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Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? #6568318 07/05/19 10:39 AM 07/05/19 10:39 AM
Joined: Mar 2008 Posts: 49 Oklahoma B B. McDonald OP trapper
B. McDonald OP trapper B Joined: Mar 2008 Posts: 49 Oklahoma	I have a question concerning something I haven’t heard discussed anywhere but I’m sure other trappers have pondered it to. Why is the standard jaw lamination 3/16” or 1/4”? If a wider jaw face disperses the force & pressure of a trap across a wider paw surface thereby reducing lacerations, why not maximize the jaw face by adding 1/2” strips or even larger? I know it might mean more resistance coming up through the dirt, snow, ice, etc but can it be that significant? I know there are other considerations like swiveling & shock springs but w/ those things being equal, wouldn’t a trap w/ a 3/4” jaw face be better than one w/ 1/2”? Has anyone tried a thicker jaw lamination? It seems like this would be a good experiment, comparing the feet of various species restrained by different widths of trap jaws.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568322 07/05/19 10:49 AM 07/05/19 10:49 AM
Joined: Mar 2008 Posts: 49 Oklahoma B B. McDonald OP trapper
B. McDonald OP trapper B Joined: Mar 2008 Posts: 49 Oklahoma	I’m familiar w/ trap BMP’s & some of the research that’s been done & that there are more issues to consider than just lacerations on the foot of a trapped animal, I’m just curious if anyone has experience using jaws that are wider than what seems to be standard these days.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568331 07/05/19 11:17 AM 07/05/19 11:17 AM
Joined: Nov 2016 Posts: 1,123 Illinois/Indiana (depends on t... E eastwood44mag trapper
eastwood44mag trapper E Joined: Nov 2016 Posts: 1,123 Illinois/Indiana (depends on t...	Weight goes up exponentially. I would expect with half inch lams the trap would never close, or your pressure would be too little to apply adequate holding power. Remember, friction keeps the leg from moving, and it's directly proportional to force.... force goes down, so does friction.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568337 07/05/19 11:24 AM 07/05/19 11:24 AM
Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 17,635 Rodney,Ohio SNIPERBBB trapper
SNIPERBBB trapper Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 17,635 Rodney,Ohio	Too big of lams,1/4 is hairy on some without grinding a notch,at least for dog on traps, you wouldn't be able to set the trap. You can inside laminate as well to make a wider gripping surface. http://www.sniperstrappingplace.com/tmansearch.php

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568338 07/05/19 11:26 AM 07/05/19 11:26 AM
Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 6,175 10714 Apple road Carthage,Mo6... C Cletis Richards trapper
Cletis Richards trapper C Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 6,175 10714 Apple road Carthage,Mo6...	Originally Posted by B. McDonald I have a question concerning something I haven’t heard discussed anywhere but I’m sure other trappers have pondered it to. Why is the standard jaw lamination 3/16” or 1/4”? If a wider jaw face disperses the force & pressure of a trap across a wider paw surface thereby reducing lacerations, why not maximize the jaw face by adding 1/2” strips or even larger? I know it might mean more resistance coming up through the dirt, snow, ice, etc but can it be that significant? I know there are other considerations like swiveling & shock springs but w/ those things being equal, wouldn’t a trap w/ a 3/4” jaw face be better than one w/ 1/2”? Has anyone tried a thicker jaw lamination? It seems like this would be a good experiment, comparing the feet of various species restrained by different widths of trap jaws. You might experience clearance problems with that wide of outside laminations....look at the Canadian jaw that uses 3/16 outside and 1/4 inside for clearance purposes. Even 3/16 lams on some brands will have clearance problems with the eye of the dog....the lam has to be relieved in some instances Last edited by Cletis Richards; 07/05/19 11:30 AM. Appleroad Predator Bait www.appleroadlures.com Like us on Facebook

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568350 07/05/19 11:37 AM 07/05/19 11:37 AM
Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 23,830 Wisconsin T The Beav trapper
The Beav trapper T Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 23,830 Wisconsin	4 coiling would be a necessity. The forum Know It All according to Muskrat

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: The Beav] #6568366 07/05/19 12:12 PM 07/05/19 12:12 PM
Joined: Nov 2016 Posts: 1,123 Illinois/Indiana (depends on t... E eastwood44mag trapper
eastwood44mag trapper E Joined: Nov 2016 Posts: 1,123 Illinois/Indiana (depends on t...	Originally Posted by The Beav 4 coiling would be a necessity. Using what, garage door springs?

