I got to tinkering tonight building a chain lock and started to wonder what the best way to hang a weight on the deep end might be.
Here is a prototype... I think I can improve it to be adjustable in the future, but it seems to work well

Interesting, I might not fully trust it.

Might work for you

Your over thinking it...a touch

LOL I know Nessmuck.
Sometimes I just need to try something new or it drives me nuts wondering if it would be a good idea.

Rotors do seem to be a great weight -- i am just worried about them getting hung up on debris where i am at -- trapping from the bank not a boat.

I have been using rotors for a few years now. I can leave them stashed along the line without worry. never ending supply. I use a pc of 3/16 " chain around it bolted and then just use my tie wire.

Looks like a missing trap or at least a live dry beaver. Why attach a chain without securing it. Trapping seems to be an experiment in proving Murphy's law. Why give it a chance to go wrong?

Unless you are going to weld it then sure looks good. Neat design.

Rule #3.76 - Dont fix what aint broke.

No reason to discover possible weaknesses in a new method.

Definitely a concern.

Thanks for the constructive criticism folks, I appreciate it. Guess I'll pick up a couple of snaps lol

Cow chokers work great for connecting to drums n rotors.

Don't be so quick to abandon the idea. I think a toggle is a good idea. I've been thinking about them myself. Anything that eliminates wire is better and faster.

So on further thought, I think (at minimum) I need to weld a "stop" to each prong so that the swivel can't slide off the toggle.
I don't think it will be possible for the toggle to disengage from the rotor... I'll do my best to test/prove that theory before I put this to use. Having said that, I do think it is a viable solution and agree with AndrewM in that eliminating the tie wire is the goal.

Aside from the above, it seems to be at least as secure as any other method of fixing

Your rotor is only 12 pounds but Nessy's is 17 pounds big difference, throw another wrinkle into it and put a old bolt and nut in one hole and then they don't slide along on the bottom as easy.
Remove the inspection screw and have your hook-up at that point, center of mass is lower then.
For scrap metal that rotor is a dollar USD or 1.35 Canadian.
Has not Ford got the dollar beer in Ontario yet.... throwing a dollar overboard.

Northof50, I live so close to Detroit that I buy beer in the USA.
You can get a case of 24 keystone light on sale for $9 or a 30 pack of Busch lite for $18... a 30 pack of Bud lite in Windsor will set you back $50 ish LOL.

Years ago, most US beer was pretty much swill but it seems there has been a change to the laws and their beer is pretty much the same as ours now.

Back on topic... the beauty of the toggle is that you can throw additional rotors on if necessary. I may weld a loop to the toggle so that it will accept a rebar stake at the deep end to potentially skip hauling the rotor altogether if far from road.

It's important to remember that I am trapping clay/silt bottom ditches here and it is far from wilderness LOL. Many sets would be less than 100 feet from the truck.

The extra drag bolt on clay bottoms is important for those 60+ pounders that's what I'm working with here.
The rotors do rust up fast for the beaver that make it all the way down at least in our waters, worrying about staining the fur of the beaver.

The type of bottom dictates the type and weight of your drowning weight.

Before I made drowning rods I had a few rotors I used to use... I would wire 2 together for extra weight.

BNSF left a big pile of tie plates here in town. I'd sure like to have some but I'm just not a thief... and I wouldn't know who to ask about buying some of them.

There's a spot on my local creek that otters frequent... Problem is the bottom is a solid sheet of rock. All weights will slide on the slime on the rock. It has cracks in it though... I need to figure out some kind of doodad I can wedge in those cracks to anchor the deep end of my drowners.

Mike

Mike, can you get to the other side of the creek? If you can get there you can have your weight fastened to each bank and have a trap on each side. If your wire or cable is fairly snug the movement upstream or downstream would be minimal.