[quote=HayDay]Can you snap a a picture of your setup? And it would seem you have to set trap and bait below the ice to keep it from freezing in?

Cold snap coming through tonight, that would freeze in my shallow sets, so pulled traps this morning, with no luck at all with the sweet potato. Should warm back up early next week. In meantime, may try to find a bag of carrots.


Something like this will work. Sorry I just saw that you wanted a picture.

Drakej,
could you post a picture of that setup please. I can't quite picture the description. Thanks.

Drakej,
could you post a picture of that please. Thanks

Drakej,
could you post a picture of that please. Thanks

So I tried the board set a few times. I had very little luck and I used lots of different kinds of bait and different locations. The one thing I did was feed a lot of rats with out catching to many. The board set In my opinion allows the rat to get to the bait without actually crossing over the trap. And even If the rat does cross the trap It may not drop It's feet to get to the bait.
I gave up on that board set a went to baited BGs. I'm still not a very accomplished under Ice rat trapper but the baited BGs where way more productive then the board set.

I'm still nuisance trapping rats out of neighborhood ponds. Have had baited body grips and now a couple board sets out......first with the sweet potato and now carrots. Have yet to have the first baited trap even tripped. But when I find the den run, a 110 set at the entrance is getting those.

I had studied the pic where the master trapper (kid) was holding the small piece of board on a stake. What I came up with was nearly identical. What I also found out was all Victor traps (LS and CS) have a hole in the frame for the nail. A lot of others don't. Little subtle things you don't think about till you know what to look for.

Our ice has now thawed, so open water. Got another shallow, silted in cattle pond across the road that has rats......but soft mud getting from bank to deeper water is probably knee deep or worse, so had been waiting for deeper ice to set it. May try setting some board traps over there, on long poles so I can reach the deeper open water from the bank. With ice gone for now, may leave the carrot out of the water and trap barely submerged. Gonna catch at least a few that way so I know I can do it.

I do a LOT of under ice rat trapping. I've caught thousands of rats thru the ice. I can personally catch more rats, easier with footholds than I can with bodygrips. I have used bodgrips under ice for years and still use some (about one in 20), and in certain situations they work best. I'm sure there are people who use strictly bodygrips thru the ice, have a great system and do better than me, but this is what works best for me. There is a learning curve to using baited footholds, but once you get it figured, it's very effective.

I bet I can catch more rats I open water then you can catch under the Ice. LOL

Well I'm no where close to any of that, but did finally get a rat on a 110 with carrot today. Board sets.....still empty. Set by feed beds......I assume that is where they ought to go.

Ok, I can now confirm No.1 LS on a board with carrot works for me too. Sat empty, empty, empty...then water iced over for the first time in nearly 2 weeks and I caught one the first night. Coincidence?

Don't forget about 'Parsnips', which by far resemble a 'Cattail root' more than the above mentioned !