Don’t wait until it’s too late … here’s how to take care of your trapping gear now.
By Jason Houser
Now is the perfect time to get out and prepare for next trapping season. Whether you have new traps that need a lot of work to get ready, or used traps that need to be cleaned and repaired — there’s no time like the present to get it done.
Never wax a bodygrip trap. A waxed Conibear trap is all but impossible to set. Photo credit Jason Houser.
CLEANING
Both new and old traps need to be cleaned before using. There is a lot of work that goes into cleaning traps, but it is well worth the time and effort when you start seeing the results.
New traps arrive from the manufacturer with a light film of oil on them. Before anything can be done with new traps, they first must be cleaned to remove the oil. This is accomplished by boiling water in a large kettle. Many trappers add a caustic such as a toilet bowl cleaner or lye to aid in the cleaning process. Do not add caustics to the boiling water as this could cause the water to erupt and injure anyone nearby. Always add the cleaning agent to cold water before it begins to boil. Avoid contact with boiling water. Always wear eye protection and protective clothing, including rubber gloves when handling caustics. I CANNOT OVER EMPHASIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF SAFETY WHEN DEALING WITH BOILING WATER AND CAUSTICS.
Always wear protective eyewear and clothing if you choose to use a product containing lye to clean your traps. Photo credit Jason Houser.
Once the water is boiling rapidly, immerse the traps into the water bath. After the traps have been immersed for about one hour, the oil will rise to the top. Do not pull the traps back through the oil. Instead, pour the oil off the top and then remove the traps. This will prevent the traps from picking up an oil coating again. When the traps are removed from the water, place them in a cool, damp location until completely covered with a light coating of rust.
There are several good trap cleaners available from trapping supply dealers. Photo credit Jason Houser.
Another option that is gaining popularity is using a dishwasher to clean new traps. Obviously, this might take some persuading of your spouse. The truth is, though, that no damage will be done to the dishwasher and after one wash cycle your traps will be free from any residue. All that is left is for the traps to take on a light coating of rust, as mentioned previously.
A dishwasher is suprisingly an excellent tool for cleaning new traps. Photo credit Jason Houser.
Old traps need to be cleaned from time to time to remove mud, dirt and other contaminants, such as the odor of previously caught animals. This should be done at the end of trapping season before placing the traps in storage.
Begin by removing any large pieces of debris by hand. Once that has been accomplished, follow the same process that is used for new traps.
Last year I began using Battle Born Trap Cleaning Powder from Southern Snares and Supplies. This has changed the way that I clean dirty traps. Battle Born removes a wide variety of films, paints, soils, wax, rust and dyes. It does not pit or cause your traps to become brittle. One jar of Battle Born Trap Cleaner treats approximately 5 gallons of water and cleans up to five dozen traps, depending on the size and condition of those traps.
All trap cleaning must be done outside using a large kettle. Never clean traps inside a building.
DYE
After traps have been cleaned and have taken on a light coating of rust, it’s time for the next step in treating them. Dyes are a type of camouflage for traps. Dyes work with the rust that is already on the traps to give the them a dark color.
Logwood dye will provide good protection without having to go out and find natural materials. Photo credit Jason Houser.
Place the traps in a large tub and then cover with clean water. Bring the water to a boil and add the dye solution. There are many good dyes on the commercial market, both in liquid and powder form. Follow the instructions carefully with commercial dyes.
There are many natural materials that also work well. These include sumac, maple and oak bark. Trappers can also use walnut or butternut hulls. When using a natural dye, use large quantities for the best results (1/2 bushel of dye material per 10 gallons of water). Add the bark or hulls and immerse the traps in the boiling water, then leave them for one hour before removing. Add water as needed to keep the traps completely covered.
Walnut hulls provide a good natural dye for your traps. Photo credit Jason Houser.
Do not dye new traps that have not first been cleaned and have a light coating of rust. Dyes need to work with the rust to get a good covering.
Paint is another option for new traps. Many trappers are beginning to use spray paint to “dye” their steel. The trick to this is to be sure to paint the traps long before the season begins to allow time for the odor of the paint to diminish. I have been doing this for the last couple of seasons and have found that a can of Rust-Oleum 2X paint works best. The cool thing about this is that you can be as creative as you want with your traps.
More and more trappers are beginning to paint their traps. Photo credit Jason Houser.
Some trappers paint their traps a color that is easily seen from a distance, such as pink or red. By doing so, trappers can use their optics from a distance, if necessary, to see if the trap has been flipped out of the ground or fired off.
WAX
Waxing traps is up to the individual trapper. I prefer to wax all of my traps for the added protection and lubrication that wax provides.
One of the most popular waxes used among trappers is the block of white wax found at most trapping supply dealers. Waxing traps is best done by immersing the trap into hot wax. Wax that is slowly melted to 230 degrees is best. If the wax starts to smoke, it is too hot, and the heat needs to be lowered.
Blocks of white trap wax have proven to be the classic, best option. Photo credit Jason Houser.
