Who is preparing for this season?

Hello everyone!

It's been a long summer and the transition to all work and no play to some work and allot of play is finally here for me. The shorter days and longer shadows really get me going.

I am starting to prep for the upcoming season with a few new additions to my equipment. I just received a pair of JC Conner chaps thanks to nvsage's advice and enough SC big paws pans to up grade the rest of my fleet. What if any new additions are you guys and gals adding to your equipment this season?

So after 10 days of no response, I guess the answer is "no one is preparing for the season." :-(

I'm ready.lol just finished boiling the traps, looking forward to new adventures with some mb 550's

I pretty much got the prep done by last spring.

Not much change in equipment or tactics for this year.

But I like to alternate or change trapping areas to give some a rest. This year I'm going back to a good area which was hot for three years then fell off the fourth. I haven't worked it for last three seasons. Very curious to see if the cats are back. Will know day one by the sign. Old sets become toilet stops it seems. Not massive toilets but a poop or two to show a cat has come by. If the sign is there I will set heavy. If not, not.

Haven't checked in here in a while. It is about that time Moneyspots! I am ready to go besides my wax dirt. I have almost 200 gallons of dry dirt sifted and ready to go and start waxing week after next. I will also set traps that same week. Picked up 50lbs of flake wax today from Montgomery while in salt lake.
Jared I bet you will love those chaps. I know i liked em much better than using regular knee pads.

So the JC chaps have knee pads now?

They come with a pretty good sized heavy duty foam insert that can be changed out when they get perminately smashed with use.

Ran down stares and found my replacement inserts.

Here's a little video. Took some fish oil and BBQ grease and poured it in a 3" hole on level ground. The coyotes have just cratered this place.

Sweet video Tracy. I was using urine with a little fish oil mixed in it a couple years ago on the sides of my walk through's. The Coyotes destroyed my sets while not disturbing my trap.

Sun rendered fish oil is the only lure/bait I make myself these days. It has always worked well for me for all predators. It is loud which is imp. for cats. And can be easily made in quantity. A good wholesale lure business could be had by someone with access to lots of rough fish, like in a sportfishing port. $30 to 50 per gallon would be a fair price and a person could make hundreds of gallons for just the labor put into it which isn't much.

A lot of trappers have said it is hard to make but I have never had bottles blow up or break or fly problems. Simply chunk any fish, and rough greasy fish like carp or catfish are excellent, and put the chunks into a one gallon ice tea bottle. Leave outside of course and the fish oil rises to the top over several days. It can be sucked out of there by one of those turkey juice gizmos with the suction bulb and put into a smaller squeeze bottle to carry on the line.

It is very handy for re luring. Just squirt a generous stream on the walkthroughs and you are out of there. The new smell may just be the ticket for a finicky cat. For coyotes it can be squirted on a bush ten to twenty feet away from the set to get them close. Or right down a dirthole.