Cables on bodygrips

Hello

I heard of others cutting the chains off bodygrips and adding cable. Have any one here done it, what are the benefits. I’m guessing weight and less tangling.

Thanks

Benefit for me is extra length...so I can reach a tree to tie off to. And so otters can reach the water when caught at crossovers. I have 6 to 7 feet 1/8" 7x7 cable with a spring clip on the end. Cable is swiveled at the conibear spring eye...which is where I attach.

^^^

The sauvageau beaver traps come with a 6 foot cable and a quick link combo at one end and snap on the other.This setup works good and I can’t see a reason to change it.

If I have bodygrippers without chains I have added cable. Easier to come by and easy to work with.

I left the chains on my 160s and 220s but I added a length of cable and permanently attached stabilizers for fast setting coon trails. Stabilizer stays with the trap always, never lose one, and easy to wrap them up and put several in a bucket ready to go.

Some don't have a problem Me on the other hand always have chains tangled with the traps easier for me to carry wrapped up cables attach with quick links i leave a link on the trap with a swivel

First thing I do to a conibear is cut of the chain, add a a chunk of straight chain and swivel, than a 3-4 foot cable.
Makes them tangle free and big beaver and otter friendly.

A good use for old snares with damaged cable that won’t make a good loop anymore as long as the cable is not broken I will use them to tie off or stake down with the swivel.

X2. I use 8'-10' on 330's and 2'-3' on 220's.

beartooth and I think alike here. A lot of fellows switched to cable for weight reduction when the Canadian traps became popular. Jim Spencer wrote about using cable way back at turn of the century (man I always wanted to say that "turn of the century"). I have used both chain and cable on BG's for a long time. Each has a good point. The bad point for cable in my experience was submerged in a water BG it rusted a little quicker than I liked as the internal fiber core (7X7 or 7X19 AC for oil lube) would retain water even when it was partly out of the water. pH of the water has a lot to do with it but I would get about 5-8 years of flexible cable --- then it would stiffen up meaning it was rusting pretty good internally. If you trap for 3 weeks or so in the water each season it is not an issue as your normal trap coating (on the cable) will keep it somewhat protected. I have beaver traps in the water 200- 250 days a year so I have a lot of H2o exposure. The bad point for chain was its constant tangling with trap parts. The safety locks, triggers etc. were always in a tangle needing some "fisherman's patience" even if wrapped tight. I finally took all the cable and factory (twin loop) chain off my BG water traps (330, 280, 220,120 size) and replaced it with 3-7' of the small straight link chain (size1) and a snap link at both ends large enough for a 3/8-1/2 in. diam. stake. Snaps made my trapping life a lot simpler and allow me to store the trap (toss in the truck) with or without its chain and I keep a small separate bucket of both lengths. Then made some extensions of chain to boot (that I use on occasion). Reduced the tangling to almost zero and ended the internal rusting of cable. We have few trees to fasten the ends to so a stake option is needed at most sites. Shorter lengths for land sets and longer for the water ones, traps stacked w/o chains and my BP is a lot better LOL........................................the mike

In NEWT"S WORLD

Every of the larger size body grip traps get a short lenth 12" or so of 1/8" 7x19 Stainless Steel cable.With a 12/0 swivel on the end.

When setting I use a 1/4" quick line to fasten a 1/8"x 84" 7x19 extension cable. Stainless steel of course quick link also.

^^^x2 I save all my damaged snares for the same reason.

I put 3-4 feet of 1/8” 7x19 cable on my 330s with a snare end swivel on the end. I leave a spring clip on the end swivel.


This makes anchoring my traps easy. When setting a 330 under a log (one of my favorite sets), I am able to wrap the cable and clip it back on itself. Having a short cable makes wrapping it up easy.


When I need an extension, I simply add an extension. When I need to securely anchor it in place, I add a premade earth anchor/cable.


The way I rig my traps is the way that I’ve found works the best for me and my style. I prefer to have a separate extension, rather than rigging every trap with 10+ feet of cable.


I don’t have a picture, but I can take one next time I set traps

Thank you, for the different options gives me ideas I did not think about

Chris

My vote is chain. I lost two 330's to breakage and had a third break that I was able to recover. I replaced mine with five or six feet of twin loop and a snap. Machine chain or stainless cable would be a nice upgrade from my twin loop.

I run a few links machine chain around th spring eye and hook a swivel to that. Then 3’ of #2 machine chain and another swivel on my belisle 330s aids with foot/tail catches. Always worry about rotten cable. Carry 6-8’ extensions for every body grip I own. Use spilt rings to connect. I’m not much of a big body grip user but it works for me.

Yep that swivel at the spring eye will pay for itself many times, chain lasts forever, cable not so much... I have a bunch to replace the cable to chain after 3 seasons. I use that same setup on all my BGs all sizes. 110-220s get 18 inches of chain, 280s, 330s get 3 feet.

Same here as trappergbus. Big otter had the grass all tore up. Swivels always help never hurt.

I’m not at all a fan of cables on body grips instead of chain. IMO the more ridged structure of the cable makes it harder to stick in narrow places, for example my 120 I set for mink in holes, I have cable on it and when I stake it down the cable will flex around and get in the way of the trap or get in the way of the animal path. It just gets in the way in general as opposed to chain which lays down flat and nice.

Cable, here. And Belisle coni's. I use 120's for mink and marten, 280's for otter, and 330's for wolverine and beaver.
Never had cable failure. Ever. Even held black bear, 3 times, with 1/8" cable extensions on footholds that grabbed bears that got into gulo cubbies.

All my conibears get a swivel, I leave chains on and add a length of cable.

I just replaced springs on 12 330s. Most of them got new cable in place of chain.

Both chain(quality) and cable have a place on my BG's. One draw back on cable is it very hard to know when it has weakened inside to breaking point(IME non stainless cable most often breaks down from the inside out). I have switched to stainless on larger BG's that can really get worked by a catch.

First thing I do on any bodygrip, is cut off the chain, regardless of it's size

All my BGs have a swivel at the spring eye and 12-18 inches of #2 machine chain. It last forever unlike cable.

I use both. One thing for sure. I can't stand the factory chain on most of them. Always need to replace it. Dont matter the size. Some I will replace with a heavier chain. And some with cable. I favor the chain more though. Especially on my 330s. I got number 2 chain on them about 2 feet. Than I got another 12 foot with a snap link that I can attach to it and anchor to a tree if I need too. Got alot of swivels in play as well. Got just as many chain attachments as I do 330s.

Fixed it for you

If you can find true stainless steel cable use, I don't have much but got some all made up that Fuller laughaman had .
I'm had them 20 year's now and are like new.

True statement, thanks man

Good info and ....few years back I was at a convention and it was a Sunday ...everyone cleaning up to head home. I was walking past a big snare makers booth and saw a roll of 7 x 19 3/32 cable for cheap....like 20 bucks for 500 ft. I had inquired and bought it for 15....lol
The stuff was like flexible rope cable. I put it on all beaver body grippers 12 ft or more. Recently, I’ve had to replace it due to the cable rusting from inside out. Yes, you can literally twist in half without too much effort.
So multiple swivels and long cables are good just be sure to closely examine your cables yearly.

I can't see that well anymore, coach so i went back to chain. LOL.......... the (other) mike