The actual outline sketches and material requirements for a box trap and portable pen trap are included in a photo album along with some photos of those traps.  Enlarge the photos with text to read the specifications.  The narrative for fabricating the box trap is available here (below).

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http://feralhogtraps.com/Gallery

                                       Notes on Constructing Hog Trap
                                                Improved Ever-ready

Begin construction of the hog trap by first welding the two side panels (8’1” x 45”).  Square cuts are used (smaller sticks abutted to the top rail) to form the 90-degree angles instead of using 45-degree cuts for the end pieces.  (If 45-degree cuts are preferred, then the end pieces need to be adjusted for size.)  The wire panel is then welded to the frame.  The wire panel will be on the inside of the trap on the sides and on the outside on the front and back of the trap.  The four end squares of the wire panel (two tops and two bottoms) are cut off before welding the wire panel to the frame.  This allows smooth joining of the two sides with four 70 ½ ” bars to form a rectangular box 8’1” x 6’1” x 45” high.

When welding the panel wire onto the two sides, the area between 36 and 40 inches on top toward the entrance is not welded.  This will allow cutting out the wire and welding a cross piece for top and trigger support at this location.  One of the bottom slots on each side near the center of the trap should not be welded, as well, since the support for the root out bar will be attached at this location.  If one chooses to attach a bottom to the trap (not recommended unless trapping in deep sand) the root out bars can be omitted and the stopped bar can support the bottom extension.

Once the two sides are welded and joined with the four bars to form a box, the other small bars are inserted into the joining bars and welded in the appropriate spots. The three different wires panels (2 (12 x 44 inch) panels on the entrance and the 40 x 40 inch on the exit wall) are welded onto the box frame.  (If metal filler is not used to close the openings of the rails on the corners of the trap, adjust welding the corner pieces of the wire panel onto the fame.)  The root out bars are then attached parallel to the sides (with a six-inch space).  Support bars  (6-inches) on either side are inserted near the center of the sides (at the area left not welded).

The three gates are then welded and attached.  If the 12 x 32 inch metal guide plates are not used, (just wire panel on the gates) the center bar for the entrance gates should still be welded at about 12 to 16 inches from the bottom to form a guide for hogs to enter the trap after the gates close.  The top end squares of the gates (opposite the hinges) may be cut out to allow better release of the trigger mechanism.  A ½ inch pipe with a spacer welded on (such as a ½ x ½ bar or similar metal) cut into two-inch pieces form the hinges.  Two hinges are attached to the frame (top and bottom of the inter- locking attachment) and the other two hinges are welded onto the gate inside the top and bottom hinges with a ¼ inch space from the top hinge.  A ½ rod (@ 38 “with a 90 degree plus a 2 inch angle at the top is inserted into the hinges to form the swivel for the gate opening.  The rod should be used during welding to insure the alignment on the hinges is correct.  To determine the bottom height of the gate the stopper bar is laid down on the ground and a one-inch square tube is laid on top.  The ½ inch rod will allow a small drop (to @ ¾ inch) at the end of the gate, but the ½ rod allows more movement in the gates to keep them from binding.  Flat bar is used on the gate hinges on the exit gate instead of the spacer bar to extend the hinge into the interlocking position.

The stopper bar is welded between the root-out bars after the gates have been installed to determine where to insert it.  The edge is at the endpoint of the gates closed.  It should be moved back far enough to allow welding the stoppers (2-inch ¼ x 2 inch flat strap) on top of the bar.  There may some space in front of the gate closures.  It is advisable to weld 4-inch long matching tubing in front of the stopper.  A 1/8 by 1 or 1 ½- inch flat strap (@ 24 inches long should be welded onto one of the gates (from the bottom) to prevent a hog from separating the gates with its snout.  The root-out bars underneath the entry gates are cut to size, angle, and welded after the gates are operational.

A 3-inch (1/4 by 2-inch) flat bar strap is welded onto the frame at the center of the entry.  Two holes @3/8 inches each should be drilled into the end.  This will allow a place to tie the ends of the springs used to close the entry gates.

The top support bar is welding into place after the gates are operating to determine where to locate the bar.  A 48-inch ½ inch rod inserted into a ½ pipe (2 inch length on either side) plus a 90-degree bend of about 4 inches on each end to hold the entry gates open.  A 3-inch flat bar with a ½ inch hole in the bottom is welded in line with the 90-degree bends.  This will allow tying a wire from the rod to the exit end of the trap to spring the doors.  A pan is tied to the wire to make the system work better than trying to see if the hog trips the wire by itself.

The top panel is then welded, which consists of two cattle panels (52” with the 4” part cut off) welded together and onto the frame.  Abutting the two manufactured tops should make for a better fit.

The exit or load out gate is latched using two ½ inch pipes welded one on the frame and the other on the gate at a 45 degree angle to allow a ½ inch rod (@6 inches to slide through.  A spacer may be used on the gate to get a better fit.  The flat strap as a hinge should allow the gate to open all the way to the inside.  The angle iron is placed @ 2 ½ inches above the lower tube and the exit gate fits into the angle of the iron for support against the hogs pushing out from the inside.  Elevating the gate keeps it from being hampered by any rooting on the inside.  It is recommended that the exit gate be located on the right side of the trap as one looks at it from the exit toward entry.  This allows one to back up toward the trap with the gate in sight.

Note:  The outlines and material requirements for two traps will be published in a photo album soon.  Until then, you may contact us for a e-mail Excel copy.