Since I retired last fall and have time to trap again I have been upgrading my equipment and getting ready to have major fun trapping next season. I am amazed with the equipment changes and inovations that have been made since I hit it hard 30 years ago. I saw on Trapping inc.TV, trapping muskrats with HAGz brackets on 3/8's fiberglass rods with a bait holder and a carrot and of course needed a bunch of those too! So, MTP sent another big order and it came today. I know rats are not worth a lot but that just looks so easy and fun to catch them like that. I went with the Bridger 1.5's for this set up. I am going to be boiling and dying and waxing traps all summer but next season I am going to be ready for anything. I am glad I found this place to further my knowledge and keep up with what is going on.

The hagz brackets are great, one thing I noticed with new 1.5 coil springs is that when they are so strong it was hard for the muskrats to set them off. I switched over to 1.5 long springs that were older and my catch rate went up dramatically

Thanks, I will remember that and check it out if I am loosing carrots and not catching.

those old vic #2 square jaws pair up perfect with hagz brackets they leave about a 1/4 ' gap between the loose jaw and fiberglass rod. personally I like using old longs with hagz brackets. The old vics I remove one spring and lever it makes them gravy to set in waste deep water.[

Great trap for fox and coon.

I like the ease of just painting my water traps...no need to boil, dye and wax them

Well Instead of using different traps just heat up the springs on your 1 1/2 coils. Now you have some rat trapping machines.

I can undo the spring and lever for free. weakening springs means buying new ones to fix. 330 I to latex paint dip all my water traps all mine are khaki green .that color seems to blend in no matter the application

I just dedicated 300+ 1 1/2 coils to rat trapping.

I like and use the HAGz brackets. But I don't like the idea of the rat having to cross the dogged jaw or the loose jaw. Maybe I'm over thinking It. But I just welded a short piece of flat stock to the frame end of the trap so when It's inserted In the bracket the rat Is approaching between the jaws. It just makes me feel better when It's done that way.

Is there a way to use two HAGz brackets with two traps on one pole?

Sure. One trap will just have to sit a little bit deeper then the other one. But I'm betting the first rat caught will set off the other trap.

I'm fairly new to water trapping. If I use this setup (fiberglass pole, HAGz bracket, 1.5 and bait), am I correct that the fiberglass pole is the anchor for the trap? I guess I would be worried about a raccoon getting into one of these sets. Maybe that doesn't happen enough to be a concern?

Just wrap some black electrical tape around the bottom of the fiberglass pole and then when you pull it up the bracket won't slip off the end. I don't think a coon would swim out for a carrot or a carrot with muskrat lure on it. Now something sweet or fishy is a different story.

would you boil new traps to get the factory oil off and let them get a film of rust to help the paint stick? What paint do you like to use on your water traps?

Oh yes they will. Maybe not so much for the carrot but for the rat lure for sure and all of us don't bait with carrots. Coon just love apples. And of coarse most sets are close to the banks so the coon doesn't have to swim to far. And If your trapping near rat huts It's a given Can't tell you how many coon I've caught In foot holds set on rat huts.
But for the most part If the rod Is driven In a bit the coon will have a hard time pulling the rod since It has nothing to pull against since that coon Is basically treading water. A couple of wraps with tape on the top side won't hurt anything.

And 3 inches of a chunk of swimming pool noodle on the top and they float if they get pulled out, and you can see them from a distance.

Great idea!!

I like using old longs for that as well. Hagz are really fun to use.

Don't you guys take care of your traps? LOL