How long should snare wire be

They allow the cable to turn with the animal as it rolls and fights, which means less kinking. If you want to live catch anything a swivel is a must.

Step 4: Snare Lock — All snares must have some sort of locking mechanism to work. Whether it is a bent washer lock, mechanical lock, or a knot in the cable, a lock is what closes down on the snared animal and holds it there. Relaxing Lock: A relaxing lock will close down on the animal when they walk through the snare and are pulling on the cable, but it will release the pressure off the cable once the animal stops pulling. Relaxing locks tend to be less aggressive, but some newer locks, like the Micro Lock, are just as aggressive as the non-relaxing locks.

A relaxing lock should be used if you are trying to live catch an animal, and they greatly reduce fun damage commonly caused by non-relaxing locks. Non-Relaxing Locks: A non-relaxing lock is designed to hold its position on the cable. When an animal is pulling and fighting the snare, the non-relaxing lock will get tighter and tighter, and when the animal stops pulling the lock bites into the cable and holds its position tight around the animal.

These are great in dispatch sets, and entanglement situations. Mechanical Locks: These locks are a non-relaxing lock with moving parts. They are very aggressive, fast, and non forgiving, but you can easily release them off an animal once they are dispatched, etc. Step 5: Support Collar — The support collar is the device that attaches your snare to the support wire.

The wire can then be adjusted to the proper height and position in the trail. Twist-On Support Collar: All our snares feature this support collar.

To attach to your support wire, twist the collar with a left hand thread. If you are holding the wire in your left hand and the collar in your right hand, twist the top of the collar toward your body.

Wammy Support Collar: These are the old style of support collar. They are specific to cable size and wire gauge. To attach to your support wire, simply plug the wire into the collar. Wammy Support Collars are a headache to keep separate when you are building snares, but on the snareline go on fast. Plastic Tubing: We do not offer plastic tubing on snares, but it is being used.

To attach to the support wire, simply slide the wire into the tubing. No Support Collar: You can opt to have no collar on your snares if you like. The deer stop allows a leg caught deer to pull its leg back through the snare, and allows you to re-set the snare. Live Catch Stop: A live catch stop is the same stop as a deer stop, it is just placed to make a bigger loop on the snare. Most fox will be able to escape from a snare with a live catch coyote stop; because the loop is too big and they can pull their head back through the loop.

These S-Hooks are designed to complete the loop, between the lock and the cable, when they breakaway they straighten out releasing the loop and allowing the caught cow or deer go. These J-Hooks are designed to complete the loop, between the lock and the cable, when they breakaway they straighten out releasing the loop and allowing the caught cow or deer go.

J-Hooks work best with washer locks and Micro Locks, because of how they lay on the cable. Release Ferrule: A release ferrule is a small stop placed behind the lock on the cable. When the animal pulls with more force than the ferrules are rated for, the stop will pop off and release the loop and the animal.

To properly use release ferrules you must have the appropriate swag tool and compress the tool completely. If you do not follow directions with release ferrules the breakaway poundage might end up way lower or higher than what they are actually rated for.

They started when guys would drill or cut out locks for homemade breakaways, and now are tested and made by a manufacture. Step 8: Dispatch Spring — A dispatch spring is made to apply extra pressure on the lock. They are not legal in all states, so be familar with your state's regulations.

These work the best in entanglement situations. Regular Dispatch Spring: These come in either 25 or 50 which is a measure of how much pressure is applied on the lock.

The spring is placed behind the lock on the cable. It is placed behind the lock on the cable. It was made famous by Marty Senneker, from Canada. For most small animals, snare wires like these will do the trick nicely.

They are. Small game requires a specific gauge to prevent them from escaping or seeing the wire. You need to be able to hide it in their natural environment, so stick with a wire gauge between. The higher the number. Working with extremely thin wire can be a challenge for people who have big hands and fingers.

