Use #2s and your good to go for both coyotes and coon. I caught 10 coon this year In my coyotes sets and they were waiting for me. And some of those coon were caught In #3s.
If you want to kill a lot of coons get some 160s and trail set them.

Buy what you can afford or nowdays what you can find ............

Duke 1 1/2 or dp hard to beat for the money.

Also are you carrying your stuff or driving up to the sets. Pocket full of marshmallows and a hand full of dps with cable and a loop on the end sure has piled up the coons over the years..

Start out with a few dog proof traps. You will have faster success. You will still need to learn different skills for foot hold and body grip traps.

You should also get some foothold traps. This is very important - look for double jaw traps. (Send me a PM and I will explain.). A guy on here owns Wolf Creek trap company. He makes a #1 double coil double jaw trap. With a few modifications they are excellent coon traps.They are very affordable for a new guy.

I use dog proof traps for fur trapping and in my wildlife business. I want the most effective, most efficient, most reliable trap. With the dog proof traps that I use I do not have any misfires or pullouts.

The PCS Feather Light is by far the best dog proof trap. In my opinion all other dog proof traps have one or more weaknesses. The Feather Light has no weakness. It has a cast aluminum body, stainless steel trap components, a good chain with plenty of swivels, a substantial support / stabilizer, a pull only trigger, and is made in the USA. What more could be wanted in a dog proof trap? I am not affiliated with PCS in any way. This is my honest opinion. Give them a try.

Send me a PM if you have any specific questions.

DPs are very good for coon . They work in a lot of different situations like around domestics etc but they are a one trick pony . A good double jaw 1 1/2 is much more versatile . Good on mink and rats and hold red and gray fox well . They can be used in a variety of sets (pocket , pvc and trail sets etc ). If you want to target strictly coon (though you will pick up opossum and skunk) and mostly eliminate domestic non targets , go with DPs . IMO

I have trapped in SE and North Central PA and in Central Iowa. Coons vary in size depending where you live. I am not sure of Illinois coon but I would bet 20+ pounds is a big coon, here in Iowa it takes 30+ to be huge and in Pa 18+ was huge (unless in NC PA then 20+).

I have caught and held coons in everything from #1 long-springs (switch chain switched from the spring side) up to #3 coils and long springs. I have found that any good #1 1/2 coil-spring works great as a coon trap. Duke makes a fine and reasonable #1 1/2 coil, just file the trap pan and dog flat and square, I like ZERO tension on them if I am using them in water, as the light tension will help catch more mink and muskrats. If coon trapping on dry land I tighten the tension to around 2 pounds to allow a firm foot hold instead of possible toe catches.

160/220 Body Grippers in trails are deadly, especially is using H stands. I also do quite well using the 160's in boxes with some modifications.

Feel free to PM me if you have more questions

Mike