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Post by trappnman on May 26, 2016 6:54:00 GMT -6
Been thinking about this.
its common for some lures to separate, but not others.
so is the skunk essence in some lures, simply added, and not "combined" so to speak? that you don't have a chemical reaction that merges if you will 2 things- but more of an oil and water thing going on?
It would seem to me, that if an odor like skunk, one of the longest lasting scents out there, would dissipatethat freely from lures- ten what about all the other stuff in there- are they just inert matter, or do they contribute to the lure? and by that I mean "changing" the lure, by melding ingredients. not just adding something.
does that make sense?
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Post by trappnman on May 25, 2016 8:58:53 GMT -6
While I agree that essence dissipates over time, I tend to wonder if a lure loses its punch over time in regards to skunk essence, about the formulation of the lure. I've got lures that are 50, 60 years old, and still smell like what they offer be it either glands or skunk. Is it slightly less that orgin? maybe...but does that matter.
lets look at it another way- if skunk loses its essence so quickly- where is the "fresh" stuff coming from? By the time a lure maker gets it- it could have been collected over multiple years (and probably was), stored in multiple ways, etc-
and 1-3 years in the making.....if it dissipitated that rapidly, it would be all but worthless by sale time- esp after being bottled, sitting in the makers inventory, then going to the middleman's inventory, etc....
I think the key is good ingredients, and knowing how to stabilize the scent.
If I bought a skunk lure, and after a year or so I need to add "fresh" to restore it- I wouldn't be using it again.
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Post by trappnman on May 23, 2016 6:19:57 GMT -6
never have, knock on wood- but seems like every year, I think a skunk is dead, and pick it up just a tad too soon.
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Post by trappnman on May 23, 2016 6:18:27 GMT -6
I used to work at a big egg farm in high school- sure was "fun" when one got out
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Post by trappnman on May 22, 2016 8:00:34 GMT -6
Without anything but anecdotal evidence, I don't think skunk ever changes over time.
I once had 3 beagles tangle with a skunk rabbit hunting one warm feb day, about 25 miles from home, with no crate and the family car.I washed them over and over in snow, let them hunt through grass etc to at least get some off- and that car smelled like skunk ever rainy day from then on, for years.
and that is because it was protected from the elements I'd guess.
yet at the same time, it must be extremely able to be wicked off by wind and air currents, because a set that is overwhelmed by skunk, has hardly a whiff a few days later.
for whatever reason, I like the smell of skunk. can't see why it makes people gag.
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Post by trappnman on May 20, 2016 6:20:46 GMT -6
growing up at home, we had lots of ducks, chickens and geese. and we had woodies, mallards, widgeons, teal, bluebills, etc- all of dad's friends were duck hunters, and if they wingtipped a bird, they brought it to dad, Illegal as heck I'm sure, but..........
So we ate eggs from banties all the way up to goose eggs.
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Post by trappnman on May 17, 2016 11:32:14 GMT -6
and don't get me wrong- I fully understand the economic side of things.
and feel it's foolish to believe in something that isn't so-
but lets take coon for example- if I had the coon population we had during our peak coon period, where setting up 5-6 traps on a creek gave you 4-5 coon the next day, and the day after that, etc- why, I'd trap coon all day long. At a $6 average, I could make some real good money. But I don't- coon are fairly scare here. So while I'll put in the miles and put in the effort to go after a thin population of 20 coon, I won't for $6 coon. but if I wanted a fun little line, I'd set out 20 or so water sets for a mixed bag, and the same in landsets- and one could make a little egg money, and have a ball.
because the market isn't dead- or at least wasn't. Local buyers need to keep their base, and while they won't expand that base much during poor years, they will take care of their regulars the best they can. and that best might not be worth it to some (ie me on the coon) at higher catch % items like rats and mink, I could run that hobby line- and any coon taken were just a bonus $6
my goal this fall, is to maximize $$. I've taken 100+ enough times to know I can do it, and while I want bigger numbers, I want a higher average (pertaining to yotes) so will most likely be running more compact (less time, more traps) to get fewer low grade pelts.
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Post by trappnman on May 17, 2016 6:59:19 GMT -6
lately there has been a lot of talk concerning whether people should trap with the glut of fur available, or not. And so much of that reminds me of how the MN coon season came about- some where just unable to accept that there were trappers that wanted to trap earlier than others, because those trappers had a VALUE on the coon- whether that value was taking low $$ coon in numbers, or for hunting permission, or to help out the widow down the block- I simply didn't care.
I see some of that now. I also find it a little disingenuous in that some of the loudest talkers, are those that did their share in causing that fur glut.
Bottom line- if you can sell your pelts to a country buyer for $5-8, or just send select types to auction- or wherever you have market that you feel justifys the effort- who am I (or anyone) to tell you you are ignorant and foolish for doing something "they" don't want to do.
I sold every coon I trapped last year from $6 to $10. Green.
Are those prices worth it to someone that traps mostly for the enjoyment of the line, and any reward at the end is just a bonus. For heavens sakes- no one ever made money hobby hunting or fishing- so if in either case the resource is used- who am I (or anyone) to care, let alone make such a public outcry about it?
