First, a little humor...

Private Snafu


Cu Chi Tunnel Traps


Bushcraft Traps


History Channel: Vietnam
NVA Booby Traps

Found a good "Traps & Trapping" link? Let Us Know!

BUILDING DEADFALLS Many of the men who have spent years in trapping and have been
successful use the deadfalls and snares as well as steel traps. It is a safe proposition, however, that not one-half of the trappers of today can build a deadfall properly or know how to make snares and many of them have not so much as seen one.

STEEL TRAPS AND THE ART OF TRAPPING: the Steel Trap is the principal device used by professional trappers, and possesses great advantages over all other traps. It is portable, sets easily and quickly, either on land or beneath the water; can be concealed with ease; secures its victims without injury to their fur, and by the application of the spring or sliding pole (hereafter described) will most effectually prevent the captive from making his escape by self-amputation, besides placing him beyond the reach of destruction by other animals.

Trapper's Campaign Life In The Wilderness: Plan Of Campaign. Food And Cooking Utensils. Jerked Venison. The Trapper's Shelter. The Home Shanty. (Log Cabin). Bark Shanty. Tents. Beds And Bedding. Tent Carpeting. Insect Ointments. Snow-Shoes. The Toboggan Or Indian Sledge. Curing Skins. Stretchers. The Hoop Stretcher. Tanning Skins. To Tan Mink And Muskrat Skins. How To Tan The Skins Of Beaver, Otter, Raccoon, And Marten. Observations On The History Of Furs And The Fur Trade. Market Value Of Fur Skins. American Fur Skins—Their Uses At Home And Abroad.

Traps For Large Game: The Dead Fall.—The Gun Trap.—The Bow Trap.—The Down Fall.—The Bear Trap.—The Pitfall.—The Log Coop Trap.—The Corrall Or Hopo Of Africa.
—The Net Trap.—Bird Lime.

How to Trap & Why: Many a man has suffered untold privations, and many more have lost their lives, while surrounded with food and all the necessities of life, merely through ignorance of the woods and wild life, or through inability to wrest a livelihood from nature. There are few places in the north where a man can not manage to exist for months when deprived of every aid of civilization, provided he is skilled in woodcraft, possesses self reliance and determines not to be beaten. Excerpt from the: "Book of Camping" By A. Hyatt Verrill, 1917; Chapter Five

Snares Or Noose Traps: The Quail Snare.—Hoop Nooses.—Horse Hair Nooses.— Hedge Nooses.—The Triangle Tree Snare.—The Twitch-Up.—The Poachers' Snare.—The Portable Snare.—The Quail Snare.—The Box Snare.—The Double Box Snare.—Ground Snares.—The Old-Fashioned Spingle.—The Improved Spingle.—The Figure Four Ground Snare.—The Platform Snare.

Traps for Feathered Game: The Sieve Trap. The Brick Trap. The Coop Trap The Bat Fowling Net. The Clap Net. The Bird Whistle The Trap Cage. The Spring Net Trap. A Simpler Net Trap. The Upright Net Trap. The Box Owl Trap. The Box Bird Trap. The Pendant Box Trap. The Hawk Trap. The Wild Duck Net. The "Fool's Cap" Trap. Bird Lime

Miscellaneous Traps. The Common Box Trap. Another Box Trap. The Figure Four Trap. The Double Ender. The Self-Setting Trap. The Dead Fall. The Figure Four Trap. The Garrote. The Bow Trap. The Mole Trap. A Fish Trap.

Guide to trapping nuisance coyotes A key to successful trapping is to use the correct trap for the job. A trap should be large, powerful and fast enough to catch the coyote that activates it. For best results, chose a No. 3 coil-spring trap with a jaw spread of about 6 inches. Smaller traps do not get as high a grip on the animal's foot, increasing the likelihood of escape. To further prevent an animal from escaping, use a trap that has smooth jaws, which holds the foot firmly without breaking the skin. Traps with four coils are preferred because they have enough power to break through the dirt and close more quickly than traps with two coiled springs...See also: Guide to snaring nuisance coyote and Identifying Coyote Tracks

Survival Hunting Techniques (Actually trapping excerpts textfile) WILDERNESS SURVIVAL HANDBOOK by Alan Fry. ISBN 0-312-14763-5 pages 166-173. Even though Alan cites hunting of Moose, and is centered in Canadian hunting, his principles apply to all survival hunting. His premise of being forced down over the Canadian bush country, and having to make do, applies to survival scenarios in general.

