Duke 155 for Ground hogs

Have any of you used these for Ground hogs,

Nope go big with a 220

I use a lot of 160s,I don't own any 155 so can't say.

I use 160's as well. Might be pushing it using a 155.But if stacked down well and good placement it might work.

x2

I've used the 5x5 and belisle 120s on them. I have had more live catches in Dukes than any other brand. I put the trigger so he can be neck deep before tripping it. What I like about them is a big head like a lot of dogs can't get very deep without tripping it. I also cover it with a wire screen so that something in the hole has free access. Animals outside the hole have to dig under which the hole owner will. Dogs only will if you have a dead ground hog in the trap which is no harm no foul.

Trapperpaw your saying what I needed to hear. I use the 220's on the majority of my Hog situations .

I had a couple situations last year with farm outbuildings with cement floors, and a gravel perimiter to deal with. Difficult to get the 220's just right.
You really turned the light bulb on with that screen over the trap. Thank You
Going to have to rethink the 5x5 dukes, was told by a fellow trapper he uses them on coon and he said they were a real coon wacker. Guess hogs and the situation can make a big difference.

The 120 Belisle did they do a good job wacken them?

The 120 belisle wacks anything it can get it's jaws around. Set the triggers to let him get his head as far as possible anchor it well because if you catch him by the foot nose or anywhere it will hold him till you arive a head or neck grab he won't move. Week springs have tendency to put an animal in an almost coma state that he can last a long time causing eye witnesses to suffer and the animal to chew ancause othe danages,
the belisle also has a very good safety that is nearly fool proop

I have to ask,,,,why not a cage trap? using a positive set,,....

My brother called with a chuck problem and he(not being a trapper) captured "it" the next day in a havahart,,,,no less?

For groundhogs, I almost exclusively use 155's. I've had cases in the past where the 120 didn't clear the ears so I had a live hog waiting on me when I arrived. We're limited to 155's on land here in Ohio EXCEPT for groundhogs but then they must have an enclosure so no animal can get in from the outside which kind of defeats the purpose if the 'hog ain't in the hole when you set. I've done the wire thing as well (we can go to 220's for 'hogs with the enclosure) where you only anchor one end down and I've yet to catch one with that setup.

What you need to pay attention to with the 155's are the springs. Most manufactures use standard 160 springs which will allow for multiple animals to get out of the jaws. Also, you don't get the same spring tension for closing with the bigger springs which can allow for animals (in my case opossum) to magically come back to life once removed. Lastly, you'll be able to make better sets with shorter springs as you have less trap to interfere with any surrounding materials and less time removing it to make the set work.

The best springs were made by Chris Riccio, but since he no longer manufactures them the best 155 for me these days is made by Bridger. They have a spring that is in between the once Chris made and the 160. If anyone is wondering why they use 155 springs, it is to make the traps easier to set so they can sell more (was told this directly by one of the manufactures). If you have problems with the shorter springs, just use a setter.

When I can't use a 155, my next choice is a 1/16" snare. To answer Vinke's question, I don't use cage traps because until recently we had to relocate any groundhogs caught in cage traps and that required a minimum of 10 miles from the capture site and written permission from the landowner where the groundhog was released. In other words, no one would pay me the extra to do this.

It sounds to me that most all of you guys have way more woodchucks than yours truly. I would guess that's because our soil has too

much clay to support moles, so we also have less woodchucks for the same reason? We probably subconsciously relocate our woodchucks

for the same reason. Since woodchucks are not listed as egg eaters, relocation is pretty easy. There have been a few cases however,

where the woodchuck somehow got relocated at the residence of a customer that forgot to pay his bill.

I use Duke 155's whenever I can. I have caught dozens of groundhogs in them. I have only had one that was not dead when I neglected to bend the trigger wires. With properly bent triggers , I have had no problems. I did catch a possum once that walked away when I took him out of the trap. I cover with hardware cloth to keep dogs and cats out. I love the comstocks also , but only have a few right now. I have made multiple catches by using a splitter at the hole. My plan is to gradually , as I can afford it , go to almost all comstocks. I do not catch the numbers that many of you on here do. I am just saying what seems to work for me so far.

Yep, I just made sure to configure the trigger in a position that allowed it to go through a little before the trap sprang. I have my wires so that there's a wire on each side, almost touching the edge of the bars, picture a field goal post. But I'm sure other ways would work too.

Chris did make the best 5x5 and the bridger is the best currently. Cage traps are good also it's a situational decision for me. For cages I like jameson's lures and baits even on the positive set cage. It seems to friendly it up to the rodents phobia of new things.

As Cooner22 is referencing, you want to bend the trigger to make as big an opening as you can with the 120 or 155.

For groundhogs and coon, I prefer to set my trigger so it is facing away from the opening regardless if it is a two or four way trigger. I also like to slide the trigger all the way to the left or right and then bend one trigger wire closest to the jaws straight down while bending the other trigger wire at least 45 degrees up to 60 degrees to create a "K" (or backwards "K" based on what side of the trap the trigger is on) shape.

You can see more of how I use the 155 in Winkler's Raccoon Trapping DVD or our latest DVD "The Beginner's Beginning Guide to Fur Trapping".

Hi there, this screen deal, can you possibly send me a picture of this. I use the con's and several times they get sprung, I have widened the ears, and set them couple inch back from the building, some how i find them sprung and away from the building / hole. thanks

I set up my first woodchuck job of the year on March 24th. We haven't had a day of decent weather until yesterday. I caught the

woodchuck today in a Comstock double door. I don't think I would have wanted a Conibear type trap set in the customer's back yard for

that long. Don't get me wrong; I had three muskrats in 120's today. I just sleep better when the Conibears are below the water level.

Sorry, no photo but picture a wire bread tray like the bakery delivery guy uses. Tray is 18-24" square with a 3-4" lip around it and is made of fairly stiff 2X2" wire, I use 1X1 welded wire when I make my own. When using body grip trap in/over the chuck hole, I stake the tray upside down over the trap with short T-bar stakes. Chucks not in the hole will dig under the tray to re-enter the hole.

We do sort of the same thing. If the hole is below the surface, it's easy to cover it with the Conibear in place, using a stiff piece of cardboard. Then cover the cardboard with a thin layer of dirt, no one will ever know there is even a trap there, and the woodchucks will dig in under it if they are out. We use almost exclusively cages now, as it is easier to catch more in a shorter period of time with them. If we do find a situation where a body gripper is the better tool for the job, it will either be a Belisle 160 or a CTM 5 X 5 . Too much excitement over the years with Dukes, plus the other two brands, especially the Belisle's, will catch animals otherwise lost with the Dukes. This is just from my personal experiences.

Keeping an open mind to cage trapping the hogs something I admit I do not have the comfort level I guess to use them?
I have only seen one comment on bait for cage traps, what is the most productive bait you can use in a Cage?

And am I right to say the floor of the trap should be covered with dirt or grass?
I really appreciate all the comments on my post, its been very helpful so far.

what is the most productive bait you can use in a Cage? DIRT!