Quick verdict
Galvanized steel scissor traps that set across a mole's main run and close on the animal as it passes, with red marker flags so the traps are found in the lawn and checked, and a rainproof black coating for a season outdoors. Scissor traps are the most effective mole traps in experienced hands, and the whole skill is finding the active run with a probe. They are set with strong springs; a foot-operated setter keeps fingers clear. A pair lets you trap both directions of a run.
Strengths
- Scissor action is the most effective mole trap type
- Marker flags locate traps in the lawn
- Galvanized and coated for outdoor use
- Catches without bait or poison
- Reusable for years
Weaknesses
- Strong springs; setting by hand risks fingers
- Must be placed in the active main run, found by probing
- A trap in the wrong run catches nothing
The overall YardToolLab Score is out of 100. Section scores are out of 10.
The Trap Mole Catchers Use
Sonic stakes and repellents have mixed results; a scissor trap in the right run has none. Misoull’s traps are galvanized steel scissor traps with a black rainproof coating and red marker flags, set in the mole’s main run so the animal trips the trigger as it passes and the jaws close instantly.
This review is based on the listing specifications and on standard scissor trap technique. We have not used these traps ourselves and the brand is a generic importer.
Finding the Run
Surface ridges are feeding runs the mole may use once. The main run is deeper and straighter, often along a fence or a path edge, and the mole travels it daily. Probe along a ridge to find where it dips deeper, or flatten a stretch of ridge and see where it is raised again by morning. That is the place.
Setting
Dig down to the run, clear the loose soil, and set the trap with the jaws straddling the tunnel and the trigger plate at tunnel level. Cover the hole with a board or loose soil so no light enters, and push the flag in beside it. Check daily. A foot-operated setter such as the DPOD lever compresses the springs with no fingers near the jaws, which is the safe way to set a scissor trap.
Flags
Flags seem a small thing until the second morning, when a trap set in long grass has vanished. They mark the trap for checking and keep the mower off it.
Build
Galvanized steel with a coating survives a wet season in the ground. The springs are strong because they need to be; treat the set trap with respect.
Who Should Buy It
- Anyone with mole runs across the lawn.
- People who have tried stakes and repellents without result.
- Gardeners who want a fast, humane catch.
Common Owner Complaints
Empty traps in the wrong run and the strength of the springs. Find the main run; use a setter.
Technique Tips
Wear gloves when setting so human scent is not left on the trap and the soil, since moles are wary of fresh scent in the run. Keep the tunnel floor smooth and at its original depth where the trap sits; a lump of loose soil under the trigger makes the mole burrow around it. Set two traps facing opposite directions in the same run so an approach from either end is caught. Leave the trap three days before moving it if nothing is caught, then try the next ridge.
Alternatives to Consider
The Victor Black Box for gophers without open jaws. A harpoon trap set from above the ridge. A professional mole catcher where the problem is large.
Verdict
A scissor trap in the main run is how moles are caught, and this set adds the flags and the coating that make daily checking practical. Find the active run, set with a lever and check every morning.
Full specifications
Misoull Galvanized Steel Scissor Mole and Gopher Traps with Red Marker Flags FAQs
Probe along a raised surface ridge to find the deeper main run, dig down to it, set the trap with the jaws straddling the run and the trigger in the tunnel, cover the hole with soil or a board to exclude light, and plant the flag.
A set trap under the turf is invisible by the next day. The flag finds it for daily checks and keeps the mower off it.
Flatten a section of ridge; if it is raised again by the next morning, the mole uses it. Set there.
A correctly set scissor trap kills instantly, which is why they are recommended over live traps that stress and often kill the animal slowly.
