does a hammer work or do I actually need a crimping tool ? there pretty proud of them 140$ and shipping

Yes a hammer will work? But the proper tool for crimping ferrules & stops on cable is a Swager!!!!
A good bench swager with a cable cutter on it is a pleasure to operate and your connections will be stronger also. I Like Snares!!!!

You can get a handheld swager for 20-30$ from any store that sells fencing supplies. Bit more cumbersome than a hammer or bench swager though.

Vevor 24 inch bench swagger/cable cutter (new) $62 free shipping
They sell them new on eBay

Or Google vevor tools and on their actual site there a little more

Seems like the initial response is swager over hammer.
Is there a reason other than ease/more satisfying to operate?

Hammer is rough on your elbows when your making a lot of snares at one time.

Somebody had a thread on rigging up a handheld swager like a bench mount, thought I book marked it but not having any luck finding it

I have a set of hand swagers, about the size of 18" bolt cutters. Serves my purpose but if I was going to do a lot of swaging I would invest in the bench mount

Found it

https://trapperman.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/8048094/Searchpage/1/Main/573434/Words/%2Bgenius/Search/true/re-swagger-crimping-tool#Post8048094

Not really, hammer will make just as strong of a product. If you look around on this site there are arguments over it, with some claiming hammering or hammering and then using a flathead screwdriver to give it an extra "spike" in the middle are stronger than swagged connections. Others argue the other way around. Either works fine, hammering is fast and easy, but not as easy and fast as a bench swager, and a handheld swager is even more portable than a hammer because you don't have to find something to use as an anvil.

A properly crimped stop or ferrule with a swager has the same strength as the cable. Example: if the cable is rated at 950 pounds the properly crimped ferrule or stop will be 950 pounds.

yes it will work but I much prefer swagged... You can get brand new vevor bench swagger from eBay for $62... cant beat that

Never had a problem with the hammer

The strength of a swagged ferrule comes from matching the round wire with the round grip of a ferrule without significantly flattening the cable. With that said, there is not a coyote on this planet able to pull the cable through a hammered ferrule.

Hammering works. It sucks to do it that way and I'll never go back after buying a bench swagger. Don't believe anyone who tells you one way or the other works better for holding power if done properly, both methods will hold equally well.

$62 bench swagger --> click here

Cable ferrules are designed to achieve a set specification of crimp for maximum hold. Think overhead lifting in construction applications. To achieve this they need 360° compression to fully deform into the cable lay.

Now that said we aren't asking our snares to operate at near maximum stress so a hammer works just fine for what we do. But you'll get better and more consistent results using the proper tools as designed.

BTW, proper spec calls for two or more crimps per ferrule based on ferrule/cable size and there is a specified order in how they are done.

Also use the right ferrule for cable type. Stainless requires copper never aluminum. Aluminum and stainless can set up galvanic corrosion.

what is the specified order in how they are done ? thanks

Not positive what you are asking but I crimp stops twice, and double ferrules 3 times, middle then both ends. Basically crimp the whole thing. No matter if its a stop or ferrule.

So for the "only have a hammer crowd", is there a correct process?
I just made some extensions the other day and just hammered it flat with an engineer hammer.
Hoping I didn't mess anything up.

You got it

theres a process..

1.put cable through ferrule
2.place ferrule on anvil
3.swing hammer at ferrule.
4,swear after sending ferrule across shop
5.repeat steps 1-4 until successfully hitting ferrule until its flat
6. swear after grabbing hot ferrule.

I beg to differ.

I used to hammer down all my ferrules on earth anchors.

I pulled a lot of cable out of ferrules trying to recover anchors horsing on them with a big puller.

Since I switched to swaged, I rarely ever pull cable out of a ferrule. I’ll fold the anchor in half before my loops fail.

A table vice works well I you have one.

I got same exact one on Amazon for 80$ free shipping half price of other place after you add shipping / Go figure I guess you gotta shop around. Thanks for all the knowledge guys much appreciated
coulda saved 18$ more If Id read Boone Liane's post more carefully

You made a wise choice! Have fun.
Buy quality cable and components. You will be all set!!

Pulling earth anchors with the extra leverage will max out what the ferrules can hold. It'll definitely point out the weak spots.

Now a critter can't exert that type of force, usually, and hammered will do just fine but there's always that what if in the back of your mind.

