "center-swivel" a trap, you move the anchor point of the chain from under one side to the middle of the trap and is also used in conjunction with base-plating. Theoretically this makes an animal pull straight-away from the trap (thereby fighting both jaws, and not at an angle that may take the stress off the opposing side). I like center-swiveling, but it's not all that important in the scheme of things. Trap LOCATION is way more important.
When you "bubble-tip" the jaws of the trap, you are adding small mounds of metal to the very ends of the jaws where they extend outside of the trap frame. This prevents an animal from "popping" the jaws out of the frame. It sounds impossible, but a hard-fighting critter (almost exclusively a coyote) will fight a trap enough to bend the frame (see "base-plating") which can allow the jaw to pop out. I've only had it happen once, but I still like the bubbled jaws.
A "double-jaw" trap is just that- it has another set of jaws welded on the inside or outside of the existing jaws. This can help prevent a critter (mostly 'coons) from chewing out of the trap. In my opinion, this is one of the least important mods, and most folks just buy them already made up anyway.
"Offset jaws" basically have a "gap" between the jaws, rather than having the jaws come completely together when closed. This should allow blood flow to reach the critters' paw, hopefully keeping them from doing damage to themselves. Offset jaws may also help the trap to grab the paw instead of sliding down to the toes. Most traps are bought as offsets, as this is a tough modification to make yourself.
When you "laminate" a trap you are simply adding metal to the jaws to increase their surface area, usually by at least double the amount of jaw, and I prefer more than that. Benefits here are less stress on the animal, and maybe (probably) more holding power.
I really like a "night-latch" firing system on my predator traps. The night-latch is made by carefully filing a notch in the pan of the trap where the dog contacts it. This notch will have less weight-bearing surface than the original dog/pan area and if done properly, the notch acts as a hair-trigger. You set the trap like usual, then you slowly pull the pan down until the dog slips into the new notch. It will do this with an audible "click". The night-latch is also a feel-good mod for the trapper- you just KNOW that that thing is ready to go! Good night-latch filing is not hard. It just takes a little bit of practice to keep everything square.
Adjusting "pan-tension" is not all that critical, but I still do it on all of my traps. I want my predator traps to have some tension, i.e. I want the animal to put some pressure on the pan before it depresses enough to fire the trap. I adjust tension by first making sure the pan will be setting almost perfectly level at the time it fires. This is done by bending the tab that the dog attaches to until the dog is the right length to bring the pan level. On some traps you can also bend the pan itself slightly up or down to get it level.
From our Archives, December 2007. Maybe it'll help someone?
To adjust tension you can simply tighten the pan nut & bolt, or you can bend the dog, or both. I want the nut tightened enough so I have zero wobble side-to-side. I then bend the dog up slightly in the middle. This makes it contact the pan at an angle, which means it puts more pressure, or tension, on the pan. I also file the front of the dog square, and I file the bottom 1/16" or so at an angle upwards to the front, theoretically giving it less contact area with the pan. This can all be a balancing act to make the whole system work together, which is why I say that for the novice there are more important issues. Like animal LOCATION.
For 'coon traps I do just the opposite. I fix my pan for no wobble, then I bend the dog DOWN slightly. A 'coon is fairly heavy-footed, and I want the thing to fire easily. If you do the dog this way the pan will just fall off of it, and the animal's foot will be too far down to recover.
Another modification I do is too file the corners off of my jaws, if they are sharp. Sharp edges are tough on an animal.
What we are looking for here folks, is for our traps to fire fast & easy, and I especially want all of my traps to work the same way. Continuity with my trap setting makes be a better, more efficient trapper.
Sorry this is so long-winded, and if it's a little blotchy it's because I've written it all day while being interrupted by dumb things like work. I also used to post pics & drawings of this kind of information, but I don't have that capability right now. All of these mods, and the other ones that I'm sure some of the others will mention, are nothing without LOCATION. You've gotta put that 2" of pan under the animals' foot. Period.
Dale
Goodbye 2020