Out of Africa by Christine Matsko This past summer however, I became acquainted with a retired missionary who introduced me to a new (at least new to me) trapping method which has really revolutionized my trapping practices...

Snares by Dean Johnson As they sat by the fire, they watched grandmother twist strips of white rabbit fur together with cordage, rolling it into a large ball. This would later be hung from a loom and woven into a warm blanket. Jean-um and his cousin were also twisting cordage but theirs was for a different purpose. They were twisting milkweed into a strong, flexible cord, perfect for rabbit snares...

Ed's Trigger by Ed Perez Ed's Trigger is a practical choice for setting an animal trap in a wilderness survival situation. I will explain the setup and use for this type of trap.

The Pin Snare by Randal Jones The pin snare (not its native name) was used extensively by the Polynesians to trap rats. The Kiore rat or Polynesian rat is really a large mouse that weighs about one-third of a pound. This rat was brought to New Zealand by the Maori and became the island's first land mammal. The Maori used a variety of pin snare ground sets to catch it.

Survival tips and advice: Watch out for booby traps - If you want to travel to some parts of our world you should watch out for booby traps, landmines and other dangers.

Traps - Survival tips: about traps and trapping.

The Beav's Homemade Skinner Good photo's with simple text. See also The Beav's Mink Set Locations and Catches (Blind Sets), Drowning Sets, and a more conventional article: Open Water Otter Sets With Conibears

Tangle, Dangle, Strangle & Mangle With most small game it is easier to trap than to stalk and kill, in a survival situation setting traps also leaves you with time to attend to other duties like foraging or shelter building. The title of this page represents the principals of trapping, your trap must effect to either tangle, dangle, strangle or mangle your quarry.

The Dirt Hole Set Basic steps for making a dirt hole set.

The Flat Set How to make a flat set.

The Cubby Set How to make a cubby set.

Muskrat Float Set An innovative set that really catches the 'rats!

Quick and easy weights An easy way to create your own weights

How to set a foothold trap An easy way to avoid getting pinched.

Drown beavers in shallow water with #3 or larger coil spring traps A handy tip for shallow water beavers.

Orange flagging on coyote traps with drags A simple and effective tip.

Safety on the trap line Common sense trap line safety.

How many beaver can I trap and still come back and trap the same spot next year? Making sure you do not over-trap an area.

Beaver snaring under the ice The basics of under-ice beaver snaring.

Good beginner muskrat sets Basic sets for the novice muskrat trapper.

#120 and #160 Conibear for raccoons? Which body-grip trap to use for raccoons?

Speed dip or logwood dye? Should I go with a traditional or modern method of dying my traps?

Skinning tool A handy tip for use while skinning coyotes.

Where to set the #110 Conibear Common sets for the small #110 Conibear trap.

The #110 Conibear The #110 Conibear trap explained.

The Trapper Education Manual [Now OnSite] Trapping is part of our North American heritage. First-time trappers in many states and Canadian provinces must complete a trapper education program covering skills, regulations, and trappingʼs role in scientific wildlife management. Trapper education programs teach basic techniques with a strong focus on the responsible treatment of animals, legal methods, safety, selectivity, and ethical trapper behavior.

Trapping Marten in Newspaper Boxes There are probably as many ways to catch a marten as there are marten trappers in the woods, but after one season's use in southeast Alaska, this is what I like about this particular container for taking marten.

