I know there’s a lot of us trap tinkering junkies out there let’s see some modified trap photos!

A few I’ve messed around with. And yes I like dogless traps haha!

Haven't modded a trap in a lil bit , leem dig around

Not meaning to de-rail this thread, but I bet it hurt like hel* when you smacked that thumb.

Btw...I like that dogless pan on the beaver-sized longspring in the very last pic. Small pan lines that back foot up well.

Oh I know you have the same can’t leave a trap alone disease I do Wolf!

I have some weird nerve condition in my hands and some other joints in my body and don’t have much feeling in them parts anymore. It felt like a thump when it hit it so if I had full feeling still I would have probably had a lot of choice words and thrown a few things hahahaha!
That num5 double long turned out freaking awesome love that trap so much I plan on doing a dozen for myself to use!

Mostly inspired by the hammer. its fun tinkering around on traps. I'm not goo enough a metal worker to go much beyond the dogless mods and laminations though hahaha.

Those dongles DLS are flat out sexy!
Here is my exposed cat set goto.

Very nice Carolina Foxer!
Left lane, I love the dogless dbl longs!

They don't compare to yours hammer but some I've done or had done to give folks some ideas....

I’m too embarrassed of my welding to show you the traps that I’ll now never be able to sell, but yalls look great!

ADC I like them jump traps very nice!
Sportsman post em up as long as they work then there good!

Boys, Hammer and Rodney aka Etextrapper make some good stuff....as JC Conner says "Bullet Proof!"

Etextrapper, those TS 85s are sick! Those for lions?

Appreciate it. Built for lions.

I don’t have much use for my num2 bridgers anymore but they are fun to mess around with! I have several of them I converted to dbl long springs with num 3 dbl long springs. Not the fastest of a trap but lock up is 100% guaranteed!

Not a trap but got bored and made a auger out of some stuff laying around the work bench.

[video:youtube]https://youtube.com/shorts/Ud8mvUZnSHo?feature=share[/video]

Did you split flat washers? Been thinking of doing that myself. Been told to watch it though, as they tend to grab pretty hard and screw into the ground.

If nothing else, it'll make a good bulb planter! Lol

Yeah I just split some washers. I’m f they are spread and gapped properly to elongate the pitch it helps reduce the wanting to just screw into the ground. That’s why I tested it using one hand. Works well for a few pieces of scrap laying around and about 10 minutes of work.

Had some mb 650 parts and some spare square jaws laying around and made this weird combination of a trap.

Still a work in progress haha!

You guys have WAY TOO MUCH TIME on your hands or I suspect you are a lot better at mechanics than me!!!!! Oh by the way -- I have some old #2 SJ mont dogless traps that need the Bridger levers added (frame cut and rewelded when the original jaws are used, any advice for other options of adding those levers?. .........................the mike

Why would the frame need to be cut?

You should be able to release the springs from the old levers, pull spring pin and take out one end of jaws and replace levers.Good time to add new springs while you have them broke down.

On the old Mont 2 low levers
I cut out the top inside corners of the levers ,
and ground the outside jaw ramp angles.
Makes em hi lever and no need to remove mailable jaws.
Also, for the broken jawed ones.
Sleepy Creek 175 round jaws are direct fit.

Guys today are lucky with out of the box fit and finish
on many models.

Are the jaws cast on those?

After seeing these, I'm ashamed to post mine! Lol.

Not a trap but always gotta have a good digger!

I have done some...... a few.........probably lots ... of trap modifications as it seems like I am always tinkering with my grinder, torch and welder. The two that I really like and use and turned out great are when I turned the Bridger #1.75 sq jaw into a dogless trap. Also I really enjoyed taking a #3 Duke and making it dogless and beefing it up all around. I've made #1.75 Dukes dogless also.

Not a trap but I really enjoy making these.

Haha! That could be done!

The Hammer does some nice work!

Thank you!

The hammer and others, if you have ever tried removing the old square jaws from the frame of an old dogless Mont #2,3, or even a 1.5 you will break the the jaw tip or get a crack in the frame (at the 90 degree bend) 1 out of 3 times. The jaws were heat treated more than the common victors or they used different steel mixes in them at that time. Hence when you try to remove the jaw (straighten the curved tip) you damage (break) them or crack that frame and get to Really repair/modify them. The accepted method of the time is to disassemble the trap, cut the frame on the bottom about midway from the cross member to the end 90 degree bend. Remove the old levers, slide the new Bridger levers on (correctly I might ad !!!), then weld the base frame back together. Faster and better than modifying the existing levers/jaws on an existing trap. I ask because my welder (son) has moved 160 miles away and I can't compare to him and his equipment, soooooooo was wondering if there is another way which this old man has missed through the years. Will try for a picture on here to show you.................. the mike

That’s a fancy sifter very nice craftsmanship

Got ten sifters made a couple hammers and some shovels. When I get time to i have some drags I gotta get made up!

