Homemade Hog Box Traps -- trigger question

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  • Hoggin

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    Nov 17, 2014
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    So I learned how to weld for Christmas. My puddle control isn't what it should be but the welds will hold. Was fun building this 4x4x8 box last weekend. I wanted it taller than most box traps as I've seen on camera a number of larger boars not enter the 2.5-3' high boxes. No need for a bottom on the cage. Also wanted a larger deer escape because I've seen what a deer can do to itself in a hog trap and it 'aint pretty. I wanted to incorporate a guillotine gate, but the landowner I'm using this trap on wanted low profile for reasons I won't go into so I went with a saloon door. The saloon door is a little more complex than the guillotine, but it should work fine.

    My issue is the trigger mechanism not being sensitive enough. I went with a trip wire setup. When the trip wire string is moved it pulls a 4' piece of rebar out from between the top of the doors which are under spring tension. When the rebar slips out the doors shut quickly and forcefully. I welded a washer to the end of the rebar and have the trip wire attached to it. A rooting hog will trigger the trip wire, but I would like it to be more sensitive. The issue is the spring loaded doors put pressure on the rebar and make it tough to pop out, even after I set it to be as much of a hair trigger as I can.

    Has anyone had luck with making a trip wire trigger more sensitive in a hog box trap?

    bewzo1.jpg
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    Gator 45/70

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    neophyte

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    it sounds like if you want to keep your shutting strength the same you are going to have to magnify the stregth of the trip wire.

    the way to do that would either be a lighter switch to a spring powered switch that will activate the door. (I know that sounds confusing). working the similar to how an eletrical relay works (using a lighter signal to open a larger signal.)

    or

    the other and more simple way to magnify pulling strength would be a pulley or pulley system.
     
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    Hoggin

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    The top hole is a deer escape (I guess turkey and bear as well). The problem with a 22"x22" hole is that a buck with a nice rack won't be able to jump out and might beat himself up pretty bad trying to get out. Broken legs, jaw, etc. especially as you approach. The landowner that I'm trapping hogs for right now wants the hogs gone to help his deer population. He's passionate about his deer as many people would be. So I don't want to do anything that might harm his deer, thus the 3'x6' top hole.

    Trapping a bear sounds like a bunch of misery.

    The can of corn solution is interesting. I wonder if coons would spring it. There are more coons on this property than blades of grass.

    Neophyte... I don't understand what you were saying.

    The springs used to close the saloon doors are applying a lot of force when the doors are open. That force is kept in place by the 4' rebar trigger stick. When the hog bumps the twine, the twine pulls the rebar out of position between the two doors and the doors slam shut. The problem is the force from the springs is too much on the rebar, so it takes a lot of pressure on the twine to pull the rebar out of position to spring the trap.

    What if I cut the rebar in half and weld a small hinge in the middle. Weld a washer near the middle of the hinge and attach the trip wire to the washer. In this manner, the trip wire wouldn't be trying to pull a rebar out of position, rather it would need to exert a smaller(???) amount of force to pull the hinge open which would collapse the two pieces of rebar and spring the trap. Would less force be required to open a hinge under the same amount of pressure as the one solid piece of rebar?
     

    neophyte

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    Trapping a bear sounds like a bunch of misery.



    Neophyte... I don't understand what you were saying.

    let me see if I can clarify. OK.

    scenario 1. There is too much pressure on the trigger. ok so leave your trigger as you have it now. attatch the trip wire to another spring driven device that will activate the trigger on the doors. It would be a two stage trigger. but you could use a lighter weight spring on the first stage. if you trigger a small spring powered device that moves quickly and builds momentum physics says that device will try to continue moving exerting its energy on whatever tries to stop it. the thing trying to stop it will be the second (current) trigger. you wont need a heavy trip wire to activate the lighter trigger. it will have more force to close the gate. basically hog hits wire, wire trips device, device hits second trigger with force, second trigger closes cage. (basically the same theory as why velocity of a bullet has more effect on a target than weight of a bullet)

    scenario two. pulley or pulley system. I dont know how to really go in much depth here. if you are using a trip wire, then by running the wire on a pulley or pulley system it takes less force at the beginning of the system to move the same weight at the end. the only thing I can tell you if you dont understand that is to watch a youtube video on how pulleys work.

    pardon the guys condescending tone. I dont mean to come off that way but this is a pretty basic description with enough info to understand what I mean I think.


    edit: and to add another

    you could use a lever in which the fulcrum is set to counterbalance the weight of the spring so that there is already opposing force on the trigger just not enough to trip it. so that when an animal bumps it it applies that little extra force to activate.

    same thing not meaning to sound condecending. just a pretty basic explanation that I think makes my point.

     
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    neophyte

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    a lever probably work well. I saw a video where a guy made one just like you described but with a lever. let me find it and I will edit this post.

    here you are. may not work exactly the same for you since you dont have a drop door, but the principle should be the same.

     
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    Hoggin

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    So adding a Block and Tackle would give me exactly what I'm looking for... less force to move the trigger. Attach one end of the B&T to the rebar and the other end of the B&T to the cage, then run that same twine down as the trip wire. So instead of needing, say, 30#s of force on the trip wire to spring the trigger I could reduce that to 5#s with a B&T with three rope grooves on each end. Interesting. I've always wanted to know more about pulleys. Guess I've learned my thing for today.

    The guy in the video with his kid is using a two-piece trigger stick, so there is something to what we were thinking JC.

    Perhaps incorporate both solutions for a hair-trigger result.
     

    Bigchillin83

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    pig.jpgimage.jpg

    i have a "root door" type and has worked great for me... if the hogs are a little nervous I just prop the door open with a stick, when the hogs walk in the door hits there back allowing the stick to drop and cage door to close behind them... and if they not by them selfs the other hogs cant stand for one to be getting all the corn, they figure out how to root there way in, haven't lost any yet...

    no pigs were harmed in these photos!!!! I do have some pretty good videos how they handled a 230gr +p federal HST out of my 1911 to the head!!!!!
     
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    BigP623

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    use a piece of square tubing, cut in half, with a hinge in the middle. Thats what Ive seen done on these types of traps. That way the trip string it tied near the center of the square tubing holding the doors open, and very little pressure is needed to pull it out. Also, for the hinge pin, replace it with some all thread and nuts on each end that way you can tighten/loosen it to get the pressure desired to have it collapse and let the doors slam.
     

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