what does everybody recommend, or use. in terms of snare wire gauge. mainly for my psk's and/or bug out bag.....mtnfolk

I like to use steel guitar strings. I can twist an eyelet into one end. I like the Low and High E strings. Sometimes the low E with the wire wound around it grabs better. Sometimes the high E works better. They are already cut to the right length for me.

I've got a couple rolls of 24GA (.020 inch diameter) stainless steel wire. Works great! Send me a SASE and I'll hack off a twenty foot length for ya.

just out of curiosity, do you use new or used strings?

Cheap new ones. <img src="/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

get ragnar benson's book on surival poaching, learn to use insulated electrical wire.

Would you happen to have information sites on how to make snares? I have read a bit about them but I have absolutely no idea on how to make one and I am positive that I would never catch anything with one. I'd have to rely on water and skip on the animal food.

I got a small roll of steel wire in my PSK but I presume I would use it for repairs, to help building a shelter or to make hooks of some sort.

making a trap/snare is the easy part of trapping, the hard part is to do it right. You really must understand how animals behave before you will catch anything, unless you very very lucky! They will not just walk right in to the snare for you, perfect conditions like printed in many survival books is something i have yet to see, so don't rely on it to bring you food.

I agree. An understanding of animals is part of successfully using snares.

Other useful skills that will help:
The ability to read tracks and droppings to determine whether the particular animal one is attempting to snare can indeed be snared with the equipment on hand and/or what type of snare or trap would be best suited to catch whatever animal is leaving the aforementioned signs.

The ability to locate trails within the landscape that animals use consistently to travel to and from either food or water sources and/or how and with what to bait a snare or trap that will lure an animal out and/or the ability to locate dens, burrows, nests and other places that animals will consistently return to or leave.

Setting multiple snares in a variety of areas that animals tend to travel will up the odds.

The ability to masks one's own sent and other signs that will alert an animal to a dangerous presence is important.

The best time to set a snare or trap so that an animal won't happen across one during their routine

And so on...

Bee, Unfortunately I don't know of any sites on the web off the top of my head that offer a whole lot more information that you wouldn't already find in the US Army SurvivalFM21-76 or in the SAS Survival Handbook. However, if I run across one or two I'll try to get the links to you.

I learned most of what I know in this area from other people including older family members that grew up in a time or area of the world where this type of information was important. This type of information still is important of course, but it has been a generation or three since it was commonly considered as such unfortunately.

I'd have to agree whole heartedly with that, snaring/trapping is an aquired skill, something you build with time. On the other hand, a handful of fish hooks, a dozen 10 ft lengths of high test fishing line, as many rocks, and some corn or pieces of bread will get you a meal of local birds to eat, but keep in mind that the game warden WILL NOT smile on your activities.

Troy

nothing to it at den mouths, for prairie dogs, chucks, etc. Smooth wire won't prevent the critter tossing it off. you need a "one way" device of some sort. You can arrange one with a small pc of angle iron, drilled with a couple of holes, or for small critters, Benson claims that the standed electrical wire has the same effect.

Buckshot's Camp has info. He's so fos about the guns needed for shtf that I could never get the guy to talk sensibly about much of anything, tho.

you need an area that "funnels" critters into your trap, or bait. Such funnels can be made,but it's a lot of work. Woven wire fence can be overlapped, used to make box traps, for fish, turtles, birds, critters. It protects the catch from predators, and it can, in some cases, catch more than one bird or fish. You want to read Ragnar Benson's Survival Poaching book.

Thanks, I'll have to check that book out.

Though I'm pretty confident in this area, I can always use as much information on the subject as possible. There's always a trick or tip to be learned.

I've read a lot of Ragnar's books, they are both informative and entertaining, but probably just a bit hard-core, right wing for most of the folks here (being a reformed doomsdayer, I laughed my donkey off at a lot of his lines that some folks would find a bit too close to the gallows for gallows humor).

Troy

While most of what "Benson" writes is accurate, to a point, but the man is seriously paranoid. Even worse than me. Medication needed paranoid. Even worse, several of his books are radically out of date, yet still being published.

As for using insulated electrical wire, have you tried it? And in what gauge? Solid strand or twisted? Lots of variables, and most of them make the various electrical and electronics wires, if insulated, less than optimal.

Give me bare, 24ga brass every day.

Aaaaah. OK. It's probably not the book for me then unless the information is so far beyond good that I should attempt to wade through it.

Thanks for the info!

I am not goot at traping but i use a Bee Man's wire.
It can cut out fingers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm not so sure that he's so much paranoid as shrude... and rich. He's playing to the audience, just like any other successful performer. There's a reason that his books are still in print, they're still selling <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />.

Kind of makes you wonder just how many would-be "Omega Men" there are out there, doesn't it??<img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />??

Troy

i know about the funnel stuff, but making one that doesn't look suspicious to the game your trying to catch or leaving to much trace, both fysical aswell as smell is a kinda hard...

i have read lots about snaring, but a survival instructor also have showed me how much harder it is in reality...

I'm not sure what Bee mans wire is, but remember, you want to catch and hold the animal, not amputate. That's the problem with foot-hold traps, many times the animal will chew it's foot off to escape. This is one of many reasons that a trap line needs to be checked often.

Troy

Oh, I know, I own several of them *blush* But I will say that if you buy DMSO, there is going to be questions asked, for example. In fact, most of the stuff in the vet meds for people booklet is out of date. And "jack the jaint killer" is way to specialized in terms of set up to have much real worl application. That kind of thing.

I think if he updated and released new editions, I would think higher of his work.

Bunnies are STUPID. Almost as bad as wild turkeys.

But if you want to catch birds, better is to use fish hooks in berries. Brutal, but if you need food that badly...

A quick google search came up with these links on making and using snares. There were many more as well.

http://www.sullivansline.com/sline/bkvd/snar.asp

http://www.survival.com/suburban.htm

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/food-2.php

Doug has provided a copy of the US Military manual on this site in pdf format. It has a section on food gathering, including snares. I found it very useful. Here's the link: Survival Manual

Regards, Vince

Excellent advice. Make it a point to practice the "locking loop" (detailed in the multiservice SERE manual as well as other places), practice wildlife observation, and if having set a series of snares check them frequently - other critters want to eat your bunnies too.

An interesting online source of info is here:

http://www.us-rsog.org/USRSOG-Trapping.htm

Cheers!

What about aluminum welding wire about 0.030 in size?

where can you get 24 ga. brass wire?

Check with a company called "Tractor Supply" They are a supplier to the "hobby" farmer. They have a large selection of wire. Saw some different size brass wire. Some a fine as heary sewing thread.

One other option I would consider would be using some of the "braided" fishing lines in the 50lb test range. The braided line could be used as snare material, fishing line, thread to repair clothing, possible suture materail. I try to make things in my survival kit multi functional. Helps to cut down on weight or gives the option of carrying something else.

Fishing line's a "second best" choice, at best. You want to use a metal wire (if at all possible) to avoid your catch chewing/clawing/breaking out of the snare. Before Primitives using field spun cordage is brought up, yes, something is better than nothing, but if we're talking survival, I want to improve my odds as much as possible, but that's why my B.O.B. includes a dozen 110 Conibears (for those that don't know, a Conibear is an extremely effective body-grip animal trap).

Troy