# The Old Field Tile Mink Set



## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Found these photos today for those interested in mink trapping.
For those of you who trap ditches and have seen field tiles draining into them OR have read about setting field tlles, here's a prime example. This is one of my old sets that if there was a mink running the ditch any given year, this where it would wind up! A great foothold-type set.


Top view-


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## Timberdoodle2 (Jan 6, 2015)

i could read your posts and others like this all day long have done this one before and got mink and ****


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## ottertrapper (Jan 6, 2006)

Yep great set! Don't have many of those here but they use the few I have


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## bowhunter19 (Sep 15, 2009)

Seldom I have a field tile just like this. But mine just drains to some low wet ground. Is the reason the trap is below pipe because mink run up the pipe?


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

bowhunter19 said:


> Seldom I have a field tile just like this. But mine just drains to some low wet ground. Is the reason the trap is below pipe because mink run up the pipe?


A passing mink will defiantly stop and check it IF THERE IS A MINK TRAVELING THE WATERWAY for sure and that's all I needed, just stop and check! LOL. That's why the trap is positioned where it is. I used to add a little lure up inside the pipe as well. I never like taking anything for granted because I set traps to catch animals and expect that when I set a trap it will stop and catch the next animal that visits.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

Seldom said:


> A passing mink will defiantly stop and check it IF THERE ISB A MINK TRAVELING THE WATERWAY for sure and that's all I needed, just stop and check! LOL. That's why the trap is positioned where it is. I used to add a little lure up inside the pipe as well. I never like taking anything for granted because I set traps to catch animals and expect that when I set a trap it will stop and catch the next animal that visits.


This was the only tile set I used because that it was the only one I had and it worked for 1 mink every year I used it. I used 3 specific sets and a few others where opprotunity dictated that I needed a trap to the catch the next mink that came through. 

The two locations shown in the following photos are examples of opprotunistic, no-brainers! Set trap-catch mink!

Here's one such-


And another such under the log pass-thru-


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

I always guarded the tile pipe with a conibear that would fit it. I may've been missing a few or taking longer to catch them. When I was hitting it harder though, I would be checking every third day as I'd have 3 properties set at at time and would rotate checks between them.


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## 9 (Jan 17, 2000)

FREEPOP said:


> I always guarded the tile pipe with a conibear that would fit it. I may've been missing a few or taking longer to catch them. When I was hitting it harder though, I would be checking every third day as I'd have 3 properties set at at time and would rotate checks between them.


Every year I had to take 2-3 shovels of sod and stack them upside down so I would build it up in order to have the #1.5 under about 1" of water. Post-MSU I didn't run any mink-specific lines, I only set locations near where I trapped coyote so I checked everyday as explained in the next paragraph.

Pre-MSU, when all I trapped were mink, I still favored checking my mink lines traps everyday. As I mentioned previously, I used 3 types of sets, 2 were foothold-type sets and of course the BE. As you would know, rising and falling water is a real bitch using footholds BUT I had two great sets, productive enough that I made sure they were operable and in position everyday. Also, I had a philosophy that checking everyday kept me intune with what was going on in each waterway. To this day I believe it had a direct bearing on my success and learning mink.

I forgot to mention a very important point, at least very improtant to me. I loved trapping mink and really didn't enjoy trapping ****. When using footholds I certainly didn't want some stinking **** plugging-up my mink set more then 24hrs!!


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

I don't really recall **** being much of a problem on my water sets, I believe most were denned up by the time I started.. I had more problems with them on my canine sets, along with possum and skunks.


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## DirtySteve (Apr 9, 2006)

FREEPOP said:


> I don't really recall **** being much of a problem on my water sets, I believe most were denned up by the time I started.. I had more problems with them on my canine sets, along with possum and skunks.


I just skinned our first **** of the year last night. We started our water trapping the week before xmas.


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

There's usually a thaw in January that'll get the **** running for a few nights but nothing like this year.


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