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568379 07/05/19 12:44 PM 07/05/19 12:44 PM
Joined: Aug 2018 Posts: 3,843 Pennsylvania The hammer trapper
The hammer trapper Joined: Aug 2018 Posts: 3,843 Pennsylvania	Making your jaw face 1/2in to a inch wide may stop some foot damage but the trap will be very slow even if 4 coiled witch will result in toe catches or just sprung traps. But filing off any rough edges on the jaws and having 3 swivel points and proper length chain will take care of that issue also without taking performance of the trap away. I use 1/4in. Lamination on 50%of my dogless traps and 50% not. Foot damage is equal there isn't any more from one trap with or with out them. But the ones with lamination are slower going off not enough to hurt catch ratio. But I would imagine using 1/2in or 1in lamination would slow it down enough to do so. Just my thoughts on it.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568392 07/05/19 12:57 PM 07/05/19 12:57 PM
Joined: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,238 Illinois R ratbrain trapper
ratbrain trapper R Joined: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,238 Illinois	Most of my coils are laminated with 3/16". A few have 1/4" but I wouldn't go thicker than that IMO.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568417 07/05/19 01:18 PM 07/05/19 01:18 PM
Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 1,785 el vado, nm T Tom Fisher trapper
Tom Fisher trapper T Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 1,785 el vado, nm	I had a few laminated inside and outside to 7/16 thick and 5/16 offset, caught one coyote and a few grey fox, these are KB's left the springs alone. Will try for more Coyotes as I didn't catch enough to form an opinion, didn't see any difference/improvement. I catch very few animals by the toes, with Cougars the only exception as we are restricted in the size trap we can use and I use the KB for everything. If you're catching animals by the toes on a regular basis something is wrong IMO

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568423 07/05/19 01:25 PM 07/05/19 01:25 PM
Joined: Aug 2010 Posts: 4,497 PA P PAskinner trapper
PAskinner trapper P Joined: Aug 2010 Posts: 4,497 PA	The traps that have really super wide jaw faces tend to have crazy strong springs to compensate, and it makes sense that an animal can more easily pull out with a real wide jaw with normal springs. I think there is a happy medium. Right now I’m having amnesia and déjà vu at the same time. I think I’ve forgotten this before.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568430 07/05/19 01:47 PM 07/05/19 01:47 PM
Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 1,785 el vado, nm T Tom Fisher trapper
Tom Fisher trapper T Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 1,785 el vado, nm	The KB is built so the harder the animal pulls the springs "wind" up and put more pressure on the holding surface, the springs are about equal to #1 coil springs so you won't need 4 men and a boy to set them

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568506 07/05/19 04:18 PM 07/05/19 04:18 PM
Joined: Aug 2011 Posts: 45,491 james bay frontierOnt. B Boco trapper
Boco trapper B Joined: Aug 2011 Posts: 45,491 james bay frontierOnt.	Check out the Rudy Red wolf trap.Thick jaws. Forget that fear of gravity-get a little savagery in your life.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568519 07/05/19 04:41 PM 07/05/19 04:41 PM
Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 3,823 Lower Alabama (Daleville) L LAtrapper "Professor"
LAtrapper "Professor" L Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 3,823 Lower Alabama (Daleville)	BOCO- Are the trap jaws painted white just for clarity in the video, or does the trap come with white jaws? Rudy Redwolf 4½- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ope9dn3og_U Note to self- Engage brain before opening mouth (or hitting the ENTER key/SUBMIT button). Ron Fry

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568528 07/05/19 04:56 PM 07/05/19 04:56 PM
Joined: Aug 2011 Posts: 45,491 james bay frontierOnt. B Boco trapper
Boco trapper B Joined: Aug 2011 Posts: 45,491 james bay frontierOnt.	They are some kind of polymer,hard as steel,but slightly flexible.I think they come in black also.They are also a very light weight trap. I have seen and handled them-but never used them.The springs are stupid strong. Forget that fear of gravity-get a little savagery in your life.

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568738 07/05/19 11:11 PM 07/05/19 11:11 PM
Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 17,797 N.W. Iowa T Tactical.20 trapper
Tactical.20 trapper T Joined: Dec 2006 Posts: 17,797 N.W. Iowa	1/4" round rod what I prefer

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568751 07/06/19 12:04 AM 07/06/19 12:04 AM
Joined: May 2017 Posts: 195 ontario K k9-hunter trapper
k9-hunter trapper K Joined: May 2017 Posts: 195 ontario	1/2 inch mods would work if you look at the bridger#3 with Canadian mods you would have roughly 1/2" jaw face because it has 3/16 outside and 1/4 inch inside

Re: Trap jaw laminations: why only 3/16 or 1/4? [Re: B. McDonald] #6568864 07/06/19 09:54 AM 07/06/19 09:54 AM
Joined: May 2016 Posts: 3,516 Southern Illinois F Foxpaw trapper
Foxpaw trapper F Joined: May 2016 Posts: 3,516 Southern Illinois	This ain't what your talking about but the little #11's with the stamped out double jaw was my favorite coon trap, of course that was before the DP's.

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