Question,I am fooling around with a couple duke 1.5's and got this idea in my head to make it dogless. Don't ask why cause I don't know really.I was modding some other traps and they were laying there.I broke them down to laminate the jaws and got thinking about how cool a dogless 1.5 would be.I know it's been done and was hoping someone could offer some guidance.I removed the shank that holds the pan to the frame so I could move the fulcrum back towards the jaws.I have a box of #2 bridger pans so I grabbed one and cut the pan notch off.I am going to have to move the spring pin back towards the dog post to accommodate the new fulcrum.I figure on using the dog post as a spring stop.It will get cut off leaving enough to function as a stop.I figure on using a piece of flat stock to put a pan hinge on and then welding it to the cross frame to attach the pan to.Anyone got any prior experience with doing this,maybe some pics,I will post a couple pics of what I have done so far if it will help to visualize things.Thanks...

cleaned up and shank that holds pan gone

spring pin in new position,tentatively.LOL

cleaned up pan laying in there

Could you not just weld a piece of flat stock to the stock pan shank?? That would serve as a jaw catch. Would take less tinkering so probably not what your looking for.

I think I have seen a design with a rod welded to the pan shank.

Don

I believe that is where I will end up when I am done.I completely removed the pan shank,I had to to move everything closer to the jaw and still have a decent fulcrum for the pan to fall correctly.A halved piece of round rod welder to the top of the pan and a lip of some type welded to the center of the power jaw is where I think I am heading.I am just trying to get ideas as to the easiest way to go about making it work yet be dependable...

I know someone posted pics of a 1.5 they modded and went dogless on...

Wow,nobody else,come on I know your all out there.LOL

looks nifty

Did a little more this morning,not much progress.It is slow going since I have to make most of the small pieces by hand.I am not a machine shop,LOL,a lot of hand tools and I am having to kind of guess with some things.I will get it done though at some point.I have to make the pan post,get all the clearance issues figured out ect.It is kind of fun though.

Sounds good!

I like to see stuff like this going on.

As I read this I'm trying to envision my #2 dogless Monty's fulcrum point as compared to the fulcrum point you'd establish by using the Duke's existing pan bolt and you extended it with a piece of rod/bar to the jaw as the trigger. Realizing most fabricators see/envision things differently, how did you determine you needed to change/move the fulcrum point. I do a lot of "imagineering" and experimentation usually before things solidify.

Here ya go guys...lots of trial and error in coming up with the final design. Keep in mind that the further behind the jaw you go for your pivot point the more tension it requires to fire the trap; the closer...less. If you are under the jaw directly, it takes tension on the bolt to keep it from firing! When done like this, you can adapt it to any trap and it really turns them into a catching machine...



This is a Bridger 1.65

Bridger #3


A Victor #4 Offset with Huge pan, and a Victor #2 Dbl Ls with a nice coon. My Favorite!

No foot damage, for those that think the #2 is too large of a trap for coon, it's the same jaw spread as a 1 1/2. The Longspring is altogether unappreciated anymore...you owe it to yourself to try them if you haven't! Just don't buy any of those junk Blake and Lambs... Send 'em all my way!

That's some pretty slick craftsmanship Jason!

Can't add a thing on dogless mods as I've never touched a dogless let alone modified one but this statement is one of the best I've seen this summer. I would say Double longsprings myself but there is a reason they are still around and a reason people still use them!

Thanks for all the pics Jason,I can honestly say mine will not look anything like those!I actually ended up putting the pan on what was previously the loose jaw side.I wish I would have logged on this morning when I got home from work and looked at this before I spent the last two hours outside tinkering!LOL I have learned I need better tools to do this type of stuff.

Seldom,I just couldn't see it working right if I used the existing fulcrum unless I just used an extra long trigger,suppose I could have done that,just didn't seem right to me though.I wanted a short trigger off the pan and to do that I had to move stuff.

I will post a pic or two when I get done,gonna be embarrassing now with Jason's pics her now!

i would use #11 longs over 1.5 coils any day for rat-coon. love how they bed and hold on and don't let go of anything. to bad i have very few of them or i would sell most of my 1.5s besides my old pinch pan victors. love those for blind rat and mink sets.

Yeah I meant Double Longsprings as well Ryan, I turn the sloped jaw single longsprings into a single wire levered rat trap lol! And the square or even jawed singles into a double.

Thanks Bic much appreciated after seeing some of your handywork bud!

And CLT it's better to have tried and failed than to never try at all, I applaud your efforts and thanks for sharing! I've gotten away from posting much, or taking pictures of my work anymore, but I do enjoy a great post on sharing creations. Great job, I'm sure you'll tweak it into shape!

Jason, your the man !

Love seeing you work of Art!

Awesome as always Jason.

Nice job there Jason. That will give folks something to shoot for.

Drifter

Thanks guys for the kind words! We are lucky as trappers to have so many quality traps to choose from off the shelf, but it's always fun to see what the next best "mouse trap" might be...

-Jason

After looking at Jason's pictures I have decided to change some things!LOL
I gotta go to the hardware store to get a couple things today.