MELTED WAX IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. WHEN WAX IS IN A LIQUID FORM, IT IS JUST AS FLAMMABLE AS GASOLINE OR DIESEL FUEL.
Never use an open fire as a source of heat for melted wax. A small camp stove works perfectly well for the task. All waxing should be done away from buildings and any flammable material. Avoid dripping wax on the heat source as you remove the traps from the hot wax. It is best to use a container that completely covers the heat source, such as a 2-gallon metal bucket.
When the solid wax is added to the container, let the wax melt slowly at a low heat. Use a short piece of wire added to each trap’s chain to help handle the trap safely while it’s in the hot wax. Immerse the trap and chain in the wax until it reaches the same temperature as the wax. Remove the hot trap from the wax by lifting straight up and allowing the excess wax to drip back into the container. Hang traps up to cool. It will not take long for the hot traps to cool. REMEMBER: Do not let wax come in contact with the heat source.
Always wear eye protection and protective clothing, including rubber gloves to avoid burns. Traps need to be cleaned and dyed before they are waxed. NEVER PUT WET TRAPS INTO MELTED WAX — THIS CAN CAUSE A DANGEROUS STEAM AND EVEN AN EXPLOSION OF THE WAX. When finished waxing, allow the wax that is remaining in the container to cool and harden before removing and storing it. Do not allow the wax to begin smoking during the waxing process. If it begins to smoke, turn down the heat.
When the traps are dry, file the wax from the top and end of the dog, along with the inside of the pan notch. Never wax conibear traps. A waxed Conibear trap is all but impossible to set.
TRAP ADJUSTMENTS
After purchasing new traps, do not expect that they will be 100% ready to catch fur. Of course, they will need to be cleaned, dyed and waxed, as I have already pointed out, but there are other adjustments that will have to be made to help fill up the fur shed.
When the trap is in the set position, the pan needs to be level with the jaws. If the pan sets higher than the jaws, there is the possibility that the furbearer might not have its foot far enough into the jaws for a good catch when the trap is fired. Also, an animal might avoid stepping on the pan altogether if it is set too high. If the pan sits too low, you run the chance of debris getting under the pan and not allowing it to fall and the trap to fire. To adjust the pan height, bend the frame where the dog is attached. If you want to lower the pan height, bend the arm in. Bend the arm out if you want to raise the height of the pan.
To adjust the pan height, bend the frame where the dog is attached. Photo credit Jason Houser.
After you have the pan height where it needs to be, there will need to be some work done on the notch and dog, as well. If the dog lays too far back in the notch, the pan will have to fall farther than it should to release the dog. When an animal steps on the pan of the trap and feels its foot falling, it will pick its foot up to maintain its balance. If the furbearer is raising its foot as the trap fires, it could be missed altogether, or only caught by a toe or two, making for an easy escape or causing injury to the animal. The best way to shorten the distance the pan must fall is to have less notch for the dog to set in. To achieve this, file the top part of the notch until it has only 1/16 of an inch remaining. After the notch is filed down to 1/16 inch, take a narrow file to the back of the notch, and square it up. The trap can be set with the dog completely seated in the notch if the pan is raised.
After the notch work has been done, some work remains to be done on the dog. When the trap arrives new from the factory, the dog will be slightly rounded. Take a file and make the dog square. The dog is fastened to the trap with a loop through a slot in the end of the cross frame. Sometimes the loop can be too big, allowing the dog to have a lot of movement and making the height of the pan difficult to set. Take a pair of pliers and squeeze the loop shut. If you close the loop too much, it will not pivot correctly in the cross arm, so be careful.
The last adjustment on the trap is the pan tension. The pan tension is the weight that is needed to lower the pan and make the trap fire. You can adjust the pan tension on most new traps by tightening or loosening the nut and bolt that holds the pan in place at its pivot point.
You can adjust the pan tension on most new traps by tightening or loosening the nut and bolt that holds the pan in place at its pivot point. Photo credit Jason Houser.
The only time a pan should fall is when the animal’s foot is fully on the pan. The entire foot of the furbearer needs to be on the pan when the trap is fired, not just one toe on the pan while the rest of the foot rests on the trap jaw.
When adjusting pan tension for raccoons, I recommend a tension of 1/2 to 1 pound. If you are careful when making a dirthole set you will have enough tension to take a fox, and if you do not mind, it is light enough to take a ‘possum or skunk. For larger animals, such as coyotes, I would recommend a pan tension of 3 to 4 pounds.
Trapping supply dealers sell testers for checking pan tension. If the tension needs to be increased, tighten the bolt. To decrease the tension, loosen the bolt. You can start out adjusting the tension with the trap unset, but the final tension of the pan needs to be made when the trap is set. All other adjustments should be made, and all dyes and waxes applied, before adjusting the pan tension.
To increase the longevity of your tester, flip the loose jaw up and the test the tension. This will prevent the jaws from snapping shut on the tester.
Trapping season still might seem like an eternity away, but it is never too early to get ready. Properly cared for traps will add many years of life to your equipment and will add fur to the back of your truck.
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