Thanks for the kind words everyone I enjoy making things very relaxing. Specially after spending all day everyday working on cnc stuff it’s a well needed break haha!

I am impressed with your work. In the past, Tom Stalker and John Cloud have done some mods for me, but we lost John not to long ago.

Do you constantly (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) cut the sleeves off yer T-shirts, and smell bad? If so you might be a great replacement!

A lot of sleeveless work shirts plus burn holes through most, I smell like old machine coolant and waylube so yeah probably got the smelling bad down

Welded that little triangle on to a Northwoods 110 coni and now it is a magnum. No more live mink for me in dry land sets. Not pretty but it is effective.....jk

Here are the pictures of the #2 Mont dogless SJ and the dog on RJ that I have used for years. Mid picture is of the underside where the base was cut and the Bridger Levers inserted and rewelded. Never an issue for me as those levers come up high and lock. I like the RJ's but the SJ gives me a little bigger jaw area and I like the dogless trigger as you might as well replace the dog on the RJ right away because the 1st or 2nd coyote will eat it !!!!!! If someone has a better idea on how to switch the levers I am all ears but at my age you may have to speak up so I can hear LOL.................... the mike

Jk that is a nice mod!!!
Wife, those jaw ends break you said when you bend them? Couldn’t you just heat them with a little nap gas torch to bend straight to remove? Would save on cutting the frame. If they are breaking from bending that little bit it takes to get them out of frame then it’s very cheap metal I’ve bent 1,000s of jaw tips down and back in my days of modifying traps for people and only ever had two break off and those were wolf creek jaws.

Or are these a cast steel jaw trap?

Not cast jaws from what I know. Many guys have tried heating the jaw tips with poor results. Too much and it softens the jaw leg and too little results in broken tips as you still have to re-insert the tip. For some reason (the type of steel I think) it does not remain that soft and can break on the put back. Like I mentioned, I still like the old RJ Monts and call them the "poor man's MB" when you fiddle with the jaw and dog. Bought both the #1.5 and #2's (closed and OS RJ's) in the early 80's and out of the box, they were superior to the squares. Don't like to tinker (like you guys) but if it can be made better with a little retro then I will try it. I am comfortable with the dogless squares with the Bridger levers and the jaw filed smooth or laminated. The center swiveled base has never bowed on me with no reinforcement on the coyotes I have snagged in the last 30 years. So levers and jaws and I'm ready to go with the squares. Some unsuspecting mechanics cut the bolt off the underside of the pan on the dogless, thinking it is a tension adjustment. It is a jaw stop to keep the coyote from pulling the pan up and out of the jaws and bending it. Too much thought sometimes. I pick one up like that now and again. If anyone on here knows how to get those jaws out of the SJ #2 dogless Mont w/o cutting the base let me know as I may only have a few seasons left LOL. .................... the "aging older" mike

I did laminations and pit pans on a dozen Sleepy Creek 4 1/2's. I thought they turned out great.

I wish I could find some of the traps my dad Frankenstein-ed together with trap parts lying around.

Looks like I have plenty of folks to send traps to if I ever want mods, lol.

This is a great idea! All bodygrip companies that have spring eyes that slip over the corners should do this. They'd sell more traps.

I need a couple of these..if any of you shop jocks are up to the task. I'd prefer aluminum...just like these...

Swamp wolf, I’m looking into the aluminum and just machining it out of one solid piece and threading the handle on.

Those look sick!!! Nice work!

Awesome!

Thanks, I bought the lams from J.C. Conner, made it easy, just had to clamp them in place and weld them.
Got the pan kits from Ed.


I will make a mental note of that my friend!

I was first introduced the concept of trap modifications in 1982 by Charlie Dobbins . He was someone that could /would analize what he thought was a problem and than set out to find a way to fix it .Many of his ideas where basic and simple to do At the same time he was taking stock traps and turning them into refined tools that had become works of art .Once he open that door many more improvements followed . What began with adding swivels and filing the triggers and notches created traps that so much improved that it seemed like they where a complete new invention .Just a few strokes of a file and taking the slack out of the trigger allowed the pan to set level and not wobble And that for me anyways resulted in fewer snapped empty traps and better grips on the quarry's foot pad . I had purchased some 1.75 coil spring traps After using them for a short time I was not happy with their performance A little bit of research pointed to putting inside lams on the jaws and base plating them That included swiveling them on the base plate . I starting liking that set up I quickly add additional traps of the arrangement. And it allowed me to improvement my catch due to it being more versatile to set for different animals And the lams made it a better holding trap Many of you have taken it to another level Iam impressed While it might be over kill to some people I see things that make me think I want me some of that Thanks for the pictures and the thought concepts behind your ideas There is always room for a better way of doing something.

