Railroad tie plates

Does anyone know how I could get a hold of those? Really like don powels set up on his DVD mink after mink and I would to have the same set up.

I wouldn't go out collecting them along the RR track. They don't like that at all.

I second that, buuut if you happen to find one here or there, keep it to yourself!

If a railroad man finds out you are using them to catch beavers, he would probably ask you where in your yard would you like him to dump a truckload of them. I you find a loose one on the ground, it is only worth scrap metal price to the railroad. They do not re-use them.

I don't know how many sets you plan on putting out but I finally found a productive use for the junk rotors in the scrap pile. I only put out a few beaver traps so don't need a bunch.

Just another idea for free options you may have already laying around or can find close by.

Thanks for the tip. I wonder how those tie plates would hold up to coon. Act as a drag I would guess.

If you can find any old bulldozer tracks they work good too. Have a pile a buddy that worked at a scrapyard set aside for me.

You will want more than 1 I would want more than 2. I have had large coon drag a 12" concrete block 50+ yards. Ther was a 3.5' area that looked like it had been tilled the entire way. It was in sandy river bottoms but was a big surprise to me at the time.

If you use them and can't locate your coon check up in the trees carefully.

Put a post in Craig's list Wanted --RR tie plates . Worked for me !

I made a boat anchor out of one. I fashioned an eye, of sorts, about 4 or 5 inches tall in the middle. I figured the way it pulls is at an angle on the edge. Works pretty good in my mud bottom pond.

To make a good drag from a rail plate you need to put a railroad spike through the square holes on one end, one from each side of the plate and tack weld them then take a hammer and bend them about 45 degrees toward the other end of the plate. Then weld a chain link, large lock washer or a loop of rod to tother end of the plate to attach your drag chain to. You can double up the plates for a heavier model.

I find them along the old torn out rail beds too, especially where there is a nice hill close to it but along the beds anyway.

I found like 6 so far this year.

There was about a thousand piled up by my driveway last year for a day or two. I live by the tracks. I left them alone. They have a giant magnet they come along and load them on empty cars with.

If you can find an abandoned rr bed you can often find piles of them abandoned along it, if that don’t work try contacting the nearest rail yard they will often have piles of them that they will sell you as scrap

About 20 years ago they tore out a rail line here and turned it into a bike/hiking trail and piles of rails and tie plates that they sold as scrap your bought a pile or however many you wanted and they were yours to do with as you wanted, I bought 4 piles which I found were way more then I needed by about a couple thousand or so lol
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Most of them are scattered out around my trapping area in hidden places so all I have to do is pull in grabbed hem and make a set

My local steel supply has a lot of new scrap in perfect sizing for my needs. I am going to use Don's setup for a Bridger 159 for bottom edge sets under bridges. Along with the plate I will use a pc of rod so in the deeper water no worries of wet arms. 159 Bridger seems strong enough at least when new to even hold otter.

Ha how many u need!! Joking!! I work a steel mill that's all we make are rr plates. Many different sizes square,round holes, blanks . Make them for every rr company they are. As far as I been told we r the only steel mill that makes them. We make 2 box cars worth of plates every 1.5 hr . U wouldn't believe how many we ship out a day on rr cars and semi trucks. We take the old ones we get make news out of. I used rr plate as a weight for beaver. It pulled it on bank and got out. So I added 2 together welded them. But never caught another in that set. Yes the plates will work coons as a drag. We make some called blanks that r very heavy.

That's a great video. Tie plates come in different sizes. They will keep a coon close especially if you step on the plate and squash it into the mud.

I use old brake rotors and stack rocks under them to make a trap platform. I weld old fence post rod to them to make top and bottom edge sets. You can stack several body traps this way and cover different water heights. Here's one;


I use more rotors than RR plates. I get them for free from the place that works on my truck. The big ones from trucks will drown a beaver. The one in the picture is a small car rotor.

I never understood the railroad tie plates something so much easier to get ahold of at least in New England is old plow blade cut it in 12 inch pieces and cable or chain together whatever you want for weight but I would only use them on a piece that I trap every year I still like sand bags willed with whatever I can put in them when your done cut the bag and dump the contents and carry out your 2 ounce bag.

what worked for me was to just ask
when you see a crew of RR workers, just ask them, and tell them why, and WHAM, they told me "take all you want" from their pile.
I did ask for the guys name who gave me permission, just n case, but that was yrs ago now.

My buddy backed up to a pile of tie plates loaded them up and off he went. The next day the sheriff was at his door. A big fine and they took the plates.
When using them as drags for coon I added 5' of chain to the plate. A short chain on a plate Is asking for problems. Fine for rats and mink but you never know when Mr coon Is going to come along.

I purchased a bunch from a metal scrap yard in the past. I definitely got a receipt and made sure it said rr plates on the receipt.

Its just like asking out chicks, if ya don't ask, the answer is already NO.

Would be nice to find some plates around here in iowa for BE sets anyone use the set and go plates? i use them last year they worked great for.mink and rats

I can die in peace now

I trapped at a RR culvert for beaver that was backing up a farmer field. Stopped @ a bunch of RR guys and told them what I was doing and asked if I could have some for the traps. Supervisor told me where to get a bunch of them with his permission.

Did you get it In writing?

No but would see the guys from time to time and would tell them when my traps were not there so they could put the telephone pole ramrod through the culvert. Constantly beaver were coming in from the river about 50 yds away.

My buddy backed up to a pole of tie plates loaded them up and went home. The next day the cops were at his door took the plates and gave him a hefty fine.
Tie plates are fine for mink and rats but under the right or lets say the wrong circumstances a coon can drag them for miles.

Just about any tire/brake shop will give you used rotars. The ones off heavy duty trucks are heavy enough for beaver. The ones off cars would be good for drags.

I am using rr plates right now. I have dp hook too them. They dont hardy move here. I am doing nuisance control trapping.

I welded some RR spikes to plates for a guy, said he was gonna stomp the spikes into the mud for extra hold. He said they worked great.

That all, I, use for my beaver drowner rigs and have never had a beaver drag one up to the bank. They usually dig into the bottom of the lake or river.

I use the R/R tie plates for my beaver drowners every season. Have welded a 3/8" rebar handle to the plate, and use the quick links to attach my cable to the handle on the plate and make a loop on the other end and use a quick link to tie off to a stump or whatever is handy and sturdy enough to hold a beaver. the plates I use weigh 21 lbs. each. Have not had a coon or beaver pull my sets out of the water as of yet. Some places I trap only has smooth sandy bottom. In this area I use 2 plates welded together. if mucky bottom one plates work great.