Is the Belisle 160 too large for mink and muskrat trapping? I'm thinking it probably is; but, I thought I would ask.

And, do all the Belisle body gripper traps possess the really tight closure feature; or, is it just the newer ones?

Thanks,

Greg

I like 160’s for rats. For mink you would probably need to run a trip wire on the triggers since there is a lot of area for them to go through. I don’t set them much for mink.

I have some older Belisles and have caught muskrats by the tails in my 330's.

160s aren't to big for rat trapping. I run the 159 bridgers so basically the same size. And they work pretty good on runs and TE sets. All belisle to my knowledge are of the magnum jaw style. If I were you though and your gonna use 160s for rats I'd take the second spring off the speed up your sets and it's easier on your hands at the end of the day.

I use single spring 160 bmi’s. Work great with rats. Catch occasional mink but never set for them specifically.

Not too big but too strong - the springs put too much tension on the triiggers for my liking (for mink).

I personally like 160s for mink, because when I’m mink trapping, I also want to catch the coons, otter and nutria too. I make the triggers ( ) and blend the trap. If I want to narrow the opening, I slide pieces of dead grass/stems/sticks through the jaws.

Every belisle I’ve seen sold new has the same complete closure. Can’t speak for past used models.


Belisle 160s are a fine trap, but I also like BMI 160s a lot, probably more than Belisle 160s. If I could get some magnum BMI 120s, I’d say that’s about perfect for dedicated mink traps, because I like magnum jaws and I like 2 springs on land traps.

IMHO, the 160-size trap is better for dray land setting because it automatically provides the head-space that I feel is needed when setting on dry land for mink.

I use 160 for fisher and have caught a couple of mink in those boxes but I run my triggers on the bottom.

All I use for rats is 160 body grippers. Mine are Dukes and I remove the sprig with the chain on and use them as single spring body grippers. I have a lot fewer misses or snapped traps then I did with the 110s. Maybe the larger trap is making up for my lack of ability get the smaller traps set in the more correct spot.

Bryce