Marten and Mink Traps: thoughts on Canadian devices Trappers are similar to farmers in that both groups tend to be very conservative in their choice of equipment or methods employed to make a living. Individuals use what has worked well in the past for fear that a major investment in new equipment may lead to economic disaster. It can be a slow and arduous task to convince trappers to use newer and better tools. Traps are considered durable goods that, if properly cared for, can be expected to last for decades and can be passed on to a future generation. As the old trapper told me, “Why buy new traps when my old traps work just fine?”

Tools for Fleshing Mink I've always argued in favor of making the most of what you harvest. One example I've used is the use of a deer leg bone to flesh raw mink pelts before putting them on the drying boards. Several trappers asked me to demonstrate the technique, so here it is — in black and white...

Alaska Trappers Manual The Alaska Trappers Manual was created in a joint effort by the Alaska Trappers Association and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Published by the Alaska Trappers Association, the 135-page manual is available in bookstores around the state, or it may be ordered for $20.00. Part of the manual is available here, online.

Furbearers Species accounts from the Alaska Wildlife Notebook Series

Trappers Code of Ethics The Code of Ethics is reprinted from the Alaska Trappers Manual. The manual was created in a joint effort by the Alaska Trappers Association and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

The Art of Pulling Hearts This essay was first published in the Fall 1983 issue of Alaska Fish Tales & Game Trails. It is part of a memoir, The Stars, The Snow, The Fire, published by Graywolf Press in St. Paul. The author, a long-time Alaskan, presently makes his home in Helena, Montana.

Ohio Snaring Guide: The Ohio Snaring Guide is divided into sections to speed downloading.
Section 1: Snares Past and Present, The Modern Cable Snare
Section 2: Ohio Snaring Regulations, How A Snare Works
Section 3: Fastening and Stabilizing Snares
Section 4: Non-lethal Snaring
Section 5: Setting Snares, Avoiding Deer and Livestock, Sets with Snares
You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print the Ohio Snaring Guide. You can download it here: http://www.adobe.com/.

Minnesota Trapper Education Manual Provided by the Minnesota Trappers Association. This is an incredible and awesome free resource!

North Dakota Furtakers Education Manual Provided by the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. Another awesome free resource - but not as slickly laid out as the one above.

Knots Landing! 20 Different knots - Click on a knot and you will get an illustrated tutorial on how to tie it and the usage for each knot. Memorize all of this information.

Knotmaking Get Knotted! Animated knots.

The following three links are a veritable GOLDMINE of trapping information and should be a first stop for those interested in increasing their knowledge and awareness of traps and trapping.
Buckshot's Camp - online Trapping Guide & Buckshot's Trapping Tales

Iowa Dept. Nat. Resources trapping codes

HOW TO BUILD A WILD HOG TRAP This free trial version is an animated series of slides that demonstrate how to build a wild hog trap from start to finish. It includes the design of the trap door, latch, catch, body and tripping mechanism of a fully operational trap. It is presented in Microsoft POWER POINT.

SIGNS AND HABITS; Learn to recognize and find the different signs and habits of wild hogs such as wallows, rubs, trails and other markings and where to find them.

TIPS AND TACTICS; Tips and Tactics on setting, baiting and trapping more and bigger hogs easier.

TRAPS; A look at the different styles of trap bodies. Such as round, square, big and small traps and the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Trapping and Hunting on the Little Deer River, The story of Halvor Ausland's career as a trapper on the Mudjatik River in Northern Saskatchewan, Canada. {Stupid music file can be turned off at the bottom of the page}

A brief history of trapping in North America The history of trapping dates back to the earliest days of mankind. For as long as people have tried to protect themselves from the elements, they have used the skins of furbearing animals. When the first humans arrived in North America, during the Ice Age some 11,000 years ago, much of the continent was covered by glaciers. These people would not have survived without their fur clothing.

Trapping - Getting to the bottom of the sensationalism Explaining the need for trapping.

Dissecting the anti-trapping animal rights (AR) cover letter A trapper dissects the typical animal-rights arguments.

Some benefits of trapping Why should I trap?

The best all around trap Is one trap enough?

