Crab Trap Recommendations?

Agree with using the cheap square traps.
Rinse them and they will last a few years.
Only modification I make is to wrap a piece of lead wire on the doors. Usually two pieces per door, attached at the 'T' on the upright, the extra weight seems to make the door close more securely.
 
ive used many styles of traps over my 33 years, i only use ex commercial ss traps now. they seem to produce better, and keep them in when its a longer soak and the bait is eaten up

never had any go missing either, just too heavy for the kids to pull up i guess
 
Cuba Libre said:
One thing that can screw up the lighter trap gates is to THROW them into the water instead of lowering them from the surface. Thats a recipe for the lighter gates to hang up and stay open.
Click to expand...

Also, this is a great way to lose your trap all together. Even if you "know" you have enough line on your pot. I've lowered my pots at slack tide "knowing" I had more than enough line for the water depth but found I was wrong when the trap I was lowering never hit bottom. :) Just make sure you're SURE you have enough line. That really helps a lot.
 
ived used alot of crab traps, i personally like the ex commercial crab graps because they do not walk on you and they fish good in long soaks, but those square traps do out fish the commercial traps in short soaks thats for sure , the thing that bugs me with the square traps is where you put the trap together on the sides they often fall apart wen you pull them
 
Islander
If you have enough space in your boat that you don't have to fold the traps flat, crimp the wire side pieces on to the top and bottom pieces, leaving only one side that you can open for baiting and emptying the trap. I also crimp the opening side onto the bottom so that the opening side is hinged.
I use a 4 point harness with the plastic clips, two of the clips hold the door closed.
keeps it all relatively rigid.
 
islander55 said:
ived used alot of crab traps, i personally like the ex commercial crab graps because they do not walk on you and they fish good in long soaks, but those square traps do out fish the commercial traps in short soaks thats for sure , the thing that bugs me with the square traps is where you put the trap together on the sides they often fall apart wen you pull them
Click to expand...

Use ZAP STRAPS, keeps them tight, and also shows you if someone has been in your trap! ......BB
 
islander55 said:
ived used alot of crab traps, i personally like the ex commercial crab graps because they do not walk on you and they fish good in long soaks, but those square traps do out fish the commercial traps in short soaks thats for sure , the thing that bugs me with the square traps is where you put the trap together on the sides they often fall apart wen you pull them
Click to expand...

Use ZAP STRAPS, keeps them tight, and also shows you if someone has been in your trap! ......BB
 
Barnacle Bill said:
Use ZAP STRAPS, keeps them tight, and also shows you if someone has been in your trap! ......BB
Click to expand...

That's some good advice there. Sometimes when you pull your trap after a couple hour soak and find nothing, might be from someone else already checking your trap for you, and you just thought there were no crabs around that day. Thanks for the tip.
 
I am not certain, but I believe you are supposed to use some sort of degradable rope instead of zaps.

That way if the trap gets cut off or sinks for any reason, the crabs can escape when the rope gives out.

Can someone with more knowledge on this chime in?

Cheers.
 
mhbradley said:
I am not certain, but I believe you are supposed to use some sort of degradable rope instead of zaps.
Click to expand...

Mike,

I think what he was saying is to use zap straps to close the trap up so one can't open it to pull the crabs out without you knowing about it. What you are talking about is "rot cord" which is cotton twine that will rot away within a couple days or so of being in the water. It is usually found on a part of the trap that has a little access "hatch" or a few missing wires. The twine holds the little hatch in place or replaces the missing wires. Once the twine rots out, there is a place where the crabs can escape the trap.

If you look on your traps you will probably find a section of twine somewhere on it. Look closely and you will see the area I am talking about. If it doesn't have this escape mechanism, then it's not a legal trap in Canada.


All crab traps must have a section in the top or sidewall that has been secured by a single length of untreated cotton twine no greater than No. 120 (approximately 5 mm or 3/16 inch diameter). This twine is often referred to as rot cord. On deterioration this must produce a rectangular opening with a minimum size of 7 cm x 20 cm, or a square opening with a minimum size of 11 cm x 11 cm. This regulation is intended to ensure that if the trap is lost, the section secured by the cord will rot, allowing captive crabs to escape, and preventing the trap from continuing to fish. On traps with a rigid frame and a freely opening hinged lid the trap lid must be secured by a single length of untreated cotton twine no greater than No. 120 so that the trap lid will open freely when the rot cord is broken. No other fastenings may impede the hinged lid of the trap from opening.

Source: http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/rec/points/shellgear-eng.html#crab
 
The escape hatch with the 'rot cord' is separate from the doors of the trap.
It should not be closed by other than the supplied cotton cord.
Replacement cord is available at tackle shops.
 
Its just plain ol Cotton line so it breaks down and doesnt keep fishing if lost. little secret its the same and the same stuff we use for butchers twine the stuff we tie roasts with any butcher will have it as well . usually there is a "ring tied off on top of trap with it .
On commercial traps its usually attached to the bungy and hook part ...

Good luck Wolf
 
I had the more expensive round collapsible and the cheap blue square trap and they both fished well. They were both stolen in the last couple of months so I'll only buy the cheap blue square traps from now on, minimizes the $ hit when they are stolen.

There has to be a way to deal with this theft... Like a block watch program or something... lol
 
I love the ex commercial ones.
Heavy enough to keep the kids or anyone without a puller from pulling it
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After trial/error and losses, we now use the cheap square collapse type. Tried some of the rectangle/folding with netting in order to save space on the boat but found they were more of a pain trying to get the crabs out of the netting and when lost/stolen more expensive to replace them. Never tried round, mainly due to space issues.
 
Anybody watch Coldwater Cowboys? They use a round trap with the entrance on top. It is just a smooth round chute going down. Crabs go in but can't get back up and out. Pretty simple. No moving parts.
Only thing is trap may have to be fairly large for the design to work.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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