GO GET EM VIC love ur attitude!

Also, my instructor for my trappers education, didn't show me how to prepare and care 4 pelts, just various sets and equipment. So I also need help in that area. Thanks ya all.

Will Do!

We are in the same boat as new trappers. I can help you out with what I know and learned through here and on the line. But it goes to show you how a new trapper needs help at the beginning and the many questions they have. They should not be shrugged off and nor the new trapper flamed. We will help you out as best we can.

Victor, don't plan on trapping 100 beaver in Minnesota without spending a lot of money on gas! Goals like that are rarely met by professional trappers. Who was your trapper education teacher?

RJ, from what I gather in his PM's, the guy needs plenty help from us. He was taught next to nothing as far as handling fur. He needs plenty of help to set traps for beaver. He is asking me in PM's on what a castor mound is and how to go about setting one. I have absolutely no problem explaining how to do one up, but this is the sort of thing that could get you MN guys in trouble, new trappers out there with little experience and the handling of body gripping traps.
It's to all of you MN folks (and abroad) that we help him out. We don't want accidents.

No offence intended bigkolo but how long have you been trapping?


Nevermind I read through your posts...

I guess if I'm going to post anything might as well give my two cents.

I trap mainly coon but welcome mink and muskrat if I get them. I don't pass up a rat toilet when I'm setting for coon and if I see mink tracks I will attempt to catch them. I use 1.5 Dukes all with similar chain setups and 24x3/8 rebar stakes. I use mainly poke sets or blind sets in water. Occasionally a smear set on a bridge abuttment. On land I use the same trap, chain and stake setup. I set mostly trail sets with no lure but will also sometimes put a squirt of lure just off the trail to the side of the trap. I do on occasion make bigger pockets if I think it looks minky and I feel like messing with it. For rats I like colony traps or 110s in runs. On the rat toilets I like to set a 1.5 shallow in the approach to the toilet. I have the most luck with 330 for beaver. I like to set up dam crossovers. We have to be completely submersed for 330s so I usually am stuck setting them on the upstream side with a dive stick and a little fencing. I also like them at castor mounds if I have an area that is necked down going to the mound. Hope that helps some. I have set pictures and catch pictures if you are interested. If I have time in a bit I'll put them up.

First one is a remake of a poke set. The original one is on the left side in that little clump. I was torn up a little so I put in a new one and lured it up. The trap is set offset left the new hole and back from the bank a touch.





Trail set in a hay field. This is the edge where the tractors drive. The grass is only a few inches tall so no real way to funnel them except for the fact that they stay in the trail. I found a couple humps in the trail and set to one side of each one.No lure just blind set in a good spot.




Poke set again. Small hole in the bank directly behind the coon. trap set in front. I like to set deeper for coon but this is a good travel area and the best spot to set for convenience and it is just after a funnel.




Trail set. Just pounded out a bowl in the trail. No digging, covered with a light layer of grass.




Poke set again. There is a ridge under water that they are walking on. I set directly on that and put in the poke hole an inch or two above water. Lure and go.




Trail set before and after. These are actually backwards. The first picture is a remake after the catch in the second picture.





Dp in a trail.




Blind set on the drop off of a trail at waters edge. May have had a poke set there at one time or a squirt of lure under the edge of the grass.





Poke set.


Tore up pocket set.




Smear set on abuttment.



Beaver DOA in row. Just under bridge. Upstream side of dam at crossover. Dive stick and a little fencing.




Same beaver. He was just to my side there by the dam.






Another one in the smear set.




I'm far from an expert but this is how I do it. Hope that helps some.

if you can try to joining mnta(if you havent all ready) and sopport the people who fight to let us trap.

Ya, I've thought about that. Shawn O'Hern was my instructor.

What is a smear set? Thanks.

Nice post ATL.

Thanks. A smear set is just a lure smeared up on the side of the concrete, bridge piling, tree , fence post or whatever else. They make lures in a base specifically for this but I have never used them. Not saying I wouldn't use them I just havent yet. I have used bacon grease on occasion but I also use a squirt of fish oil up on there and found that it works good too. Fish oil is what I was using on those coon in the pictures. I mix it with a small amount of shellfish oil. I mix maybe a half ounce to an ounce shellfish with a half gallon of fish oil. It doesn't take much shellfish to get the desired smell. I am pretty generous with the luring in my coon sets.

Victorsteel wasn't say'n go read the archives to blow ya off , but the original question was lacking any direction to which speicies ya wanted
This would also spark more questions and answer some at the same time ,

Thanks to all those that are able to post pics and help the guy out , good posts from all And hopefully helping make a better trapper for up coming season

Well found a few more for you.

Mink in a blind set 1.5. That is a little trail that runs along the crick. There was a little puddle in the trail so I set the trap dead center in it.The trail was made when the bank caved off and left a flat area between the water and the bank for critters to walk. I took the picture standing in the crick. I also caught coon in that trail.




Here is a what happens with a snared badger in sandy soil.Coon snare in the trail coming off that fence line.


Two dp'd coon in trails. You could easily blind set those trails with 1.5s too. These were both caught in an area where there are alot of farm dogs so I opted for the dps.





A double on boars. Poke set on the right, blind set on the left with a little fish oil squirted up under the grass. The picture after this is of the coon on the left. You can see behind him the indent in the bank where they are entering the crick. You can see I had a catch dead center of the first picture previously. This spot along with many in the pictures I have posted produce good year after year. Unless something changes drastically to the landscape the coon will use the easier areas to enter and exit the water. Find those spots and hit them there. Up and downstream of this spot is high sided banks with no real easy way to get to the water. Also see in the first picture of the chunk that broke off from the bank/ I like to set each end of that as the coon travel it and you'll hit a couple off the same trail quite often.




Poke set off the end of the curve there.



Last one is a blind set right at the lip of that culvert. On these I just pound out a bowl in the ground right outside the culvert. I place the set right in the middle. When they exit the culverts with a round bottom like that they are going to be right up the middle where the walking is easiest. I try to stake back away from the culvert so they cant get back in there very far.



I may have a few more decent pictures somewhere. If I find them I'll put them up. Hope this helps. Good luck!

Thanks for the pics!!! I find pictures very helpful. Anyone got any other pics of what various sets look like?

I am by no means an expert, this season was my first. Ive had a A LOT of help from some individuals on here that made my first season pretty successful.Ive got a few pictures of some pinch points you want to look for when rat trapping, along with just some others taken throughout the season. If you want coons, I would suggest finding a stream and looking on the bank for tracks, and set a DP or punch in a pocket set.

Also, since this is your first season, remember that a few good sets are better than a lot of bad ones. I think that was one big thing I learned this year.

TIMES THAT BY 100!!!!!!