Traps, Trapping and Furbearer management Position statement from The Wildlife Society.

Beavzilla, my first big catch The thrill of catching your first BIG beaver.

Live traps A good tool for animal damage control trappers.

Bodygrip traps explained How do bodygrip traps work?

Explaining the foothold trap What is a foothold trap?

The parts of a foothold trap What is the dog? Where is the pan? This diagram points out the different parts.

Snares What is a snare?

Justifying trapping A trapper explains why he traps.

The evil "steel-jawed leghold trap", a fact sheet The real facts about trapping.

Mange, the ugly death of a beautiful animal What happens when an animal contracts mange?

Dissecting the anti-trapping animal rights (AR) cover letter A trapper dissects the typical animal-rights arguments.

Traps, Trapping, and Furbearer Management Position statement from The Wildlife Society.

Some benefits of trapping Why should I trap?

The Guide to Hunting and Trapping in Maryland 2003-2004

M-44 Cyanide Dispensers are used lawfully by private citizens (usually ranchers) as well as government agencies to control animal populations. Granted, M-44's are targeted at animals, but they are booby traps nonetheless, and they can kill you just as well.

Man Traps

Like it or not, in the correct circumstances, SSRsi does indeed advocate the use of traps and snares against superior numbers of human adversaries. These psychological weapons are capable of killing, but are most effective in slowing down an opposing force - both mentally and physically. Some traps are not "intended" to kill a human quarry - but may kill just the same. There is no such thing as a non-lethal mantrap. Accidents happen and Murphy's Law will apply. ALWAYS ASSUME THAT ANY TRAP YOU SET WILL RESULT IN THE DEATH OF ANYONE/ANYTHING CAUGHT IN IT - AND BE PREPARED FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF YOUR ACTIONS!!! Be aware that, once set, it will be equally effective against innocent and/or unwanted quarry as the intended target.

The only conceivable "correct circumstance" for the use of these weapons would be in a post-TEOTWAWKI scenario, or in a tyrannical occupation by illegal forces. Traps are not toys and are very indiscriminate. Do not use them unless you do not care who/what they catch.

Always plot your trapline and leave a copy somewhere it may be found in case something happens to you. You wouldn't want your allies to fall into one of your own traps, and you need to know where they are in case you later have to recover, reset, or remove them.

Nearly every technique (and most of the equipment) used for animal trapping can be used - either as is or with some modification - to trap human prey. But here are a few techniques specifically designed to be implemented against humans.

In warfare, a booby trap is an antipersonnel device, such as a landmine or grenade, placed in building or in a noncombat area that has a psychological draw for enemy soldiers.

A booby trap is distinguished from a land mine by the fact that it is an improvised weapon, perhaps made from an artillery shell, or a grenade, or a quantity of high explosives, whereas a land mine is manufactured for its specific purpose. A booby trap may be buried in the manner common with land mines, or not, though as a rule it is concealed in some fashion, and set to be detonated by means of pressure or a trip wire. During World War II retreating British and Canadian soldiers in France in 1940 made booby traps from artillery and mortar shells, burying them in roads behind them as they retreated, or hanging them from trees concealed by the leaves and rigged with tripwires concealed in the grass around the tree.

Booby Trap Usage

During World War II, scales in warehouses and factories were rigged with explosives. Allied soldiers securing an area would be tempted to step upon the scale to compare their weight with that of their compatriots, and would thus perish.

During the Vietnam War, motorcycles were rigged with explosives and abandoned. Soldiers would be tempted to ride the motorcycle and thus trigger the explosives. As well, Viet Cong soldiers would rig Rubber Band Grenades and place them in huts that Americans would likely torch. Another popular booby trap is the Grenade in a Can trap. This involves a primed grenade in a container and a string attached, sometimes with the grenade's fuse mechanism modified to give a much shorter delay than the four to seven seconds typical with grenade fuses. The Viet Cong soldiers primarily used these on doors and attached them to tripwires on jungle paths.

