Evolution of equipment

Growing up, I ran my line by foot and bicycle till I was old enough to drive. Once I got my license, I then drove to the areas and walked the line. By the time I was 17 I had purchased my first boat, a 14’ Eldo Craft with a 36” beam and 16” sides. With this boat, began the mechanization process for my trap lines. The goals to stream line every part of my line and the desire to get faster became a passion. Working as a fabrication welder and moving into a machine shop setting gave me great knowledge of design and manufacturing with the tools at hand. After changing jobs and carriers, I found myself for the first time in my life in an industry that did not have ready access to welding machines and lathes. My hours had changes and with three children now, I begged out of trapping for a few season.

Years before I had gotten Eric Cottrell back into trapping after several season of lying off the line. Now Eric returned the favor for me. He talked me into going on a water line with him on a local river and so began my return to trapping very vengeful. Eric and I moved from the water line looking for a bigger and better line on land thus the need for newer and more up dated gear began. With a good understanding of weight reduction, speed and reliability from my early foundation on the walking coon lines, I knew what I needed. Added with the years of running out of a boat and knowledge of limited available space, the quest began. Try to pack as much as an ATV can haul and keep it from being top heavy with out over loading the frame.

Here is a simple pictorial of the evolution of one piece of equipment I have designed for the line. Much thought and countless hours went into the final design.

This is the proto type and was built to stack 280 conibears. I could stack a whopping 50 pre set Victor 280’s in the three compartments. The total weight of the box as in the neighbor hood of 25 lbs unloaded. Loaded with all the gear, I have no idea how heavy it was, but I do know my 300 Honda was crying.

With the proto type testing out of the way, I began the final design of my ATV box. I gathered the material I needed, laid it out and had the final box made. This new box is designed to fit a standard Honda back rack while holding stacks of Un-set 330’s. It doubles perfectly on a land line as I allowed for those needs also.

ahh i love the honda 300.. is there anything it cant do??? i pulled out a 400 lb bear this spring.. and that was threw a bog

Fancy!

Finally someone see's eye to eye with me!!! the 300 is king we got a 300 and a 650 rincon, and the new one is junk tips on the slightest incline and burns to much gas.

the 300 was the best 4-wheeler honda ever made

Great job on that Eric!

i had my honda 300 out this last winter on the line.. but the snow got really bad so we took my buddy grizzly.. not sure what size but it is the biggest they make..
the grizz did good. but the next time going out (after more snow) my buddy could not make it. so i took the good ole honda.. and not a word of a lie but that honda did better then his.. his is too heavy and too big.. yea tons of power but for what??? all you have is your rear end and some gear.. it is not like your hauling a camper.
but yea that honda is the best machine ever made

what year is that honda? mine is a 95 and it looks just like yours...
i also run a argo for trapping. but that honda is a close second for choice of travel

MHoward,
Nice looking rig you've made there!I like the Honda too....My first wheeler was a Honda...Tough as nails too.The one I got now is a 400 Yamaha...not a bad bike but definatly not a Honda.My next one will be a smaller Honda.

Good deal. I would suggest some padding on the sides that contact your back and sides on the box edges and several drain holes in the bottom of your box if not already factored into the design.

It is made out of .105 I think, it has been two years since I made it. Bob it has plenty of drain holes and I used a clamp one rubber seal that goes round a side bend on a camper shell. No lids here, we get enough rain to help wash the traps off.

Nice Job ..... Garry-

very nice! I just wish I had a 4-wheeler! lol

yea a 4-wheeler is a good "start" but you still need another 4 wheels if you want to come down my trails..
lol you really need to try driving a argo.. great for hauling gear but not that great for hauling lots of people. they tent to not care for the ride after a few hours.

i got a model 2000 honda trx 300 fourtrax and it is the best 4-wheeler ever

gotta agree the Honda 300 is a great machine. dont get stuck easy! But i think are new Yamaha 450 is better. if the honda 300 had 4wheel drive then it would be the best ever

Cool box Tony! I've been thinking of doing something like that to give me more room.

hey grovetrapper my 1995 honda 300 is full time 4x4. i wish i could get it to be 2x4----4x4
best thing ever

Very nice. If you tip that thing over though you'll be slap-chopped like that cham wow dude!

michael

Your set up will carry a good sized load. With the hills and valleys where I do much of my trapping I prefer to balance my weight more evenly front and rear.I have a hinge drop down tray on my front rack to carry animals so I dont get too back heavy.

I have turned a machine over once and I dont really want to do that again.For reasonably flat ground that would be a good set up.With our terrain I would have a real back flip over problem due to the steep inclines in many areas.When I trap Georgia or Arkansas and need to haul in a big load of traps for set ups or hauling out a big catch I have a small trailor I tow behind the ATV.