I’ve caught wolves in Duke 1.5’s, Duke #3, and Bridger #2.

Had one wolf by only 2 toes in the Duke 1.5. Held them all.

I’ve had wolves set these same traps off and not get caught, but never had a wolf pull out of any once caught.

Just some of my history of footholds and wolves.

The manning is now the Alaska #9 from my understanding LT . The brawn is a square jaw from bridger


Can't talk too much about wolves but we had the vice president I think of the Montana association come down three years ago to our little convention. Talked to him for a solid hour about wolf and coyote trapping up there and remember him saying he caught and held more wolves in modified bridger #3's set for coyotes then anything. Think he said he stuff was either fully or Canadian modified.
Anyhow he did say the wolf trap he really really liked was the Gotcha Wolf being made by a guy in Montana. Charlie Fieite I think is his name. All hand made



But idk from what I'm seeing and everything I'm reading the deal is more less you need a big powerful trap more to break up though the crust and ice then really to hold one . Again this is just what I've gathered from reading and conversation.
Then again maybe different wolves in different areas just don't need as much ? I know I've talked to folks in the U.P and they complain alot about holding wolves in MB550's. But I think those are a smaller variety then the ones in Alaska. But then again I remember there being somone in the wilderness forum showing his daughter I think trapping wolves with Bridger #3's soooo
Also remember talk of either a government trapper or state biologist who specialized in trapping wolves in Idaho I think. Apparently they felt most "wolf" traps where just plain too much.

Yes, it's not so much holding the wolf (I've held them in DLS cat traps) as dealing with marginal freeze thaw conditions or a skiff of snow/crud that effectively takes away jaw spread. Bigger/stronger is better once winter kicks in. Prior to that, any solidly built trap will hold them.

They aren't as big or powerful as the internet would have you believe (at least our ID wolves) BUT, they do have big feet, so a larger jaw spread is key. Sucks to see you missed one by 2" after 3 or 4 weeks of waiting. Longer chain set ups can also build up a lot of shock force so more holding power is good if you're running that kind of setup - e.g drags, etc.

I see a lot of newer guys get a couple big traps for the novelty and then a handful of "cheaper" ones to try and run an effective line. All a matter of what you can afford I guess. The reimbursement money helps a lot, but scratch off lottery tickets pay better in the long run. You have to make the investment in traps first, then be successful to get a reimbursement. That can definitely take time and the more sets you can keep operational the better.

I held 2 of 3 Wisconsin wolves in two coil MB 550s and also had a pull out in a #3 Bridger four coil this past year. I have to release all the wolves so I don't mind the pull outs. The four coiled Bridger in question was an older trap without a baseplate and has #2 helper springs, so it isn't a full four coil by today's standards. I think for great lakes wolves, there is no need for 750 sized traps. Not sure about Canadian or Rocky Mountain wolves. If I was able to target wolves here, I would four coil my 550s and put new springs on the 3 Bridgers if they were weak. I think the jaw spread is fine, unless you are trapping in snow.

The MB750 is the most common wolf trap out here. When the wolf season was first opened it was the only reasonably priced wolf trap out there and the mandatory wolf trapping class pretty much pushed it as the only thing going. The government guys were all using it or very rarely a LPC longspring. The LPC you need to take out a loan to buy, and pretty much everybody who took the course and thought they might someday set a trap for a wolf bought a dozen MB750s. Nowadays there are a lot more options, with the MB having some competition in its price range as well as more expensive traps.
Those MB750s are good dry ground wolf traps, those government trappers that advocated them so heavily weren't leading us astray. . . but they do 90% of their trapping on dry ground and most of it in the summertime. When you start dealing with freeze/thaw and dumping snow on your traps is when the stronger and or bigger traps shine. When it snows a foot over your trap overnight, you want all the jawspread you can get, because if it isn't froze down that trap will still go off, but there is going to be a lot of snow compressing between the pad of the wolf's foot and the pan, that foot isn't going to be touching the pan when the trap goes off. And any guiding you had t direct his foot to the center of pan is now invisible under that fresh white fluff.
I've seen plenty of traps that weren't froze down, the pan dropped on fine, but the crust was heavy enough over them that the jaws wouldn't come up through it, or the jaws were frozen in the snow and didn't break free. That is where the powerful springs come in, and it pays to remember leverage. It takes a LOT more spring strength to bring up 8 1/2 inch spread jaws through the crust than it does 5 1/2 jaws.

Jumper is right, common sense needs to be used when choosing which trap to set where. My absolute favorite wolf traps I won't set in all situations.

yes it the weather that's the hardest thing in trapping , here we have the freeze thaw thing that suck !!!!!!

