# New Sets.



## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

Gathered some anthill duff and punched a couple sets in today. Didn't have any trap wax, but I did boil the traps with soft maple bark and sumac berries, they turned out great. Hopefully something works these sest before the coming rain, I'm sure they'll be froze in after the warm up.


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## Patman75 (Jan 11, 2012)

Nice, I'm hoping to put a 1/2 dozen in the next few days. Just waiting on a few supplies to show up at the door. 

How was it punching through that frozen ground?


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## ottertrapper (Jan 6, 2006)

Good luck! You must be much farther south as there is no warm up here!


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

Patman75 said:


> Nice, I'm hoping to put a 1/2 dozen in the next few days. Just waiting on a few supplies to show up at the door.
> 
> How was it punching through that frozen ground?


It was tough going. I use a 1 1/2" galvanized pipe for making holes. For the trap bed I use a hatchet type hammer and pound that with a 2lber. After looking at the forecast, if I were you, I would wait until after the couple warm days pass. I'm certain mine will be froze in by Sunday or Monday... good luck!


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

ottertrapper said:


> Good luck! You must be much farther south as there is no warm up here!


Thanks! I'm in the Imlay City area.

Its a brief (2 days) warm up with some precip. Mid 30s. After that it looks like the bottom will drop out.


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## Patman75 (Jan 11, 2012)

I got the hook up from Dennis from the michigan trapping association. Waxed dirt, anti freeze, waxed tricked out traps and some lures. Saturday and Sunday looks to warm up in the low 30s, I was thinking to get them in the ground then before the next deep freeze comes in.


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

Patman75 said:


> I got the hook up from Dennis from the michigan trapping association. Waxed dirt, anti freeze, waxed tricked out traps and some lures. Saturday and Sunday looks to warm up in the low 30s, I was thinking to get them in the ground then before the next deep freeze comes in.


Sounds like you're hooked up well. I'm just toying around, next year I would like to hit them hard before the freeze thaw season. It would be nice to see some wearing bracelets. Post em up when you connect. Good luck!


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## bowhunter19 (Sep 15, 2009)

How do you guys get your anchors in the frozen ground?


Sent from my iPhone using Ohub Campfire


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

For these sets I used 30" rebar. 2 or 3 lb hammer will drive them in. I really like the cable style stakes in unfrozen ground, but they take a beating in frozen clay.


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

Drive pilot holes before putting in cable stakes, it helps.


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## DFJISH (Mar 30, 2009)

You young guys are full of enthusiasm and I applaud that. I pulled my fooholds yesterday and I think it was the hardest day of WORK I have ever spent on the trapline. This isn't my first trapline so I knew what to expect. I had every set cross staked with 24" of 1/2" rerod. The beds were in working order (dry dirt/peat) but below that it was frozen HARD. I dug down with an axe, pryed with a claw hammer, twisted them with vise grip pliers, and leveraged with a crowbar. To my dismay I found out, when I hooked on with my recently purchased(used) Grizzly 2500lb winch, that the winch didn't have the power to pull them out!! Something is wrong with my winch and it should have had the power to pull the stakes. Bottom line is that it took me up to 20 minutes of tugging to pull *each* stake. Good luck to you guys "punching in" new sets.
Putting in new sets in this kind of rock hard ground requires a pick to pound out a trap bed and I have no idea WTH a guy could use to dig a dirthole. Driving down any kind of stake will be extremely difficult....EXTREMELY! If I were to put in any new sets they would all be flat sets or urinating post sets...above ground. I do regret the morning ritual of checking traps, but I intend to hang some snar...."cable restraints"  soon. We have about 8" of snow on the level and winds that will make for some tough going. I am ready for that.....my ARGO with tracks.


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## Patman75 (Jan 11, 2012)

When I put my first ever sets in yesterday there was some good and bad/tough areas. Ground was only frozen for the first few inches in certain spots. Areas that were under leaves was very easy. Sifting wet frozen dirst was not fun. Next time these sets go in before the ground freezes.


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

As of yesterday I hadn't connected with anything but some rabbit hair. Lol. Doesn't look like anything has worked them yet. I had to dig out the bedding from the clay set as it was water logged and I'm certain it would have froze in. The trap bedding in the sandy set was dry as a bone. I'll check them tonight and remove snow and sift dirt around for eye appeal.

The canine activity usually picks up on this farm a week or so after deer seasons are over. I'm expecting them to move back in at anytime.


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

DFJISH said:


> You young guys are full of enthusiasm and I applaud that. I pulled my fooholds yesterday and I think it was the hardest day of WORK I have ever spent on the trapline. This isn't my first trapline so I knew what to expect. I had every set cross staked with 24" of 1/2" rerod. The beds were in working order (dry dirt/peat) but below that it was frozen HARD. I dug down with an axe, pryed with a claw hammer, twisted them with vise grip pliers, and leveraged with a crowbar. To my dismay I found out, when I hooked on with my recently purchased(used) Grizzly 2500lb winch, that the winch didn't have the power to pull them out!! Something is wrong with my winch and it should have had the power to pull the stakes. Bottom line is that it took me up to 20 minutes of tugging to pull *each* stake. Good luck to you guys "punching in" new sets.
> Putting in new sets in this kind of rock hard ground requires a pick to pound out a trap bed and I have no idea WTH a guy could use to dig a dirthole. Driving down any kind of stake will be extremely difficult....EXTREMELY! If I were to put in any new sets they would all be flat sets or urinating post sets...above ground. I do regret the morning ritual of checking traps, but I intend to hang some snar...."cable restraints"  soon. We have about 8" of snow on the level and winds that will make for some tough going. I am ready for that.....my ARGO with tracks.


Just because I didn't mention I felt like I had carpal tunnel after punching these in, doesn't mean I wasn't feeling it.. I never did get below frost line in the clay while digging the bed.

Good luck on the snares.


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## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

FREEPOP said:


> Drive pilot holes before putting in cable stakes, it helps.


Thanks for the tip.


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## Patman75 (Jan 11, 2012)

I think I need to given this a try.
http://ohiooutdoorjournal.com/2014/01/20/hay-sets-for-winter-fox-coyote-trapping-in-snow/


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

The magic hay set


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## Patman75 (Jan 11, 2012)

FREEPOP said:


> The magic hay set


Have you had any luck with it?


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## FREEPOP (Apr 11, 2002)

Nope. But my main set isn't that much different than a hay set :lol:

If there are fox around, you may want a trap right on top. For coyote I'd set it next to or up to 10" away.


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## Patman75 (Jan 11, 2012)

I had a fox or a coyote investigate one of my sets, it came in before the dusting of snow we got last night so the tracks are hard to make out. looks like it went hung around for a while about 2-3 feet away from the dirt hole.

And a deer investigated another set.


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