any kind of tips or tricks or modifications or even questions about of on stoplosses / gaurd traps

i ask the first question when the trap is a 1ong spring like 1.5 single long when its being used in the feild or pond or stream do i keep the pin under the spring or do i pull it out so has soon as the trap fires the bale is released or the animal has 2 pull on the chain to pull the pin to fire the bales

i remove all the pins on mine. i see no need

I leave the pin in place and then when the animal pulls on the chain they will pull the pin and then it will work the way it needs to . I have caught coon with the victor #1 stoploss with this set up for muskrat. Also mink . I mainly used them to trap rats that can not drown themeself or if you worry about them twisting.I have also used #1 blake and lamb also with this set up . hope this will help .

wow i geuss i am the only 1 that has any questions or any thing 4 that matter that pertains the these traps i figures that people would hav some pics or questions or something on them

but thank u 2 4 answering my ?

There's not a lot to say about these traps. No need to modify anything, they are mostly used in special situations or by longtime muskrat trappers who have lots of them from years past.

As for the pin inserted to hold guard versus no pin, that part is open for debate. Depending on the model - style of trap & guard along with where the muskrat is when trap goes off, it is possible for the guard to lift the rat's body enough for trap to miss a catch. I wouldn't consider that a common occurance but if the trap comes with a spring pin, I'd use it.

In the past I have had rats wrung off in deployed #1.5 victor coils due to the bar's design. When fully deployed it stops parallel to the trap's base frame in horizontal position. That doesn't put enough pressure on the rat to pin them in place... when they avoid drowning long enough to slide their foot away from spring (strong) side of trap to the weak side jaws and end of guard bar, there is still room to twist and spin.

The #1 longs with guard bars that fully deploy vertical to trap frame keep constant pressure on the catch and prevent spinning at the weak side jaws location. That would be old style victors, new style bridgers. The guard traps that deploy in towards the spring like old-style blake & lamb and new dukes pin the catch to strong side of trap. I've never had a loss when using either of those style guard traps in any make or model.

Hope that helps clarify a bit

ok i just figured there would be alot more people wanting to add to this thread that had catch pics or other stuff on them but thank 4 the information

I trap a fair # of rats each year and have extensive experience with almost all if not all of the common #1 stoplosses brands out there today. They are all effective with slight variations in effectiveness based on my preferences in a trap and what I expect them to do.

The victor #1sl round pan is my favorite. The primary weakness I see with it though is when it comes to incidental coon...if you trap rats you will get coon. The guard deploys away from the spring and pushes the coons foot in that direction this tend to cause the foot to slide to the side opposite the spring resulting in a toe or two in the trap and no coon. Obviously the weaker these traps become the worse the problem gets. I have much less of this when using the old blake and lambs or new dukes.

The one modification I do to all my rat traps is swive and add extra chain.

Teal

Very good trap in shallow water where there is no room to drowned a rat.. Theyll hold a mink just fine too

never tried them

Where do the pins go into on them? Could someone post a picture because I have had no luck finding on where to put em. I would appreciate it thanks

The pin goes under the tips of the jaws opposite the spring to hold down the guard.

Would a no. 1 victor stop loss work good on a float?

Double in stoploss traps

this is what happens when they don't pull the pin on the guard.I have long since removed all the pins or don't use them.

stoploss on a feed bed

I thought I had a few more than that but I guess not.I like the older blake and lambs also.I have some of the dukes I bought a few years ago and they are the same basic design.I prefer the bail to pin them towards the spring side also.Not a big fan of the older victors that push away from the spring myself.I will look in some other files to see if I have other pics stored that I may have forgotten about....

Has any one tried Sleepy Creeks Guard trap? I have a few dukes but they seem to be real knuckle busters. I didn't think of the pulling or pushing of foot toward the spring till this post I would like to thank those who have mentioned it. Aren't you fighting the way animal is pulling if the spring closes toward the spring and risking more foot movement in the trap? One thing I will say about the dukes is it seems when the guard comes over on a rat it puts their lights out. Thanks for the tutorial on guard traps after this year and our low water levels I can see their advantages just not sure witch to go with. I am currently using 1.5 coils and like them very much but there are certain circumstances where I feel a gurad would work better.

I tested a dozen sleepy creeks last year on my line. Much to my surprise I really liked them.

This suprised me because of my hatered for the victor square pan for which it was modeled after.

They are a little spendy though.

Teal

Thanks teal. I am looking at only about 5 dozen and only using in certain situations and if rat prices hold I think they will pay for themselves pretty quick. I am pretty sure that is what I'll get baring any bad news about them.

Stop loss traps,quickly pay for themselves. They are my main rat catcher.
Tom

Parallel topic: guard-type traps would be my own #1 choice if trapping inside houses on thick ice, and there are probably some other niche uses for them as well. But the drawback for using them at every open-water situation in the fall season is speed: for those who care about max efficency setting and production, foothold traps are the least efficient approach when compared to colony trap or bodygrip traps respectively. From there, guard-type traps are slower to actually set than coilsprings on a timed basis. A skilled colony trap / bodygrip trapper can easily outproduce an equally skilled foothold trapper in the same waters with few exceptions to that general rule.

So guard traps are excellent where needed, but it's still the slowest mode of set traps on key locations per hour... unless we are talking about inside of huts. The fact that nil losses are enjoyed is a big benefit over improperly used or inadequate footholds without guards. That said, when ice is anywhere from 2" to 5" thick and no snow cover, skilled muskrat trappers can catch way more rats thru that ice then cutting into huts. That bellcurve changes when ice gets thick and/or heavy snow covered. But when ice is clear or opaque and less than 5" thick, a veteran ice trapper can read hot runs and catch way more rats than one trap per hut with all that time spent cutting in, setting and repacking material to close the hole.

Spring season is completely different: then it is foothold traps all the way with a sprinkling of colony or bodygrip traps for max production.

So depending on which season we're talking depends on which trap or style of trap is "best" to use for max efficiency of time spent vs potential rewards.

Going to throw a wrench in your thoughts Austin. Dependent on the conditions you trap under,determine which type of trap is quicker and easier to set.
I trap areas where you are waist deep--or deeper in water.Mud can be very ,very deep.In these conditions,110s and colonies are so much more time consuming to set or even find a spot in which to use these traps.The stop loss and rat houses go hand in hand(and I also mean trapping open water houses)--not in the house.
Personally,after over 4 decades of using stop loss traps,they are much more efficient and quicker for me to set--than any 110.
Another benefit to using properly staked stop loss--the hundreds of beaver and coon I have taken in them as incidental catches at my rat sets. The same thing cannot be said of 110s and colonies.
It all boils down to --what you are used to and the conditions you trap under.
Tom