During the Al-Aqsa Intifada, Palestinian fighters used booby traps widely. The largest use of booby traps was in Jenin during Operation Defensive Shield where a large number of explosive devices were planted.

The Palestinian fighters had made their own preparations. Booby traps had been laid in the streets of both the camp and the town, ready to be triggered if an Israeli foot soldier or vehicle snagged a tripwire. Some of the bombs were huge -- as much as 250 lb (110 kg) of explosives, compared with the 25 lb (11 kg) a typical suicide bomber uses. On Day 2 of the battle, when the town had been secured but the fight in the camp was just beginning, an armored Caterpillar D-9 bulldozer rolled along a three-quarter-mile (1.2 km) stretch of the main street to clear booby traps. An Israeli engineering-corps officer logged 124 separate explosions set off by the vehicle, which was undamaged. In the camp, the explosive charges were even more densely packed, and tunnels had been dug between houses so that Palestinian fighters could move around without exposing themselves on the street.

FM 90-8 Appendix C COUNTER GUERRILLA OPERATIONS Manual. See also: COUNTER AMBUSH TECHNIQUES

Lessons Learned - Searching Vietnam Villages

Booby Traps Booby traps were used by the Viet Cong as "non-explosive land mines". They still injured the victim and added to the stress of the war. Not only did the American soldiers have to be on the constant lookout for non-uniformed North Vietnamese soldiers and Viet Cong, but they had to worry that with each step they took, they may end up in a hole with poisoned spikes in it. This was extremely stressful for the American soldiers and many Vietnam veterans suffer from post traumatic stress disorder.

Trip Wires The Viet Cong used trip wires as yet another ingenious fighting tactic. Trip Wires were wires that triggered an object to 'attack'. They were used in many different ways.

Watch Where You Walk - Vietcong Traps In the Vietnam War, Vietcong tactics include simple but effective traps throughout the jungle and on paths. Shallow camouflaged pits with sharpened excrement-covered bamboo stakes injure and infect soldiers.

Boobytrap Mechanisms Well, this page has been growing and growing as a result of people from all over the world sending in photos. I have now broken the pages down into countries so simply click on the appropriate line for whichever country you are looking for. This main page will have photos of unidentified devices which I will put in the appropriate countries pages as they are identified.

Defeating an ambush—Vietnam Infantry Magazine As America strove to maintain law and order in the streets of Iraq, our forces encountered hostile fire at the average rate of 35 attacks per day. Enemy guerilla forces used a myriad of tactics and techniques to overcome the superior fire capabilities and training of the American Soldier. Among the most effective and deadly was the ambush.

The MOUT Homepage This action occurred on 8 July 1986. It was a joint action with the HIH Mujahideen commanded by Doctor Wali Khayat and was reported in the media. It was a small ambush involving 13 Mujahideen armed with two RPG-7s, one PK machine gun and 10 AK-47s. Seven of the Mujahideen were my men and six were HIH. We set the ambush in Kotubkhel near the Mamur Hotel, which sits beside the main highway. I split the force into two groups.

AMBUSH AND COUNTER AMBUSH TECHNIQUE The loss of men and equipment has a critical effect on the part of the enemy. The interference with and the ultimate destruction of hostile reconnaissance and combat patrols will result in the none accomplishment of the patrol mission, thus depriving him of valuable intelligence information so necessary to effectively combat the guerrillas.

Lessons Learned: A Company Commander's Thoughts on Iraq While in Iraq, your convoy will get ambushed. I know all the range control geeks are going to have a heart attack when you make this suggestion. Any one of them is welcome to ride a patrol with me in Iraq. This is what we do, and what we should train. Experiencing an ambush for the first time is unpleasant, especially while a hail of RPG and small-arms fire rains down from multiple directions. See also: Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) - Iraq and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) / Booby Traps

Section I - Lessons in Combat The opinion that the Viet Cong (VC) is an untrained Army of insurgents is not entirely true. In many areas we found that he is well trained, organized and equipped for his mission. He employs the tactics of the guerilla in many localities because he is relatively weak and has no choice and because the terrain favors guerilla tactics. He uses mines and booby traps extensively around his base area and normally will not come out to attack unless he enjoys a five or six to one superiority.