Some number five size traps modified to fit PA jaw spread laws and some mink trapping mods.

Not up to much just tinkering around here and there. Anyone else tinkering around getting things ready for season?

Yup,

Finished up some more dogless #4's and just got done a dozen revitalized Vic#3s to take the PIT system with baseplates. I have 2 dozen vic #2 double longs that I am unsure what to do to them, but they'll be on the agenda next.

Trap mods are addicting, especially once you get the bugs worked out on the first one and you can crank em out fast.

Looking nice!!! Great work!

The round sifter is 8” dia by 3” deep fits nicely in a bag bucket or pack basket

Still needs a base plate and chain but beefed up a num4 bridger.



Needs smoothed off but over all happy with the results the pan was a number five bridger dogless pan that I cut up to fit better I don’t mind much a wider pan but didn’t like it coming out to the loose jaw like it did so cut a chunk out welded back up and shined her up.

Here are my big Bridger 5 pans.

Very nice Yukon!
Left lane, in PA we are only aloud one bobcat so I don’t bother making cat specific sets during cat season I just keep running typical coyote sets still gotta release to many cats. If we were aloud more cats I’d play around with big exposed pans on cat specific set types.

Where'd you get the mesh or grating for your sifters?

Not as extravagant or nicely done as a lot in here, but these started out as #2 Sq jaw Victor's. Bought new jaws, levers, and springs, did some mods, and bam, molded #2 round jaws. Pretty much everything I have has been laminated/base plated/bubble ripped jaws. Tinkering and modding traps is a blast in the off season!

Metal supply shop up the road from me.

Charlie Dobbins got me started on trap modifications And the reason I used them is they work Some or the examples shown here are a combination of artwork engineering marvel and just plain geniuses And they best part is they make a better trap to catch a critter with

Yukon John I still like the small pan idea for trapping, all except for mink and then it is not a monster pan. To me it just makes more sense to have that foot IN the trap jaws and not on them......jk

So this happens when you end up with to many random trap parts haha!




650 jaws, bridger pan, k9 jr frame and springs.

Trimmed the giant pan down on the Duke 850s. Going to thread and add nuts on the spring/pan rod. Need to tack the swivels shut too. Ain’t pretty but it’ll be better.

Nice! Going to have to share the catch photos of them wolves you get in them bad boys!

Getting a few big blues and some shorties built for a buddies trapping supply store.

Etched a step here paw on a pan haha. Also been welding up some 2lb smaller drags for waterline coon and mink for a buddy’s trapping supply business. Anyone else tinkering around making stuff for the season?


Also some hammers and pullers.

Your stuff looks great Hammer

Hammer does great work!

That "step here" pan is pretty cool.

Your work looks awesome.

Thanks everyone!

I figured a few people would get a kick out of that haha!

Love these mods. Makes me wish I was a better welder!

When I look all those beautiful works of art plus the absolute master pieces of craftmanship I am thankful to heaven that I do not know how to weld or own a welder So I can admire from a distance but not become a trap owner poor man by indulging my myself in that type of spending money Nice work and great pics and of course keep up the good work .

Your traps remind me of Kwik fish. All the different patterns, colors. They look very nice, too nice to put to use.

Hate to say it,,,,,,,but,,,,,,, some off you suck at welding.....

My mod.
If I apply for a special permit to trap beaver in WA, foothold need to be padded.
Carl did not make padded cdrs.
Nothing was written in rcw.
Some hose and friction tape and a heavy long chain.

I quit applying to permits years ago because of the the bs in our department.

Now I only use Comstocks mainly, Basket traps and Duke extra large Cages... No specical permit required

Little bit self conscious about my welding capabilities but hear is some of my recent work.

^^^^^^^
I like it!

Very nice! I converted a few number two bridgers to dbl longs they work pretty darn slick!

Nice little but aggressive water line drags.

I was going to remove it to do a cleaner job, but it’s a swine dogger to get the trap apart! Might have to invest in a coil spring tool.

Hammer, when I picked up this welder I got some metal with it that matched the frame of the traps I was working on so decided to try make my own there. The jaws, springs a dog are spare parts though. Watching your videos had me wanting to try a dogless longspring trap though

What kind of welder did you pick up?

I believe it's a Clarke it was my grandpa's and my grandma let me have it after he passed since I was the only one using it. Had access to all kinds of scrap for a while but had to stash a bunch when the rest got sent to be scrapped. Was making my drags and the laminations for trap jaws out of scrap that my grandpa had laying around for years.

Not a trap mod but trapping related started machining a batch of my drivers for cooncreektrappers. They get machined, heat treated, nut and washer put on, and now will be powder coated. Here’s a start of the first batch of 100.

