coon snare locks?

[furstalker]

What are your favorite locks for coon? I've always used the micro lock or snare shop's penny lock which have worked for me. They came on the original snares I bought years ago and I've been reusing them ever since on the snares I build. I was in the fur shed today building a bunch of snares for next year, just wondering what everyones preference is. I thought about trying some cam locks for coon, but since a guy catches so many by the hips I thought you would want a relaxing type lock.

[justwannano]

I use cam locks.
I made my own washer locks for years until a couple of years ago. Long story short I bought some cable that just wouldn't let the lock close.

In trying to find out what was happening I ordered 50 cam locks. I tried them on the cable and found it wasn't the lock but the cable and decided to give the cam locks a try. I like them and now I'm just using the cam locks.
BTW I never use a relaxing lock.
just

[rugersinglesix]

Ive been using quarter size washer locks for years but im gona try cam locks this year, hoping to get less around the waste

[~ADC~]

Loaded snares and cam-locks for me,,, until something better comes along at least. I've tried about everything out there and these are the best option currently available.

[bolender]

Heavily loaded snare with a cam lock.

[billallenisu]

Cam locks for me, too (thanks, Rob!).

Bill

[tatcat]

Cam locks here also

[TexA]

I've used nothing but 5/8" flat washers for my locks
for the past 35/40-years and I'm not about to change them now!
The heavier = the better !

Once a critter hits the end of a run,
he kinks the cable and there is NO RELAXING !

I've still got and use some that I made way back when I started
snaring, before Deer Stops etc.

I favor them over CamLocks
because they don't freeze-up near as bad when it snows or sleets .

K-I-S-S

[LLLTrapper]

220 victors. They don't relax and they don't leave a snare mark on the leather. I snared 1 coon this year and it was on a washer lock. He was neck snared. I was snaring my cat when I caught him. After it was caught the snares go away until I use them on ADC beaver. LLL

[jdrogge]

In my opinion a loaded cam lock snare is the best there is. There is also the fact that the cam lock can be reused again, and again. I have some cam locks that have been used over and over for several years and are still going strong. Very few misses, very few losses, and the ability to be reused, it doesn't get much better than that.

[TRapper]

i also agree with ya lll, 220's or 160's work well, however on my snares i prefer the adc reverse bend big washer lock

[ballhagen]

Micro locks!

[~ADC~]

Mar 3, 2013 6:34:52 GMT -6 LLLTrapper said:

220 victors. They don't relax and they don't leave a snare mark on the leather. I snared 1 coon this year and it was on a washer lock. He was neck snared. I was snaring my cat when I caught him. After it was caught the snares go away until I use them on ADC beaver. LLL

Bodygrippers are fine in some locations but I can set snares in a lot more locations where cover is sparse. I can catch coons on a mowed lawn in a snare, many places where farmers mow the ditches too for example. If you can (and I know you can) get all the coons you want in the other traps, thats fine but I need to use snares to keep my coon numbers where I need them. High theft areas are another example, I can't lose a DP trap and catch very often and stay ahead of the game but a stolen snare don't hurt so bad, still pisses me off but doesn't hurt as bad financially. Here's a few other benefits of snares, no skunks, rabbits, possums, or dinky coons and the incidentals are, well, not bobcats in my area...

















~ADC~

[riverbandit]

I'm with Larry to an extent. I haven't snared a coon in years on purpose. Anyone that says they can harvest the majority of their coon in snares with no damage isn't being honest.

I do however use snares on the canine, and beaver line. Snared beaver are seldom damaged to any great degree, and canines are neck snared. Coon are simply the most prone to damage from snares vs other snared species.

Call me old school, but I've used almost every lock available and still prefer the old sure locks.

[~ADC~]

What kind of damage are to talking about the coon specifically Dave? A line on the leather or pulled fur and holes where the coons cause the damage, not the snare itself, by chewing at themselves when hip caught?

You can really minimize any of the damage by neck snaring the coons or by getting them just behind the front legs or one leg through. A little smaller loops, set higher and FAST loaded snares are all important to help, as well as a VERY solid support system that doesn't move until the snare fires shut. Rubbing out the marks on warm coons helps with the lines on the leather side too.

Oh, and the sure locks are a fine choice too IMO if you're wanting to save money initially when buying supplies especially.

~ADC~

[riverbandit]

Its not understood quite why, but coon end up having the highest incidence of issues during dressing vs other species when snared.

Obviously coon that chew holes produce damage, but some coon that only have a mark on the leather either loose patches of fur, or completely come apart at the ring.

[~ADC~]

Mar 3, 2013 22:21:27 GMT -6 riverbandit said:

Its not understood quite why, but coon end up having the highest incidence of issues during dressing vs other species when snared.

Obviously coon that chew holes produce damage, but some coon that only have a mark on the leather either loose patches of fur, or completely come apart at the ring.

It would be nice to know what the situation was when the coons that come apart were snared. Cable size, entanglement, swiveling, locks, deer stops, fur handling, weather, ... a million different variables.

~ADC~

[justwannano]

I can't prove it but I believe the damaged coon have been in the snare an extended amount of time.In other words if the coon was caught in the evening and wasn't taken out of the snare til the next afternoon it is more prone to damage.
My reasoning is that I have caught hip caught coon with no snare mark.I believe these coon were caught just before I got there.
BTW I have also caught conibeared coon with the marking from the trap.
just

[hvtrapper]

Both have their place.
Along side busy highways a dead coon in a conibear doesn't give itself away with eye reflections in headlights.
Far fewer/different "incidentals" with snares in trails.
More refusals with conibears.
Ran an experiment a few years ago where I used equal number conibears and snares, all in trails. Snares out produced 220's, 3/1. Both snares and conibears were painted same dead grass color for camoflage.

[snareman29]

Gotta say the original surelock also. they had a more aggressive curve than the new sure locks but new sure locks work great and load fast , and half as much as cam locks if you like to cut and run on your line and dont need to save parts and reuse, i do like the cams for yote snares tho,

[LLLTrapper]

I rarely have conis in trails. I don't trap like that. The incidentals are ok as well. LLL