Improvised Iraqi weapons deadly to USA occupation forces The Vietcong were very ingenious in the use of improvised weapons, a characteristic being demonstrated by the Iraqi insurgency today. Vietcong improvised weapons were very simple but extremely effective. They utilized materials that were readily available in the Vietnamese jungle. Among the most lethal and dreaded by USA grunts were the "Punji Face Slapper" and the "Punji Pit".

NVA Bunkers This series of articles on NVA bunkers is based upon an analysis of enemy positions at Khe Sanh that was carried out by the 3rd Marine Division. The purpose of their study was to produce an evaluation of the effectiveness of various weapons systems employed against the enemies fortifications. Whilst the tactics of the NVA at Khe Sanh were somewhat different from those previously encountered by US forces, his defensive concepts relating to the use of trenches, tunnels, and fortifications were similar to those used previously. All map references are to US military maps of the Khe Sanh area.

Ambush Operations Introduction to US doctrine regarding ambushes, including pages on the various types of ambushes used (from hamlet to waterway) as well as a selection of schematics detailing US formations adopted in ambushes. See also: Countering Ambushes

Ambush Operations Introduction to NVA and VC Ambush tactics, from simple and small scale to fully fledged five-element maneuvering ambushes. See also: Hill Trap Maneuvers

Booby Traps The use of booby traps also had a long-lasting psychological impact on Marines and soldiers and helped to further alienate them from civilian populations that could not be distinguished from combatants. The fear of booby-traps and mines was so great that units in the field (the boondocks) and the jungle (the zoo) were under stress the whole time. This created severe mental fatigue on both the commanders at platoon level and the individual soldiers.

NVA and VC BOOBY TRAPS ~ OFFICIAL US ARMY REPORT The following report concerning mines and booby traps was prepared by a former rifle platoon leader who served with the American Division in late 1967 and early 1968. His observations were reproduced to assist all personnel in detecting and neutralizing enemy emplaced mines and booby traps.

Vietnam - Vietcong traps - Asia-Pacific - MSNBC.com

Mines and Booby Traps One of a Combat Infantryman’s worst fears was not of being killed, but of being maimed. Because of mines and booby traps, it happened all too often in Vietnam, with an estimated 60% of Purple Hearts won by mine and booby trap casualties. (Sarlin)

Booby Trap! Perhaps the most frustrating activity of the war in Vietnam was that we almost never saw the enemy we pursued. Signs of enemy activity were all around us - bunkers, underground tunnels, occasional rocket or mortar attacks, and again and again, the booby-traps.

Mines and Booby Traps The 3rd Brigade Task Force, 25th Infantry Division has encountered almost every type of enemy soldier present in Vietnam; from a hamlet guard in Duc Pho District, Quang Ngai Province, to an NVA officer in the highlands of Kontum. Probably the least recognized and most dangerous enemy is the farm hand by day who has been trained to cleverly place a mine or booby trap designed to kill or maim South Vietnamese civilians and Allied soldiers...

Mines and Booby Traps The following report concerning mines and booby traps was prepared by a former rifle platoon leader who served with the American Division in late 1967 and early 1968. His observations and reproduced to assist all personnel in detecting and neutralizing enemy emplaced mines and booby traps.

DEATH BY DECEPTION An Important element in the Viet Cong's guerrilla warfare was the widespread use of booby traps. Ingeniously contrived from readily available materials - sometimes from captured or recovered mines and ammunition - these unseen weapons were often made by old men and women and children. So effective were they that in some areas they were said to account for up to 50 per cent of allied casualties.

Explosives, Booby Traps, Incendiaries

BOOBY TRAPS A booby trap can be an explosive charge, a non explosive device, or other material. Its intended use is to incapacitate, wound, or kill an unsuspecting person when he disturbs an apparently harmless object or performs a presumably safe act.

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