I tend towards overkill for that reason.

Tell that story to boco. He'll tell you you didn't hammer them correctly or didn't put a little dent across them with a screw driver. lol

Anyone ever hammer double ferrules on the narrow sides instead of the wide sides?

Ill be completely honest.... While Ive hammered plenty back in the day and never had a problem I just flat out don't like the looks of hammered ferrules and stops Swaging them helps sooth my OCD

Some people think, IT only needs to be strong enough hold a Coyote!!
Occasionally larger animals will get hooked up in your snares / traps.
So your equipment must be strong enough to hold the animal until the BAD. Releases or the Deer Stop allows them to escape.
A deer, elk, etc, can really stress the snare before the Break Away Releases.
For this reason, I only use a swager on cable. A Hammer is for nails and breaking stuff. lol.

saw a guy using a nail and a vise looks like it might work ok

No I haven't ADC,,,,,,,, BUT,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I have been making my own since 1971. Lots of mistakes and errors. Back then a lot of cable came with an OILED CORE of cloth material to lube the inside and swager's weren't as readily available as they have been since 2000. Here is my experience,,,,,,,,,,,,,, both methods of fixing a stop or a double ferrule will work fine if done correctly. You probably want to hear some problems/failures I encountered so will relate a few. When i used the old core lubed cable it was 7X7 3/32 and I hammered it semi-flat that did seem to have a few releases so I went to annealed nuts and hammered, they held every time. If you did not heat and remove the temper the nut cut into the softer cable and I had a loss or two of popped ends at the swivel on non-lethal conditions. Hammered the aluminum ferrule and today's 7X7 3/32 and 5/64'ths are excellent for me. On 1/16 and 3/64'ths I will use 2 single ferrules or Newt's twist with a double and pound or swage. All 7X7 has a rough or irregular surface compared to any 1X19 of the same diameter. Here is where I have had more trouble with the swager on this type of cable. A person needs to adjust the jaws so they have no space, are aligned left to right and to examine the ferrules to be sure they collapse evenly for their entire length with as many crimp positions as needed. The smooth surface of 1X19 is pretty evident when you load the snare and trigger it closed compared to the 7X7 with the same diam. size and lock. Your (my) 1X19 is faster due to less friction and better memory. Every year I had popped ends on the 1X19 until I adjusted the swager, and checked those ferrules but did remedy it as above. I will say that I buy a lot of snare/cable extension outfits from guys who try it, then seem to drift back to a BG or foot trap with chain. A "hammered ferrule" on either type of wire I can cannibalize the opened ferrule's cable because its easier to open with a vise and I use the opened end to add a swivel to my type of extension/new snare if I want. Have done this for too many years to recall when I started cause I did my own 36" snares into 72" extensions (not a good move to begin but it worked out). Can't do that with a swaged ferrule w/o a lot of cutting, prying and time involved with the aluminum. I have a ton of 1/8" beaver snares I got at the Nationals last year and open the hammered ferrules for use as earth anchors at a fraction of the cost so "old habits of old men die hard" I guess. .......................the mike

Yeah well Bozo also thinks the ATF is a stand up government agency just looking for the “bad guys”.

I hammer all mine and I’ve help non target animals wild pigs up to 200 lbs with hammered sleeves

Don't mash your thumb. Other than that you can't hardly do it wrong.
Interesting enough, a poorly adjust swager will cause a ferrule to fail.

Two hits on the flat of your anvil and one hit on the edge to crosspunch.

Dont use a big heavy hammer.

Stronger than the cable itself and will never fail like swaged ones do on occasion.

I gotta try and add the loop at the end like that on the pre made Lightsout snares I picked up…..if we can even use em next season. Picked them up last summer after news that these were close to approval here.

thanks everyone I am constantly learning something here ! thank you Boco thats good info right there

I’ve hammered mine for many years never a problem. Caught some pretty big wolves no problem.

All the snares that I sell have to pass the 350 Ford / tree test

The snare loop is put on a 6" length of 4" pvc pipe with chain or cable passed through the pipe .Its hooker the trailer hitch ball .The tail end swivel of loop end is chained the a tree.
I put the truck in gear and pull.
If the snare cable breaks first. THE SNARE has has passed the test

Home Depot sells a swager, I bought one for under $60.

You can now get a Vevor swagger for 56.00 with free shipping on EBay.