I'm finally ready to rock and role. It only took me 8 months of fighting with our state DWR, county, and city but I'm fooly "LOL" licensed and ready to operate.
Coons are starting to become prominent in my area, just wondering which cage traps hold up best, the ten I started with are completely dead after 3 to 4 coons.
I'm going to get 20/25 more and want to get my money worth out of them. I would rather pay more for those that would hold up.
Any advice would be appreciated!!!!!!!

www.advancedtrap.com

The best bar none! The only coon sized cage I own.

I have watched his videos and they look good, just haven't talked to anyone who has used them. thanks for the info warrior....

David, it looks to me like all of them will hold coon. Which one do you use?

Tomahawk Pro-model traps. Will hold coons but even more importantly will stand up to abuse from techs, yourself and the bumps and knocks they will pick up while in use. Pan retention system is first rate as well as strength of trigger rods. Have yet to perform any repair on one!!! And if you want the spring assisted doors they have Comstock. Speaking of Comstock traps I bought four of their new pan less squirrel traps here at the WCT and they look slick! I would also like to say that Greg, Jenny, Kyle and the whole "Tomahawk family" has been a pleasure to work with, never had an issue with orders, and they support the industry by attending trade shows, donating product for raffles and much more.

I use Tomahawk Pro and Safeguard Pro models for cages that use pan/treadle triggering and Comstock and Advance for wire trigger traps.

They all get the job done well.

I bought 20 Tomahawks this past year and while the structure is sound all the handles and clips are gone. Lost a handle and clip that holds release door with first catch in it.

I will probably buy more because I like to support Wisconsin companies...but I love my advanced trap raccoon multicatch and my safeguard looks the same as the day I bought it.

I've noticed that. I have Safeguards that are 5 years old and still look brand new. I wonder how they do that.

I also really like the way the release door works on my safeguards. Much better than the clips on Tomahawk.

Nate, I agree wholeheartedly. The rear release door was a big selling point for me.

On a "wish list" kind of thing, I wish Safeguard would beef up the springs on the doors. That would make for an excellent trap.

Comstock custom traps.

I like my Comstock for woodchucks but had way to many raccoons break out of it.

Nate I can't see a coon getting out of a Comstock. Those springs are so strong I sometimes have trouble setting the darn thing. Now as far T.hawks go they must have really changed in the last five years because they ones I have I only use for rabbits and skunks they are just one step above Harbor Freights and havajunks. Kirk and Jim's traps are fortresses and I like them both along with and you won't believe it but my original Miller Mfg Little Giants I bought twelve years ago. The only coon to ever get out of the Miller was one that pulled the lock bar back, I designed a positive lock for them so none escape now. I shouldn't have said that, I know what's going to happen next coon job.

In Jim's defense he did tell me that they had problems with the early traps and mine is a early addition. They sent some clips for me to install to help with that problem but when I went to install the clips I almost cut my finger off so decided to not try that again.

I do not have any of the newer Comstock traps but I have heard they are revamped and supposed to be great. I am looking forward to seeing some next time I take a trip up to Tomahawk Facility.

Funny, I was a bloody mess too by the time I got those clips installed. I think we should have sent Jim the emergency room bills.

Thanks guys, I think between the bunch of you I have at least one new column for WCT. I actually experienced everything you guys said and came up with a cure. ( And it ain't just bandages )

I think that I should also mention that I have a small tear in my eye. Somebody named Holt, a few posts back, printed a paragraph that would have been something that I would have printed, nearly word for word, had he not beaten me to it. ( This sudden NWCOA/WCT thing is mystifying, but great! )

I use them all. I got more of his universal models than anything else. My preference is the two door model with a guillotine on one end and a spring door on the other. Reason I can check from a distance if need be plus the guillotine is much easier as a bait/release door. I also have several of his standard double spring door. The multi catch is the shizzle when dealing with cats or mama coon and kittens, many doubles with that one. I even put his tube beaver trap into use for coon, cats and dillers. Plus a few prototypes such as one of his single door ring locking. I've even used the square beaver for dry land critters.

My experience with the Tomahawk trap company this summer left a very bad taste in my mouth. Not too sure I will deal with them again. The quality of trap I got from them was fine. But the customer service was pathetic.

The best thing to do is purchase 1 or 2 traps from each manufacturer and see what works best for your style and usage. Safeguard and Tomahawk both have entry level and professional level models and there is a big difference between the two. I have a entry level raccoon sized Tomahawk that I wouldn't consider standing on, while I wouldn't think twice about using the professional model. Heck, I've even stood on a professional model squirrel trap from Tomahawk without doing any damage to it (and I'm not a skinny guy like Dirk).

Look for 16 ga or smaller 1/2 x 1 1/2 wire and stay away from most of the 1 x 1. While a raccoon will have issues damaging 12 ga 1 x 1 wire, it still has about an 8 inch reach outside the trap allowing it to pull whatever it can get its paws on in or scratching up roofs and walls. To stop this you need to make sure the coon cannot reach anything. So plan to install wire around the outside of the trap or place it on a board they cannot reach past. Make sure you have the strength to set the trap as the spring strength is the number one complaint I hear about with the Comstock traps (I only have the beaver model until my raccoon one gets returned to the operator I lent it too to do a write-up on it).

Try both gravity and spring loaded doors. Gravity doors are generally cheaper but if you're setting on inclines (like roofs) they may not close all the way as quick as you need. Release doors are nice if you're using transport cages, but not a feature needed if you are taking the trap back with you to dispatch the catch each time.

Look at how you open the door when releasing a caught animal so you don't get bit or how you need to prop the door open to insert an animal on the end of a snare pole. Some models have handles on the doors and/or locks that need released while some don't. Take some time and figure out your trapping style. Some traps work better as baited sets while others work better as blind sets.

Finally, look at your budget. Williams makes a great gravity door trap that costs about 1/2 of the others professional series, but it is made out of 1 x 1 wire. So you may want to do something like buy 2 Williams (or any other manufacture) and then buy 1 of the others (Advance trap, Comstock, Safeguard Professional, Tomahawk Professional, etc). This method lets you build the trap base you want while make it more affordable.

Lastly, remember that no matter what you buy, keep in mind that if the trap gets run over because you forgot where it was or to secure it on the truck, it won't matter who made it. The same can be said for most times a trap comes off a roof. Keep a watch on WCT Magazine for an upcoming article and training video on this subject.

Hey Dave, I agree with you on the Miller traps. I use them on groundhogs, dillos and coons and have never had any escape. The only thing I did to them was added more clips on the back side where other brands of traps have failed. The pan is thick as well and none have ever bent. Good trap for the price.