I am on a bit of a kick. Rebooted my membership here; glad to see some of the same old guys I used to read years ago.

I started with small traps. I had the oddball Victor single-coilspring #1s (some kind of intermediate from jumps to coils I guess?). Then I got old Victor 1.5 longsprings (the "horseshoe" jaws I think they call 'em, big gaps and ancient).

I used foiled pans and sardines to catch coon and possums, bought a small bottle of lure and snagged a few red fox, caught a grey fox in a log set; all with those #1s and 1.5 longs. I used saplings as drags a good bit. Caught my first couple dozen animals with those little, underpowered traps before I sold some fur and bought some old longsprings (Triumph #2 and #3 which still hold fur after 80+ years).

Bought some #1 longs and jumps off here to blind set for mink and to loan out to my younger kin. The notion of their light weight (ca. half the weight of a #1.5 cs) and my memories of how they did the job, coupled with other stories I have occasionally found on here, give me the sense that these small traps are a good starting point (and that they will hold unexpectedly large critters sometimes). I do not see enough of this topic when searching through the forums. Don't "flame".

So, to the point: Did you or your kin start with #0, 1,1.5 jumps or single longs? What did you catch that surprised you? Would you give them to a kid confident that they wouldn't disappoint if used correctly? If you reached in your pack and all you had was one of these little underpowered traps, would you set it (at least with a drag, drowner, other contraption) for mink, coon, fox, fisher, similar?

We started as kids with Victor 1.5’s and caught everything there was to catch. We didn’t know nothing about commercial bait or lure, a pine cone soaked in fox urine down a hole was our bait for a lot of sets. Other sets had collected road killed rabbits as bait. Main target back then was fox and cats. Coons were also targeted and again, natural stuff. Fresh crawdads and frozen were used as bait. Pinch a few and shove them under some leaves or a log and a fresh on the log.
Now that I type this, seems simpler caught back then.

Would I purposely buy small sets now? Yes, I have some MB450’s which are 1.5’s and they work fine for everything from coons to coyotes.
Would I buy cheap? Nope

First traps I had were 1.5 long springs. Nothing special the first year.

Only time I was surprised by catching something in an undersized trap was a 50# in a no bs 1.5 on 4ft of chain. Back foot by 3, toes. But that was , 10 yrs or so into my career.

I wouldn't give a a new trapper anything smaller than a 1.5 starting out . I don't even recommend 110s for mink and muskrats these days. If I was short of my preferred trap size, I'd use the smaller trap, just need to be a bit more particular in making the set

Started out using Victor #0 LS for pocket gophers then onto #1 LS for muskrat. I can recall thinking how big those Victor #2 CS's where as a little kid!

#1 & #0 longsprings, 55's and 110's for rats. Yep, I started with small traps.

#1 longsprings and jumps, had some 1 1/2 longsprings also, but didn't use them much. Had a couple old 110s and when I sold fur the one year bought my first new traps, a dozen Victor 110s. I wasn't big enough to set those 110s by hand, so I learned to set them with a rope. When I got old enough to set a #3 longspring by myself I started trapping beaver on my own. I still use those 110s sometimes, and the little longsprings occasionally. Haven't set a #3 for beaver in a number of years, but if I was trapping beaver serious enough to have all my #4s set I wouldn't hesitate to set one of those #3s if it was all I had. Got a fourteen year old kid here that has been trapping beaver for the last three years, again using #3 longsprings, because he can set them by himself.

Bought a dozen #1 B&L long springs and started after nutria. A couple of old family members saw I was serious and they would throw me a trap or three. I ended up my second year with 1 1/2 LS, #2 doubles LS, a couple of 1 1/2 CS mixed array. By the time I was a senior in HS I was running 200 traps, many where 1 1/2 LS. The local bait shop gave me a line of credit. They would sell me sardines for 50 cents a can and .22 rounds at 98 cents for a box of 50. I could go in there and the owners, husband and wife, would let me take what I needed and I would square up with them a couple of time a month. Nutrias where the prime target, coons where second. My big money makers were mink and otters. I don’t think you can trap the animals of today with 1 1/2’s as they are bigger, stronger, smarter and can melt steel with their laser beam eyes.

My surprise was 2 otters in one night in 1 1/2 long springs under a bridge.

If I was starting a kid out I think the 1 1/2 long springs would be the ticket.

I started out with a few conibear traps for muskrats, and i had a few long spring traps for coon and opossum. Caught a lot of muskrats some opossum and an occasional skunk, but I was learning and really enjoying myself.

I started at 14 with some # 1 jumps, a couple 1.5 herters, a 110 conibear and some #1 single longs. I found them in my uncles garage, and asked if I could use them. I caught rabbits and skunks in the rock piles behind my aunt and uncles house and I was hooked. The next season I saved pennies and bought some bigger traps, some duke #2s and a couple 220 conibears. It snowballed from there lol.

I started with #1 long springs for mink and weasel. Graduated to #1 coil springs with the North woods brand and those were amazing. Little trap with all kinds of power. Still have them. Went to #2's coil springs trapping fox just because we were getting more coyote in the area.

I had a dozen Vic #1 longs that I moved the chain to opposite the spring and used them on coon, but also had a bunch of #2 longs (northwoods and Blake and lamb) and used those for coyotes. They worked great.I could set longs way easier than bigger coils. Bought a few #3 longs the next season to use for coyotes and also some beaver.
Jim

110's, 1.5 coils and #1 long spring stoploss and a couple 1.5 long springs

I started playing with Victor snap traps when I was about 4. I don’t count that as they start of my trapping escapades. I started with Victor #1 longs and jump traps.

I first experience trapping was with #0, Blake & Lamb and Victor longsprings, trapping Weasels (in boxes) at Union Beagle Club, Lewisburg, Pa.

I started trapping beaver as my first target animal. I bought some victor #4 long springs.

160 conibears. Still using them. They have caught me a lot of nuisance critters on my small property in the last 8 years.

14 #1 1/2 victor longsprings i found hanging in the barn when i was 14

Started with 12 110 Victor Conibears that my brother, a buddy and I split the cost of. They didn't like getting wet, cold and up for school to check traps. I bought them out two weeks into season because we weren't catching anything. Got some advice from an uncle and started catching Muskrats and an occasional Mink. By the end of my first year, I was running a couple dozen Conibears and had bought a dozen 1.5 Victor double coils and a few Victor pinch pans. That was 1978 had $400.00 dollars saved at the end of season. Best time ever those first few seasons from 12 years old to my early twenties.

Started with B&L longs #1,#11/2. Some vic long #1
Vic coilspring 11/2. That was in the 70's. As me and my buddy
Caught more fur we bought more traps. There were buyers everywhere back then fighting to buy your furs, boy I miss them days

Like many on here I started with 1 1/2 longsprings. Just possum and a coon now and then . Moved on to coilspring 1.5 and 1.75 and did pretty well on fox. About two years ago I caught the biggest Tom bobcat I have ever caught in a 1.5 coilspring that was a blind set for mink!!