I would echo the freeze thaw cycle as one of the biggest factors in trap choice for me. That along with pan height, and how pooling water that becomes ice affects the pan, spring, and trigger mechanism.

In the snow I don’t use much for guiding as it will become buried. The pan is the low spot, so a high pan starts you out with more snow over the jaws. Not a big deal in a dry cold climate, but in warmer climates this can become a trap stopping crust.

Same for the pan cover and liner. Pan cover just barely covers the jaws allowing melt water to collect on the liner and freeze down the moving parts. It’s not always possible to set where this water can drain away. This affects the MB trigger, and pans with more than one hinge point etc. this is especially typical in the long sunny days in March up north where painting/dyeing traps white can keep the solar gain down. Which is also some of the most productive foothold time as wolves are on the move due to breeding.

I have settled on modified #9s and Koros as my choices.

Ndz 6.5 is a good compromise in most situation for me.
Although I like bigger in deep snow people are problem either theft,or other reason etc. I caught lot wolves in coyote gear ,cat gear, the reason I bought the NDZ 6.5 is areas of concern .and deep snow coyotes in early spring when they calf around here end of Feb ,march ,April .

if a wolf chews on a smaller weaker trap it can wreck it and escape.
I had a wolf demolish a no 4 jump trap.Frame and jaws bent and twisted beyond repair.
Large wolves are extremely strong with powerful crushing jaws.

I use neck snares for wolf.

Sure you CAN catch/hold a wolf in smaller traps designed for coyotes. But to CONSISTENTLY catch and hold wolves (and have traps that come up through wonky snow and soil conditions) it takes some solid hardware. Trapped wolves are also pretty good at rendering smaller traps into an assortment of pieces and parts.

It's OK to reinvent the wheel, knock yourselves out. But here I depend on NH 114's and Alaska #9's.

Pete

When sometimes depending on snow depth and weather in general you get a few shots at the pack that travels through your line it’s not the time to educate the pack by using a sub standard trap, IMO! Combination of snares and traps worked the best on my line.

I agree the NH 114 and the #9 are go-to footholds but I prefer to start out with the MB750 in the early season. Snares are the best all around IMO.

That Bridger Brawn is just ridiculous ! Way too heavy and too much space under the jaws. Suitable for a boat anchor only.

Yeah I here a lot of guys that don't target wolves stating there is no need for the big traps for wolves because they have held them in their #3 coyote traps or mb550s. Sure they have, but like one guy stated on here, he held two out of three in his 550s. What animal other than a wolf have you heard people advocating using traps with a 67% success ratio?

I'd love to have some NH 114's but the price is prohibitive. I really like the design of the Koro #9 also, but again a pretty steep price. Personally I'm not a fan of the MB750 for the reasons nooksack stated. I've still got 10 of the original dozen I bought (two have been stolen over the years) and I still use them, but I set them mainly on dry ground or in a spot where I don't want to set one of my big traps due to other factors, like the possibility of domestic dogs coming through. I use some modified TS85s that I really like whenever I can, not quite the trap a Koro is (or an Alaska 9, but I don't like the high pan of the Alaska 9, or the fact you have to take a hammer to it to reset it virtually every time you make a catch) but powerful, big jawspread, and with a little labor of my own I can have three of them for the cash outlay to buy one Koro.

I've got some other wolf traps, and some that I will set in places I don't feel comfortable setting the TS85s or a couple traps I handmade, and the MB750 is my least favorite wolf trap, but I caught my first wolf in one and have never had one get away that was caught in one. I've missed wolves though that I believe I would have caught with other traps, the 750 is the worst trap I have dealt with for freezing down or simply freezing up.

Just Wish I Could Trap them...

No greater challenge! They are smart and incredibly lucky!

And to think some guys find beaver harvesting and handling hard work,lol.

From what I understand the wolves in the upper great lakes are a bit smaller than the wolves in Western Canada, Alaska and the mountain west. When they had a season in Wisconsin most used MB 650s but that trap out west or in Canada maybe a bit lacking in size.. Conditions and the size of the subspecies should dictate the trap. If we ever get a NEEDED season in Michigan, I'd trust the Alpha #3 4 coiled with 1.5 music wire helpers with a few minor alterations. but not for the Grey subspecies out west.

Unless I overlooked it I saw no mention of the Sterling 800. Anybody have an opinion and actual experience with it? I assume they are limited production and probably pretty expensive.

Have caught a couple incidentals in Bridger #3" s and they held them fine but they bend the spring pins and springs where they need to be replaced but the jaws and frame have survived in good shape.