Woofman, looks like you opened a can of worms with this one! My advise would be to talk to your furbuyer. They'll tell you what they want. The bottom line is that they need to make money too. If they're happy with early fur and can make money off it, fine. If they think you're better off waiting until it's fully prime, they'll probably tell you that. I don't know, but perhaps it varies by what part of the country you're in. I trap in Minnesota and personally, I wait until the fur is completely prime. I simply don't feel right about harvesting an animal until it's at it's best. Just my two cents. Best of luck on your line. Jump Trap

I always wait for the beavers to get prime.

i start here in ontario oct 15 on coon and still get some blue leather but these coon sell just fine and it seems the fur market today is based more on size than prime factor on coons

Absolutely...Prime..adios

Most buyers around the end of Nov. to Dec.
I trap right off the bat.Last year I sold coyotes the 2nd week of Nov. that were Oct. caught and got a $21.00 avg.with a top of $28.00.But I held on to a couple I caught at the same time.I sold those ones I held back in Jan. I got a $30.00 avg and a top of $40.00,same fur as the others.

Our season opens mid october,the fur isn't full prime but it's decent and actually looks better now than it will in a month.I use to work at a fur farm,mostly fox and fully prime fur is more prone to damage.The seasons open when they do because if you waited until full prime,atleast up here weather can dampen the harvest which is more detrimental than maybe losing a few bucks if you sell early.Trapping now helps insure an acceptable harvest which is needed to sustain a healthy wildlife population.If we waited a month we couldn't keep populations in check which is basically what the DNR are wanting done.We as trappers and hunters for the most part and most important part is first and foremost to keep populations in check for a healthy base to start the cycle all over again come spring.We trap for fur,but we are basically look at as a tool for wildlife management.I can see a day coming in years to come of a year round trapping season if we don't recruit new trappers to keep pop. in check.The bottomline is we're a management tool and fur comes 2nd.

Here in WI the seasons open far before the average fur bearer is "prime". Prime has many realities and perceptions.
If I would set very specific areas for more adult coons in the early part of the season I would catch a higher % of higher value pelts due to size and grade. The risk of running a heavy line early in the heavy trails is getting many YOY coon that are 1-11 in grade and L or XL in size. These coons are $7-$11 on recent auctions. The late Oct. 3xxl-4xxl are well over $20 and not much below the price for later caught adult coons. Those YOY may go up $5-$10 by waiting 3-4 weeks. The issue is that well over 60% of the coon harvest in WI is completed in the first 4 weeks of the season, so waiting gets you better fur but lots fewer pelts and more issues in running your lines.
I know that I give up a better average by trapping coons earlier, but I get more and I am considerably more efficient in running my lines the last 10 days of Oct then the middle of November. My choice are to trap more selectively early. Typically in WI the season opens for coon about the middle of October, I used to wait until the first weekend of November to set out my coon line. My area has doubled since I started earlier and my catch has tripled. I am more efficient and have less expenses per coon even with the lower average price.
Our coons are naturally heavier than many areas and that may be a factor for us that is not the same for more central areas.

Bryce

Very well said!!!!!

I get so fired up...it's hard to wait!!! But still, it's better to wait 'till the fur is better.Here in Pa. 'coon and fox come in 10/20 but the fur quality is a joke. I don't bust on those who trap early but it's better to let the fur prime up.I never got much for blue 'coons and flat foxes.
Don't harvest vegatables 'til they are ripe??Don't trap early fur.

Great debate here. I'm going to contact some of the more experienced Connecticut trappers in the CTA and see what they say about what the furbuyers want. In reality I have six different places to trap and it won't be easy to hit more than one of them at a time because of the driving distances and my real job. One of these is a public spot that I may trap early anyway before the firearm deer hunters show up Nov 15. I'd just as soon not be getting in their way or vice versa.

Jump Trap, thanks and good luck to you too.

That's another good point,we only have 3-4 weeks before deer season and by the time it's over and things have settled down it's Dec.,which makes for harder trapping weather wise ie; frozen solid ground,ice,snow,etc..May as well get while the gettings good.

I look at fur and leather primeness as two different things,the fur is prime and looking good before the leather is fully prime,so you need to decide,are you selling fur or leather? I've never seen a coon leather coat,but seen some fur out ones and the leather is covered by a liner.

Where does the "junk fur pile" go? If your buyer is doing you the favor of getting rid of it for you,what's he selling it for?

The dates I mentioned above in my first post were given to me by a very large fur buyer, plus I've had enough experience as a fur buyer to know the difference between black and blue leather. And average buying is just that, it is an average. If you have 3 piles of pelts, junk, blue and prime and the buyer gives you one an average price they took in consideration the worth of each pile. If the trapper waited a week or so there would have been less in the junk pile so the average would have been higher.