I posted these on another thread a week or so ago when it warmed up so I felt like tinkering with traps. I had added pit pans and dogs, a center mounted swivel and shock springs already. But I wanted to add some JC Conner lams to the #4 Bridger DLS's.

Cookie 125 Your welding is fine It may not be perfect to your eyes but many of those looking would know the difference It is for sure good enough to do the job it is intended to do Plus any Skill you learn to do take some time to get the hang it You most likely where not born knowing how to weld So keep working on it and it will
good luck

Love em absolutely love em!

Saw on Youtube where The Hammer was making brand new CUSTOM stake drivers....they look great!

The Hammer's drivers are legit. He can vouch that I am a good person to torture test drivers, and his will last me quite some time before I bend them over. I've not met a driver that I can't mess up yet, it's just a matter of how long it will take, and his give me the most life

Been two busy at work to do much of anything trapping related but I did figure out that the duke number three is a great base line trap to modify into pretty much anything.

Base plated, full jaw lams, and converted to wire lever.

Sweet Work Hammer! They look great! How'd your beaver line go this year? Hope you guys did well.

Some of you got some banged up fingers..
Nice work!

Thanks! Was way too busy at the shop this season to go up northern pa to trap with my buddies. In my area of pa I did well for only having a couple sets out here and there.

My hands are trashed from shop life and yeah trap modifications don’t always go as planned and hands sometimes take a beating not paying attention haha

That’s some crazy skill Hammer!
I just about bought a new welder, then I thought……I don’t know how to weld! My daughters going through tech college to get here ticket. She recommended getting a mig with gas, dual flux core stuff…….then I knew it was way over my head. I’ll stick with my cheap 120 stick for now…..lol

Nice work

Started working on some duke number 2s pressed out some 3/16 thick base plates on my press. Going to be doing a few dozen of em up. Base plate, bubble tips, and shim the pans. I might laminate a few for the heck of it. Then I’ll top em off with some twist link chain and crunch proofs.

Oh man!!! I’m looking forward to it!

Anyone else tinkering around with there traps with some seasons around the corner?

I bought a Lincoln 140 mig welder almost brand new. Neighbor got me started and I have been working on traps all summer. Wish I had went to welding school and really knew what I am doing. I will be putting a gas bottle on the back in the next couple of months. I got a Miller Auto helmet and just went for it.

I took an Alaskan #9 from the 90's, and welded on "J.C. Conner" everything and copied "Jack Whitman's" chain set-up for wolves. Chain lengths are 15 feet long from the trap.
I used JC. Conner Rod Swivels welded to #7 chain to a J.C. Wolf Shock Spring with Rod Swivels on it, then to #7 chain, more swivels finally welded swivel to a J.C. Chestnut ring. I can use a Sleep Ez caribiner to my giant wolf drags. I like long chains like Jack Whitman. I can hook solid or click on a drag, works for me.

I also rigged up many short chains on big traps like "Steel Traps" does. Short meaning about 6 foot with shock spring and a big swivel on the end.
Welded J.C. Connor Rod Swivel and Wolf Shock Springs and a Swiveled Chestnut ring all on #7 chain. Now I can Sleep Ez to a chain stake, rebar stake, permanent stake or another chain extension. Whatever the situation calls for. In the snow and under water in Spring Pools. Running logs, beaver Mafia sets, Blind, trail sets, pee post, snow hole, bank dens, etc.

I welded up:
25 x Alaskan #9.
15 x MB750.
6 x MB650.
7 x Duke #4.
Sorry to all the collectors, but I started welding up 104 x Oneida #14 Jumps. Welded on P-I-T pans, J.C. Conner everything. I have 104 to work with. Most for wolf, coyote, lynx and wolverine. Short and long chained. Then some just for beaver with drowner locks, HAGZ hardware and P-I-T pans. Huge improvements on the #14 Jump. Really nice traps now. (Thanks Dave G./DUCK45).
6 x Bridger #3 for high theft areas.
A couple dozen 1/2 inch rebar stakes.

I have more to projects to weld. I want to get a gas bottle next. I still wish I went to welding school 40 years ago. But I am able to weld up the trapping things I need.

Messed around with some traps today.

Did you flatten/straighten the springeyes so the jaws sit so nicely?

Once you find the sweet spot on the 4.5s the jaws will lay all the way down to the frame base. The loose jaw 9 out of 10 times will be favored upwards bet as you bed it you can keep springs set at that perfect position where the jaw will lay that flat. But even when loose jaw is favored up a little one can just adjust trap angle in the trap bed to have jaws level in bed. But honestly leaving the trap set with that loose jaw lifted a tad only increase how fast it fires and if using steel screen it won’t bulge. Hope any of that makes sense haha!