any other crabbers here????

[tomc]

i just picked up 2 eagle claw crab traps from cabelas,and hopeing for a good year,its been tough for the past 3 years here in conn.for blue crabs,anyone else go for these guys?
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[tubeN2]

Hey there tomc. I do lots of crabbing on the West coast. Although we don't have as many blues as we used to. They only stayed in a few primary areas which are way too polluted now.

I have 6 of the round hoopnet traps with the built in bait pocket. 3 of them are 30" and 3 are 36".

I mostly go for Red Crab, Dungeoness, Red Rock Crab, Blonde Rock Crab(true species), Spider Crab and Kelp Crab. There are a few other species here too but they are too small. ie: Fiddler Crab, Hermit Crab, Ghost Crab and the most recent visitor(invasion style) The Chinese Mitten Crab.
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[Tarpon4me]

Yes sir buddy!!! I love some fresh blue crabs! Drop them in some boiling water saturated with old bay seasoning, make you slap yo' momma. []

It's actually picking up here in South Carolina. I tell you a little trick that not many people look for, a muddy bottom. If you're dropping your trap on an oyster bed or hard sand bottom, you are wasting your time. Find a good muddy bottom, at the mouth of joining creeks or next to a grassy weedline. They hold thick in those areas. We have little creeks here in the inlet and you can drop traps in the mouth of those creeks and have a dozen crabs in the pot in about an hour. Especially at low tide, they seem to move around more then. I use plain old chicken knecks from foodlion and maybe a little cut pogey if I have any left over.

A helpful hint, I don't know if you've used your traps yet, but if they are designed like mine, you may want to modify the openings inside the trap that allow the crabs to shake down from the top of the trap to the bottom side. I know the two opening in my traps were too closed off and I had to open them up with pliers. I'd get the traps full of crabs and couldn't shake them down because they were too big to fall through the opening. When big, pissed off blue crabs are stuck in a trap and you have to stick you hand in there to get them out, that can make for a painful learning experiance. [pirate] I hope this helps! Let us know how you do[cool]
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[tomc]

hey thanks for the tip,i haven't used them yet,i started the old fasion was with a string,chicken leg and a net,then upgraded to the hoop nets.then i saw these,this year.some guys around here are using the crab hawk,that goes on a fishing pole.the spider crabs were have here are small,lucky to get 12 inches in diameter.never thought you could eat them though
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[gdn443]

[url "http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZNxdm801BNUS"][/url]I sent for the Crab Motel that a sponser of ours makes. With the light winter we just had maybe we can get more than one meal an outing.





[url "http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb068_ZNxdm801BNUS"][/url]
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[Tarpon4me]

Hey Tom, just thought I see if you'd tried out those crab traps yet[cool]
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[tomc]

no, not yet.they are ready to go,i am hoping in a couple of weeks
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[tomc]

today was the first soaking,they worked good,just the blue crabs did cooperate,did get alot of spider crabs.we had a boatload going out 2 crab pots and 3 lobster pots and 3 of us with gear
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[Tarpon4me]

That sounds good. Looks like you have a nice set up on your boat. I noticed what looked like a "Fentress" cutting board in your picture. I was thinking about getting a Bait cleaning station like that one, something that hung over the water. How do you like yours? Is it worth the money?

Is that the one that hard mounts and folds away or is it the one that you stick in the gimble?
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[tomc]

the board works great,it is the one that you stick in the gimble.never came out in rough water,cleans up very easy,never stains.and if you want to just cruise with a bunch of peaple just take it out and put it in the cabin
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[Tarpon4me]

Unfortunately, I don't have the "savvy" cabin to use. However, i'm thinking about getting one. It would save me alot of cleaning. I was looking at the larger sized one. Thanks for the input though. I was wondering how those things worked out. [cool]
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[gdn443]

It can also save your bacon if you hit a rogue wave wrong. It saved mine.[shocked]
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[tomc]

and archies too.lol
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[Tarpon4me]

LOL, it's funny how items in a boat humor different uses in a time of need. [] I once used the entry door to the front of the center console of a friends boat as a paddle. [cool]
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