I finally found a few hours during the day to set a couple of MB 550’s.

The first check produced a seven coyote gang set catch.




There were five males and two females in this group.

They fit just right on the front of the War Wagon.




Flat sets with zero backing, or guiding were used.

This kind of open set pattern is murder on coyotes.

Looks like fun,warmer down there than we are -15 this morning,-18 tonight by Friday we will be above zero for highs again.The big lake is making ice....with the wind this morning we were at -33 windshield I can tell you it was BRISK....no bugs today.

Rick, I can’t even imagine the logistics of trapping in conditions like that.

I struggle just trying to keep my traps functioning with even the smallest amount of rain, much less sub-zero temps.

Good work James

I need to come down and get an education some time

Nice work on those deer eaters James!
Love that old truck's set up.

Thanks BT & MC.!

As soon as I get a few minutes I'll post up some individual coyote photos for those that would like to get a closer look at the contestants.

Good haul

Here are a few of the contestants from the 7 coyote gang set catch.

All seven were within a fifty yard radius.


Flat Sets - Two Adult Males



This lanky male had a bad attitude.



This big male was in his prime.



Close up of the big male.

Great pics James

Have you ever done a write up on this "no backing flat set" that you mentioned?

I would like to know more about that

Good Morning BT!

I went away from using backing on all sets a number of years ago. There are several good reasons for that.

I have never been a fan of guiding since the beginning. It creates its own set of problems as does backing.

From studying worked set patterns over and over again I believe that backing and guiding have cost me more coyotes than they ever helped catch.

A lot less foot traffic was the norm when guiding was applied to a set. Backing on the other hand can really alter how a coyote works the pattern, and not in a good way. There are other cons to their use as well.

Most of the flat sets shown on this thread have no backing. Exceptions are when I went back in the photo archives to illustrate a certain topic of discussion.

In the coming weeks I will take additional photos of some of the sets to post up on the thread.

Nice pics there Tejas. These rednecks in my area woulda hadem strapped to the hood.lol.Looking forward to those set pics.

Looking forward to the pics and explanations

It obviously works very well based on the success you are having

It’s a bare bones flat set fellas..

Tabletop Flat Ground – Bedded Trap – Attractant

The set is very simple yet extremely deadly.

When it comes to coyotes my experience has been less catches a lot more.

James are you putting your lure in a small punch hole? Small piece of something? drip on the ground?

I can visualize the rest but curious how you apply lure to the set

Nice catches

Great pics James!
As far as backing for trap sets...particular trapping settings MIGHT have a big impact on why those sets work better??
Around here, finding a location where there isn't something protruding up from the ground is un-common. Bare flat ground
just isn't something that is present at MOST of the locations coyotes are traveling through. I am seeking of agricultural areas.
Corn, soybeans, wheat, hay etc...throw in cattle trails and there always seems to be a protrusion available...lol
Keep hammerin' 'em!

BT, the attractant is on the surface.

An attractant placed sub-surface promotes digging.

Digging is the last thing I want at any set.

I crowd the attractant for all it’s worth like I always have.

Eight inches from attractant to pan center with no offset has produced the best.

There are many examples of this type of set throughout the thread.

I will still take some new photos to post up in the near future.

You make a good point as usual MC.

Learning to work with a flat bare surface came by necessity when dealing with a lot of catch circles.

I figured out very early on that uneven ground and debris left in the circle can and will cause a lot of problems.

I always smooth the catch circle out with a rake and remove any trash so it is flat and clean as a tabletop.

.I'll often prep a new set area the same way. It is well worth the few seconds it takes to clean things up a bit.


If I was in your kind of agricultural area I I would do the exact same thing.


I do realize that this goes against conventional wisdom of leaving things natural.

When a method shows its effectiveness over and over again it trumps conventionality in my book every single time.

Well said and I agree.

Are you using the wind as your backing?
Are you just waiting for the wind to be in line again for that set to connect? Certainly your coyotes work your sets with the wind in there nose.
Or are you bedding a trap on each side of your attractant?

The down side I see to missing a coyote on the first visit with turds and gland lure is there’s not enough there for him to repeatedly check the set. Verses say a dirt hole, tbone , or some type bait that he sniffs, remembers, then comes back when a fronts moving through and gets caught.

Thank you