New member here and I appreciate the knowledge shown and shared by all of you.

I have become interesting in adding a good large bear trap to my collection of outdoor and hunting related antiques. In researching what I can find, including here, I have decided that a Newhouse #6 is what I should have. The problem is that I don't see any currently available and the previously sold ones seem to have something wrong with them or parts missing or replaced. I would like to have a complete, all original trap with as early a vintage as possible. Are they that rare or are people just keeping them off of the market?

Thanks for your impressions about these.

Welcome aboard. The earlier 6’s don’t surface for sale very often and when they do be prepared to pay up for one - I think those that have them tend to hang on to them.

The Newhouse 5’s and 15’s cover the same date ranges as the 6 and are a little easier to find. The smaller Newhouse 50 is in the foreground for comparison.

#6 Newhouse is the most impressive and desirable trap to most collectors. They do come for sale occasionally. If you are trying to purchase one online it will be difficult to do. I would suggest you join the North American Trap Collectors Association. You will find leads there from time to time but if you want to view and purchase which you should do I would recommend you travel to Ohio and go to the yearly NATCA meet. You can find the date and information by joining.

I should have thrown that out there as well, NATCA is a good organization - membership info at northamericantraps.com. Membership includes subscription to the TRAPS magazine with classifieds, articles and info on upcoming swap meets, etc.

Thanks to all for the warm welcome and the advice. I did choose to find a Newhouse #6 for the same reasons that Slick Pan stated. I believe that in collecting anything, go for the best. Of course, higher prices are a result of that as well as the lack of available examples. But I will be patient - I figured that this search would take a while...

There’s one on the Facebook group right now a 6 community it’s very nice but also pricey.

I’ve seen a few come for sale lately some sold high some sold low.

You can find Greg Hovey if you do a google search of number six Newhouse he deals in them.

I found that a firearms site, Guns International, has a Newhouse #6 advertised at a price of $7,500. It is a later version with the Oneida marked pan and apparently is still for sale after some time. So I got to looking around at other firearms sites and found a slick pan No. 6 at an upcoming Rock Island Auction Company sale. That one in that auction is an earlier slick pan, appearing to be in very good original condition with the proper chain, springs markings and all. The estimate for that one is $3,500 to $5,500. That would appear to bracket the values of these No. 6s but I do realize that some auction sites provide lower estimates to encourage bidders - would that be the consensus here?

Guns International- # 6 it is a latter model called ATC or Animal Trap Co. Not worth the asking price.

The slick pan looks to be original as far as I can tell. No way to test the spring strength. No bottom picture. If it as good as it looks the estimate is low. It will sell for more. Have you purchased the new edition of the trap collectors guide? It will be helpful and you should do it if you have not.

I live 15 miles from Oneida New York.......

I am on the newer side of the collecting life cycle........a #6 was on my radar for several years. I was pretty specific....I did NOT want an ATC, nor a slick pan. I wanted it to say Oneida on it, so was not really even crazy about the Community pan (I've since become less picky)

My two cents of advice........

Use the resources the guys above mentioned......to date, pretty much ANY specific trap I targeted came from building rapport with other collectors and friends. For instance, I live in Cazenovia NY......SO I wanted my first Flotrap........not impossible to find, but I'd NEVER seen one on a table at a swap meet. These long-time collectors all know each other and help each other out. I ended up with a Flotrap because of these relationships......

The list is long in this regard, and OTHER collectors have helped me find many targeted traps.

Second bit of advice: Traps don't seem to go DOWN in value! ESPECIALLY #6''s........short story.....a famous collector had a super-nice #6 a couple of years ago at the New York State Trappers Convention. It was over $5K.........but it was a super nice one. I passed.

The next year at the same convention, I was setting up my booth, and so was this guy, who just worked out of his tailgate. There was that same trap for the same $5K. I went home that night, took a bunch of cash out of the safe, and my intent was to approach him at first light before the show opened to snag it.

As I walked up to his vehicle, I saw a young man walking away with that #6 on his shoulder! It set me back on my heels!

Its hard to explain, but deciding to spend the money is the hard part......BUT once you cross that line, the money is already gone in your head and that's YOUR trap! LOL

I bet every collector has a similar story........maybe several times over!

SO......with that backdrop, IF you find the right one, it will probably be a little higher than what the book value says. If its the one you want, grab it.

If you ever need to sell it, it will be worth more than what you paid for it!

Mark Zagger

Never feel bad about what you buy, it's what you walk away from you never stop thinking about.

NATCA has an ATC #6 on the auction list for the Sidney swap meet this June.