Myself? Coon at those prices, esp with mink down so much (for goodness sakes I averaged less on mink last year than coon!) It wasn't worth it to me to run a winter line for them, in fact I never set a single trap for coon last year-
but if someone wanted to run a line for a week, 10 days an pick up some coon- more power to them!
it wouldn't matter if there were 10 coon hides in storage or the current amount- until the end demand increases, it's kind of a stalemate.
People, some people, think that every trapper is running 100,200, 300 traps and the simple truth is that IMO the average trapper runs a couple doz or LESS traps.
If trapping too much fur is the concern, perhaps a public pledge by some to only run 12 traps, would go a long way to alleviate the concern?
Until then- if you don't want to trap- by all means don't.
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Post by trappnman on May 16, 2016 6:17:39 GMT -6
yes, your ldc is very skunky- if I set 1 set, its got it. If I set 2- at least 1 has it
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Post by trappnman on May 14, 2016 6:57:52 GMT -6
Sweet Jesus Marty.....your wife has my number....
But I understand what you mean. Its not only the ingredients, but the nuances of the craft-
I understand and have no problem in subtle changes in a lure- that's going to happen and I don't see any way to prevent that- different glands, different collection times etc all play a factor.
and I don't think the subtle changes matter, in fact on established lines it might be a bonus- but I do expect, and I'll say the lures I use regularly year after year qualify- that the very core of a lure, the distinctive scent of the lure, must remain unchanged.
Seldom makes a point on that- if I buy a lure advertised as skunky- then I want to see the skunk coming out of the bottle.
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Nugent
May 13, 2016 9:00:18 GMT -6
Post by trappnman on May 13, 2016 9:00:18 GMT -6
to be honest, I don't have a clue as to who or what a dana loesh is
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Nugent
May 13, 2016 8:59:49 GMT -6
Post by trappnman on May 13, 2016 8:59:49 GMT -6
I haven't seen any of them, and won't but my opinion is that any video showing shooting someone as a political protest isn't very productive or serve anything beyond appealing to ? in a certain set of individual.
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Nugent
May 12, 2016 6:11:01 GMT -6
Post by trappnman on May 12, 2016 6:11:01 GMT -6
hate politics- it's the new thing I guess
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Post by trappnman on May 11, 2016 14:18:19 GMT -6
Township guys need a talking to. A holes I mean they have a bounty or not? 300 gophers shouldn't be nothing/
on several occasions, I've taken 800-900 gophers off a farm the first year, and still plenty for the next
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Post by trappnman on May 11, 2016 14:16:47 GMT -6
I had it once where a "beaver" trapper came up to me and said there were beaver behind his house, and the dnr wanted them gone- would I trap them (fur season). I asked why he didn't- he didn't have time. went there, and found dozs of old 330 setups- set up a couple castor mounds- and had them the next check- one was that 86lb beaver I caught. So many know 1 method- that fails and they are out of luck
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Post by trappnman on May 11, 2016 12:19:25 GMT -6
I've had more than one farmer after I'd get the gophers under control tell me he'd take care of it from now on........and a couple of cuttings later...........
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Post by trappnman on May 11, 2016 8:46:43 GMT -6
never had that happen- Once I had a job in another county where the township only paid $1 for bounty ,and they were giving me the 3rd degree on where they were caught - finally I said "you guys pay #1- every other township pays minimum $1.50- if I was going to cheat- why would I do it here?"
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Post by trappnman on May 10, 2016 6:56:19 GMT -6
I use 4 types of traps- #1 pan traps, Quick Sets, death clutches and Cinch traps.
I prefer the pan traps and the Cinches-
Quick sets used to be a favorite, but I'm convinced as the traps wear, their effectiveness drops- in fact, unless huge set ups, we leave them at home now.
If I dig out the hole, and the branch (main tunnel) is right there, I use a pan trap- this way both ways are covered, and I have always found pan traps to have a high success rate- certainly equal to any other trap I use. And by far does the Cinch trap have a higher rate of success than any other type of bodygrip trap I've used (also used to use Box traps and those little green Victor traps)
the townships don't complain- on the boards are usually a farmer or two I trap for- and since all the boards are rural people- they see the need. These gophers are spread out over6-7 townships
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Post by trappnman on May 10, 2016 6:45:17 GMT -6
can somewhat visualize what you are saying, but a little more detail would help.
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Post by trappnman on May 9, 2016 6:33:10 GMT -6
Re flats sets: many years ago, my old buddy Wiley E made me really reassess how I made flat sets. I was in a period where I was enamored by flat sets, and not only flat sets, but as subtle a flat set as I could possibly make, even to the point of hiding the wobble holes I used for lure. I was describing this to Scott, and was saying how it seemed I was getting more digging at the set, but not getting the coyote-
and Wiley said in his opinion, coyotes dug more (randomly or rather in a broad pattern) if they couldn't see any origin of the odors.
which made sense when I thought about it- if the coyote can't pinpoint where the odor is coming from, he is going to be a little more cautious and dig at the edges, etc-
so yes digging at a flat set can indeed be more of a problem than in a hole set-
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