All a round foothold for mink

[flattail]

What do alot of you guys that trap mink find to be the best all around mink trap. I have used a lot of #2 and #11 longsprings for mink with great succes buy was thinking of coils. Thanks Guys for your time.

[foxtail]

Plain old ordinary 1 1/2 coil.
Does not matter what brand.
Put it on a drowner and it will take the biggest mink to the bottom.

Dead mink seem to escape a lot less often than live ones.

[thebeav2]

I like the #2 Vic square jaw. You have a large kill area and you get high leg or shoulder catches and the trap Is heavy enough to drown the mink on the spot.

[rk660]

i'd think i go with no 1.5 of your favorite brand, 1.75 dukes, or bridg 1.65, even bridger no 2. All of the above would all preform great on mink, and would double duty as coon traps, fox traps, or even coyote traps if 1.75 or no 2's. I like to buy traps that will serve me for numerous different species.

no 2 victor sq jaw are good mink traps, but lacking on everything else to some degree. even though about same dimensions as 2 bridger, and after welding a base to stiffen, and adding no 3 music wire, for a drowning wire coon trap, Ive never gotten them to get the catch rates i get on no 2 bridgers, always have more at end of drowner empty. i still use a few dozen on places i think Ill get ripped off, as i aint got much in them.

[Hern]

#1 1/2 coil with a #2 pan

[dj88ryr]

hern said:

#1 1/2 coil with a #2 pan

I agree with Hern, I use Duke's because they are cheap and get the job done without problem, just put the larger pan on, and it is about as good as it gets.

[trappnman]

Im not convinced that you don't miss some mink in bigger traps, even 1.75s.

I do like the #2 double longsprings, and have added quite a few to my waterlines over the years. A good heavy trap, and the 2 springs aids in certain types of setting situations- sheer banks for example- 2 sticks pushed through the springs into the bank, provide a "ledge" for the mink. And no mink or rat does much swimming with a #2. I've had big mink swim around all day with a 1.5 on their foot.

However, even saying that, the 1.5 in my opinion is as versitile a water trap as there is, plus is the best land trpa forcoon I've found. And in the 1.5s, for everyday use, you can't beat a Duke.

[braveheart]

The old square pan 1-1/2 is second to none.The 1/12 is king in a proper made pocket set for mink.The 2 or 1.75 have to high levers and you will miss or toe alot of mink with the levers coming up.If set for a hind leg catch I guess ok.The square pan you don't have to mess with pan tension just set and go.

[NittanyLion]

1 1/2 double coilsping is my trap of choice because it is compact and has enough weight to pull the mink under.

[robertw]

Most of my mink are caught in pockets and I prefer the #2 double longsprings on drowning lides.

[mountainman]

I cover a number of different types of water and locations for mink. A good number of those locations will have larger incidental catches that I figure in for mink foothold selection. Having more than one size and style of mink trap gives me flexibility. I have for a long time used a mix of 1 1/2, 1 3/4, #2 coils, 1 1/2 longspring stoploss and #2 double longsprings with a few #1 coil and longspring stoploss thrown for tight places in root systems. I fairly recently started using #3 and #4 coils in some blind sets where beavers also use the location for resting places to peel sticks. For the past 20 years or so a heavier made 1 3/4 coil has made up the majority of my foothold mink traps. With otters hitting more of my mink pocket and blind sets Im going to using a higher number of #2 longsprings for the extra lockdown power, durability, good drowning weight and stability for bedding including using them on sheer banks with sticks for stabilizers. I recently tried using the 1 3/4 coils with Taos kits to see how much more holding power I could get on incidental otters and beavers. They performed admirably on mink with the extra speed, better on beavers and somewhat better on otters. Ill now use a higher percentage of #2 double longsprings. Lower priced coils like Dukes give me good producability on the majority of my mink traps, allow for overall cost savings including the use of more than one trap in some sets, larger traps in others and get the job done efficiently. Where dry sets without drowners are used for mink and coons 1 1/2 coils do the best job for me on coons and I like 1 3/4 coils for the high grip on mink.

[trappnman]

started using more 1.75s for mink 2 years ago, and made the mistake of not starting with very floppy pans on them. Pans I thought were fine, were pretty stiff come pulling time.

This past year had the least pan tension possible on all the ones I used in water.

Thos big old sq jawed, big pan #2 were a heck of a mink/rat trap. new too strong, but old and a little week, were a perfect suitcase catch type trap.

[mountainman]

Same thing happened to me and I had to re-adjust most of them on the line until I got used to the correct tension. I like my mink pans to drop hard enough to bounce with very little side wobble. After they are all waxed and working perfectly then the coons have their way with them.

The #2 Vic and B&L square jawed coils were good moneymakers for me. For mink and rats they were strong enough and fast. They got a lot of good high grips, sometimes across the chest or neck and both front foot catches.

[glen]

I'm with the beav I like the old #2 square jaw for mink and rats. Big heavy trap that will drown in a second.

[fishadict]

1.5 coils. I have a few trouble spots that will get #2 Victors this year.

fa

[dblcoil]

My favorite is the old square jaw #2 montgomery. Now that's one heavy trap, wish i had 100 of them.

[braveheart]

I was just wondering if making a pocket to fit a 2 or 1.75 there is alot a mink getting around the trap.The pocket is veryl large to fit the trap.The mink numbers caught with these traps are low from what I notice.And alot of people think 100 mink is alot.But that better be a weeks catch for a good midwest mink trapper.I like when the bigger traps are used by others it gives me a better chance to catch the mink.

[trappnman]

well, I give you my opinion. The use of a bigger trap means diddly if you are setting up correctly.

On a blind set, the bigger pan on the 1.75 offsets the wider jaws. An guard stick like a weed stem inside the outer jaw, ensures the mink going on the pan and if its that small to miss the pan, fine by me.

All my beaver sets stay in as coon sets after the beaver are taken out. I dig a baited pocket, and put the trap half in, half out. I take 5-6 mink a year in these #4s.

I do the same with 1.75s on coon pockets, and they too take mink.

Undercut bank reach back sets- I often reach for a 1.75 first- knowing the bigger trap/pan is covering what I might not be seeing.

But all in all- #2 double longsprings still my favorite, with 1.5 coils close behind. And I still use a couple doz of my dad's 1.5 longsprings- to him, the only mink trap to use.

lets put those numbers into perspective. Unless you live in the flat, irrigation ditch stream type of country, you will be hard pressed to take 100 mink. I only know of Iowa, WI and MN type mink trapping, and I know quite a few 200-400 mink guys (not me). A couple live in the NE/NW part of N MN and WI, and the rest are all trapping such as I mentioned. In most places of the midwest known as mink country- a 100 mink is still an accomplishment.

[thebeav2]

Braveheart said:

I like when the bigger traps are used by others it gives me a better chance to catch the mink.

Please explain why you think the smaller trap out preforms the larger trap.

[braveheart]

The blind set is maybe a 50-50 chance to catch.A well made pocket will squeeze the mink in and out and the depth of the pocket is just as important.I just see lots of traps set by other people trying to catch mink each year using big traps with tracks in the snow mink going over and around the trap.Plus pan tension is a big factor also.I too have caught mink in 4 longsprings beaver trapping but would not want to set with them for mink.