The good news is that some wires are bound and wound together to make it easier to handle. Remember that the length of the wire is also important. Keep in mind that some of the wires, including the best one below, have special attachments that preset everything for you. Note: The smaller the animal, the smaller the gauge. For example, small rabbits can be caught with. Snare wires are made out of all sorts of materials, but the best three are copper, brass, and steel.

Regardless of which material you use, proper placement is crucial. Luckily, the stainless steel snare wire in the next section does all of the hard work for you. Having the right tool is half the battle. That being said, there are countless snares on the market, so how do you know which one to choose? These snare wires are what I recommend. This combination of lightweight, highly durable materials is just about as good as it gets. Rather than only getting one snare as you might in other packages, this one comes with several.

Each snare should be at least 48 inches long, making them useful for all sorts of projects. Nonetheless, having a multi-pack of them stored in your survival kit is a great way to ensure your food supply. One of the most convenient features is the quick-loading wire. The result is a nearly instant wire pull that drastically increases the chances of you catching the prey.

As the loop closes, it slides along the plastic rather than dragging and chipping away at the steel. As you can see, there are numerous reasons why so many people choose these snare wires.

You can throw them in your bug out bag or start hunting with them right away. Rather than buying the first product that you see, you should keep an eye out for the different factors mentioned below. My recommended snares meet all of the criteria above.

Having a good set of wire snares are great for emergency or hunting kits because they keep you prepared for a variety of circumstances. Snares designed to capture furbearers by the neck or leg are set directly in the center of the animal's movement path. Snares usually are held in an animal's movement path with one of several different support systems.

One support that works particularly well can be constructed from a inch piece of gauge galvanized or 9-gauge soft wire. A "V" bend is made in the support wire about 4 inches from the end and driven into the ground with a notched rod to prevent the support from moving in the wind.

The snare is wrapped around the support about three times and held in place by a "U" configuration formed in the upper end of the snare support. Bend the snare cable upward slightly, just inside the lock, so the snare loop is not closed by the wind see Figure 1.

Attach snares to a solid object so captured animals cannot escape. Attach snares to the rebar with a strong swivel to prevent tangling and breaking. Use a lead cable that is at least as strong as the snare cable to attach short snares to the rebar stake. Avoid using 9-gauge wire or several strands of gauge wire to anchor snares to a rebar stake because they may bend back and forth, crystallize, and break.

When used for beaver, snares also can be secured to a tree that is at least 6 inches in diameter or to the base of a large shrub such as a willow. Snares set in holes under woven wire fences should be held in place about 1 to 2 inches from the fence with the snare support system described in Figure 1. The top of the snare can be as high as 3 inches above the bottom wire of the fence.

Set the snare far enough away from the fence to prevent the lock from catching on the bottom wire of the fence. The bottom of the loop should be about 2 inches above the bottom of the hole or coyotes and foxes may be caught by a front leg. With either of the above snare support systems, anchor the snares to the heavy-gauge wire on the bottom of the fence.

The upper wires on a woven wire fence usually are too weak to secure a snare. Snares occasionally are placed in the field but left unset for one to two weeks. This placement allows trappers to quickly set snares when pelts become prime and reduces human scent at the site.

Snares usually are set in the form of a round or oval loop. A round loop that is 12 inches in diameter can form an oval loop that is about 14 inches high and 10 inches wide. The following round loop diameters and heights above ground are recommended when snaring furbearers Table 1. Table 1. Animals usually follow the easiest route through heavy cover. These routes, which generally consist of trails, are excellent locations to snare furbearers. Specific locations to set snares for individual species follow.

Beaver Trails to uplands--place in water or on land along the route. Trails over dams--set on top or bottom side of water. Narrow creek passages. Den entrances: Construct a 2- to 3-inch high mound with mud and apply beaver castor. Make a V-shaped fence by placing old branches vertically in the mud. The center of the V should be open.

The V should point toward the mound and be located about 1 foot from the mound. Place the snare in the opening with the bottom of the snare about 2 inches below the water. Under ice at lodges and food caches. Coyotes and Red Foxes Trails leading to a carcass, bone pile, or pond. Trails in the bottom of ravines. Trails under fences.