Mole Trapping For A Living

[J Darcy 5,871]

...just look for the pattern of hills, trap on the bottlenecks and runs leading into the field.

[perthshire keeper 1,237]

...just look for the pattern of hills, trap on the bottlenecks and runs leading into the field.

yeh i know all that but its a long job i once had a 20achr field that was black and i mean black with hills it was stubble and their wasnt 3ft between hills. i only had 40 traps at the time and was trying to do it systematically...and it didnt work i was getting 10-15 moles a day right enugh but god it seemed to take ages to get out of that field!

[jamie mc 168]

If that's the case I would do it in squares. Do what you can with the traps you have and harrow where you have been I always trap first and harrow second as I find the moles take a bit longer to show once you have harrowed.

[perthshire keeper 1,237]

If that's the case I would do it in squares. Do what you can with the traps you have and harrow where you have been I always trap first and harrow second as I find the moles take a bit longer to show once you have harrowed.

this was years ago....ime a drop better now and many many more traps at my disposal...infact i like a good riddled field, its nice to tackle something different

[Rat face 1,655]

what style/type traps are you guys using?

[jamie mc 168]

I only use one trap and its because you can catch two moles at the same time the barrel trap. If I can find my camera I will put some pictures up atb Jamie.

[perthshire keeper 1,237]

i used to only use duffas. then some one gave me a talpex and i love the things now. but i started out on home made full barrel traps from bill trouton and bob merrit....now they sort the men from the boys them traps

[Flacko 1,732]

It's still a mystery tome but i think all these country skills are what the country boys, lurcher terrier ferret men should try and understand it all goes hand in hand imo even tho most of us live town, city old traditions part of the hunting gene an we can all learn something from them.

[moley 115]

perthshire , i think you will find merrin is on with t duffus now, it took me years to persuade him to spend sum money and invest in traps that will pay for them selves many times over , he went from setting about 70 traps a day to setting 200+ a day, its about making money , not keeping traditions alive

 

if your on big ground with loads of moles , you need to get your head down and flood the place with traps, headlands and centres,i dont agree with the idea of moles needing water , a worm is 90% water

 

i often used to run 500-700 traps a week, if you have the ground , you might aswell have the traps to deal with it, no good running out of traps after a couple of days work

[perthshire keeper 1,237]

perthshire , i think you will find merrin is on with t duffus now, it took me years to persuade him to spend sum money and invest in traps that will pay for them selves many times over , he went from setting about 70 traps a day to setting 200+ a day, its about making money , not keeping traditions alive

 

if your on big ground with loads of moles , you need to get your head down and flood the place with traps, headlands and centres,i dont agree with the idea of moles needing water , a worm is 90% water

 

i often used to run 500-700 traps a week, if you have the ground , you might aswell have the traps to deal with it, no good running out of traps after a couple of days work

yeh bob went over to them a good while back but about 10-12 years ago the only traps i had were ones i scrounged off bob or got at carboot sales ive still got a dozen traps from bill trouton (ask bob about him!)

 

ive now got 60 talpex and about 100 duffas and a few other bits and bobs like fenn loop traps

[moley 115]

bobs talked about bill trouton, is he the bloke that showed bob how to make the pipe traps he used to use ??

[perthshire keeper 1,237]

bobs talked about bill trouton, is he the bloke that showed bob how to make the pipe traps he used to use ??

ya know I'm not sure but Bill T was a local legend around here, and I THINK he made the pipe traps before Bob. I'm not sure and I've never asked but it would be interesting to know. All the farmers I catch for still talk about Bill like he was fecking superman!

 

Ahhh now one to ask bob too as he will know! Bob never showed me how to make them traps though he has given me a couple and lent me a few when I was a nipper, but my next door neighbour who is 70 odd tells me about when he used to make gas pipe traps FOR Bill Trouton and he gave me 20 odd pipes all ready made just less the springs that he had in the garage, and it was him that showed me... so food for thought if old Bill made them or even made his own?!

 

Or is it just me with a weird obsession with these traps and who made them

[Millet 4,497]

I use this beast.. it cut's them in half so i can charge for two mole's and 4 if i get a double.. .. but it is a right twat to set with my garden trowel and welding rod..

 

 

 

[perthshire keeper 1,237]

OHHHHH millet i likey! ive never had a wooden on.....but have lots like that in plastic single and double spring

[OldTrapCollector 376]

 

is it just me with a weird obsession with these traps and who made them

 

Nope - I have an unhealthy obsession with traps too ...

 

OTC