Ambush vs regular hoop nets

It seems like many if you prefer the ambush type nets rather than the regular ones?  Can't seem to find any ambush type anywhere so I decided to go for the regular hoop net since they had them at my local fishing store.  Is it much harder to catch using these rather than the ambush?  I'm guessing the advantage is that the crabs get trapped and can't get out once in the bait rather than having to pull it up at the exact right time.

I don't have much experience with them, but from what I've read and understood, they can catch just as many.  You'll want to have bait that creates a scent and bait that they can actually feed on.  The scent will attract them and then the bait they can feed on will keep them there and avoid them giving up and moving on.  I'm sure those with more experience will chime in, too.

The ambush ones (some people call them conicals) help prevent crabs from escaping, but they can still escape. The simple rings are all about luck. If you don't load the rings with enough bait to keep them around, they will move on. With rings, you really need to check on them at least every 15min - 30min. With the conicals, I've left them alone for up to an hour.

As I posted elsewhere, check Fishing247 for a tutorial on how to DIY your own conical.

The regular hoops are great for locating the crab. I check them every 10 minutes (even less sometimes) and move them around until I find an area with dungies. Once I find a good spot, I move my ambush hoops close by and leave them for longer 30 min soaks. I think the regular hoops are definitely an undervalued tool

Both work just as good… as the other….just find crab. Crabs are unbiased with crab gear…. Their preference is in the bait.

Both work just as good… as the other….just find crab. Crabs are unbiased with crab gear…. Their preference is in the bait.

Don’t ambush traps wait for crabs to congregate then pounce on em’ like a halibut?  That sounds more efficient than a lazy ol’ hoop net….in my opinion…

With both ambush and hoop you want to pull up pretty regularly, but with a hoop even more so.  Crabbing off the dock in Albion you could observe the crabs as they would hone in on your bait and how they feed.  What I saw over and over again was that the bigger crabs run in and if they can get a piece of bait they take it and run off to eat it.  The smaller ones hung around longer.  So we played the game of how long to wait for a pull, anywhere from 1 minute, to 5 or so.  It was often the 1 minute pulls that had the larger dungies in it in my experience.  An ambush hoop I think at least keep them in the hoop while they eat their prize, and you wont have to pull as often. Heck in Taku's video dropped yesterday, he used snares from his kayak and was catching them pretty quickly compared to those with hoops.

Both work just as good… as the other….just find crab. Crabs are unbiased with crab gear…. Their preference is in the bait.

Don’t ambush traps wait for crabs to congregate then pounce on em’ like a halibut?  That sounds more efficient than a lazy ol’ hoop net….in my opinion…

Makes sense Eddie!

Both work just as good… as the other….just find crab. Crabs are unbiased with crab gear…. Their preference is in the bait.

Don’t ambush traps wait for crabs to congregate then pounce on em’ like a halibut?  That sounds more efficient than a lazy ol’ hoop net….in my opinion…

Makes sense Eddie!

You would know...I've seen your traps are alive and well...hope to see ya' on da wattah!  Happy Thanksgiving Month