On the moles

[blueeyes 45]

Grandson was out today he found quit a few with fresh activity , but he said he stilled struggled to find decent runs especially along the field fence lines , he only managed to get 4 traps in the ground ,any advice guys as trying not to interfere too much but at the same time encourage him thanks for reading 

[DIDO.1 22,776]

Find a good straight run. Forget all that stuff about feeding runs and travelling runs, just find a straight bit. Open up and smooth out with probe handle, add more soil and tighten it up if needed. Fit trap as tight as possible, wedge in with soil so there is zero movement. 

Go back 48 hrs later. Remove mole. Bill homeowner £250. 

[blueeyes 45]

21 hours ago, DIDO.1 said:

Find a good straight run. Forget all that stuff about feeding runs and travelling runs, just find a straight bit. Open up and smooth out with probe handle, add more soil and tighten it up if needed. Fit trap as tight as possible, wedge in with soil so there is zero movement. 

Go back 48 hrs later. Remove mole. Bill homeowner £250. 

 

Many thanks for the info and pics he said he was not packing his trap as much as that so he has learned something new thanks  

[lifelong cumbrian 1,826]

9 hours ago, blueeyes said:

Many thanks for the info and pics he said he was not packing his trap as much as that so he has learned something new thanks  

Each to there own but i plug any voids with mud then push some soil down the sides of the trap to stabilise the trap then cover with a inch or so of loose soil to seal the trap.

[blueeyes 45]

15 hours ago, lifelong cumbrian said:

Each to there own but i plug any voids with mud then push some soil down the sides of the trap to stabilise the trap then cover with a inch or so of loose soil to seal the trap.

Thanks for the info all these little bits help, he set 11 traps Sun and he said it was to rain all day Mon so was hoping they would be on the move looking for worms , he went down yday had 4 moles and 3 backfills using tunnel traps he is over the moon and now looking for Petang ones for the backfill ones lol I am so pleased he is getting a result long may it continue tks 

 

[DIDO.1 22,776]

9 hours ago, blueeyes said:

Thanks for the info all these little bits help, he set 11 traps Sun and he said it was to rain all day Mon so was hoping they would be on the move looking for worms , he went down yday had 4 moles and 3 backfills using tunnel traps he is over the moon and now looking for Petang ones for the backfill ones lol I am so pleased he is getting a result long may it continue tks 

 

Pm me your address I'll send you some putanges. I don't use em

[lifelong cumbrian 1,826]

20 hours ago, blueeyes said:

Thanks for the info all these little bits help, he set 11 traps Sun and he said it was to rain all day Mon so was hoping they would be on the move looking for worms , he went down yday had 4 moles and 3 backfills using tunnel traps he is over the moon and now looking for Petang ones for the backfill ones lol I am so pleased he is getting a result long may it continue tks 

 

I mainly use Putanges, odd times barrel traps, if i get a backfill with either i change the set to a talpex. 

[blueeyes 45]

Just to say a big shout out to @DIDO.1 for gifting my grandson some Putanges total gent 

[blueeyes 45]

Well the grandson just caught his first mole in a petange gifted by DIDO.1 he found a run along a fence and put them in there and was delighted when he checked and found he had caught once again big thanks to DIDO.1 

[lifelong cumbrian 1,826]

On 20/05/2024 at 06:23, blueeyes said:

Well the grandson just caught his first mole in a petange gifted by DIDO.1 he found a run along a fence and put them in there and was delighted when he checked and found he had caught once again big thanks to DIDO.1 

well done, best traps going for me are Putanges, even more versatile for me with my custom triggers, i use different sized ones for different sized tubes, i want the jaws of the trap up to the tube wall, that gives you the best possible chance of the mole hitting the trigger correctly. I have them rigged up on different coloured spun poly twine for ease of identification. The shape makes them fire much better than rectangular triggers that can tip back without the trap firing. I make 4  different sizes, the pic has 3 sizes and a standard trigger on. I made jigs for forming these triggers but they can be made with pliers, they are made from mild steel 2.4 gas welding wire, Tig wire is ok for the jigs but is hard wire, the gas welding wire bends much easier with the pliers. Knock yourself a few up i am positive you will see the results.

[lifelong cumbrian 1,826]

that is one i bent with the pliers, all that wants is cut through the 2 wires in the middle and then twisted straight, you need extra length on the wire to be able to form it, there is no wire waste forming with the jigs. Once made let them rust, rub the copper coating off the wire with a scouring pad before forming cutting wire and forming the trigger, it will then rust faster. My catch rate with putanges has improved massively.  I call these Cumbrian style triggers.

[blueeyes 45]

6 hours ago, lifelong cumbrian said:

that is one i bent with the pliers, all that wants is cut through the 2 wires in the middle and then twisted straight, you need extra length on the wire to be able to form it, there is no wire waste forming with the jigs. Once made let them rust, rub the copper coating off the wire with a scouring pad before forming cutting wire and forming the trigger, it will then rust faster. My catch rate with putanges has improved massively.  I call these Cumbrian style triggers.

Many thanks for that info do you have sizes that I could follow for him , thanks 

[lifelong cumbrian 1,826]

22 minutes ago, blueeyes said:

Many thanks for that info do you have sizes that I could follow for him , thanks 

yes, give more your address and i will gift you a few to try and copy if you like them, im sure you will, quite a fair few trappers are using these now and i have never had one negative comment.

[blueeyes 45]

40 minutes ago, lifelong cumbrian said:

yes, give more your address and i will gift you a few to try and copy if you like them, im sure you will, quite a fair few trappers are using these now and i have never had one negative comment.

Some man he will be delighted will PM you tks 

[blueeyes 45]

21 hours ago, lifelong cumbrian said:

that is one i bent with the pliers, all that wants is cut through the 2 wires in the middle and then twisted straight, you need extra length on the wire to be able to form it, there is no wire waste forming with the jigs. Once made let them rust, rub the copper coating off the wire with a scouring pad before forming cutting wire and forming the trigger, it will then rust faster. My catch rate with putanges has improved massively.  I call these Cumbrian style triggers.

Can I ask how he would set this shape , would it be open end down or up or again can you vary the width with them tks