Not to debate the laminate or not laminate, but does round stock offer any advantage over flat stock or vise versa ? Seems the squared off flat stock would have more surface area than round stock , but I can see where round stock would be more foot friendly. Any opinions or comments ? Thanks

If It were me I'd go with the square stock.
Either laminations will give you more surface that In turn will absorb or dissipate the shock due to the closing of the jaws. But the square stock will give you more holding power and more surface area.
A couple of swipes with a file will knock off that square edge and your good to go.

The other thing Is that the square stock Is more trapper friendly when It comes to attaching it to the trap jaws.

Good luck.

The other thing I forgot to mention. Is In my opinion Inside jaw laminations are more foot friendly then outside jaw laminations. A bit more difficult to accomplish but it can be done.

The crevice created with round laminations is a good place for mud and blood to collect so I prefer flat stock over round. Not your question, but I actually prefer thick cast jaws like on the MB550.

The round stock is a bit harder to weld also.........

I have found the crevice actually helps grip.

Round stock weighs less than square stock of the same size.

If you can lay your hands on the same type of trap(s) cheap, that you are laminating, and steal the jaws off of them as you lams, you are ahead of the game.They are already formed for your jaw arc. Broken square jaw Montgomerys come to mind. The inside lam on a square jaw is a lot easier than a round jaw. My boy fills in the crevice with weld and then files it flat for 1 wide surface (for me). You would think that when all this jaw modification came out that someone would have produced just jaws (wider and flat than stock) for several of the more popular trap styles (at a reasonable price). The labor/time deters me from too much "trap mechanic" chores but I did have my boy do (laminate) my # 2 and #1.5 Montgomery RJ's several years ago (aging myself--long before the MB's came out) and believe that they are worth it. Terrible dog on my old Montgomeries but I will stoop to replace that..

Try key stock...flat and easy to form fit for your jaw lam.s...might be cheaper too.

Welding that whole void closed would be a lot more welding then I'd want to do on any trap. 3 small tacs and I'm good to go.
The key stock Is a very good Idea.

Round stock is cheaper but flat or key stock is just so much nicer to work with
And I have to agree with beaver with welding the seam, it can be some kind of tedious if your not set up right.

Before

After

Now we laminate the trap. Im using pieces of cattle pannel. If you don't use a material heavy enough you can bun through it while welding the seam shut. One problems with the pannel is its pretty heavy so you wanna bend it a lil so it confirms to your jaws .
Clamped before welding

After


Now we need to either remove or clamo the springs down so theirs no pressure in the jaws . if you don't know what your doing the pressure fromthe springs Can warp the jaws while welding due to heat. If you've never done this CLAMP OR REMOVE SPRINGS ! As you see here I have mine clamped with some vice grips so I can work .

Now were going to welded the seam between the jaw and the lamination. This is also a good time to weld your lugs if you want it off set.

Just wanna show how hot your jaws can get and why you wanna be carful.

Now the seam is welded were gonna grind everything down flush. Again a flap disk is best.
Before

After

Make sure not to grind too long in one spot,you'll and up washing out the jaw..
Lil bit of paint aaand

[img:gal:341105a416d3666d4e]https://trapperman.com/forum/attachments/usergals/2017/12/full-34110-398088-20171224_185732.jpg[/img

Nice work Wolfie.


Way to much screwing around. No need to fill In the gap.
With all that heat do you think you have removed all the temper from those jaws so they may break at the hinges?
Isn't fencing galvanized? If It were me and If I was using round stock I would be buying hot roll or cold roll for those laminations. That galvanizing will get you.

You can tie wire those long springs in about a minute and have lees chance of knocking the clamp off while working.


The weight factor alone is enough for me, but I think it's easier to weld the round stock. So it comes down to what you personally want to like.

No need for any clamps. Place your sheet tin between the jaws. Have a jig built so your trap lays over at a angle. Lay your pre formed lamination against the tin. Make one small tack dead center. Then with a screw driver push one end down and tack It. Then do the same with the other end.

Well that's the problem I don't have any jigs made so most of the form is don't on the jaw from a straight piece of pannel. Which by the way is non galvanized ( least what I cut off from the scrap pile I think. I'm looking at making a jig with a bottle jack and old trap jaws to make a lam former when I get home. If I do it right I should be able to put in a jaw stincle and use the jack to press the stock into the jaw stencil and form it. Pre formed lams are nice but I usually end up buying just enough for the job and have to make my own for my personal projects

Filling in the gap looks cool but I agree with Beav that it's unnecesary and the gap,as formally mentioned,might give a slight gripping advantage.

Bottle jack??

Take a piece of 3" pipe about 1" wide cut It so It springs apart then form It to the size of the jaws your working on. Once that Is done weld a chunk of angle iron to the back of It. This will keep it In shape. And then you can clamp the angle iron In your vise.
To form your laminations just clamp one end of the stock to your jig. Then with a hammer just peen It Into shape. No need to heat It It will form around your jig.

I'm with the beav, three tacks and done. That's a lot of heat on those jaws. A TIG would be much better keeping the heat down.

What thickness of flat or key stock is a good compromise of good surface area but not slowing trap down to much ? 1/8". 3/16", 1/4" , or 5/16" ? -Thanks

I wouldn't go any more then 3/16ths.

But In my opinion If your not trapping for the live market why laminate any trap.

Basically it's going to be something like this. There will be different jaws that attach to the frame and the jak head. The stock will be placed in the press and jacked up where it will confirm to what ever jaw I have there.

So that it will need 4 springs.
Then the 4 springs will stress the trap so that you can weld on a base plate..
Beav, modification of traps is done because it can be. No other reason is necessary.