Sorry I didn't see this thread earlier, but you got some good advice from the other guys anyhow.

If the water is cold and you check your traps every day, the meat is excellent.

I have some 330's hanging about itching to get back into service you are more then welcome to borrow them if you need more . I can put them in the mail tomorrow . You will find it is harder to stop trapping then to start , very addicting .
 Fred

Fellas how hard is it to set up those 330's? I have gotten a PM or 2 about how not to miss with 'em cause for a newbie like me I could wind up with a broken arm or worse??? Really not sure even how they work??? Anyone got some good pics???

A .22 is not a good idea. I've shot them before and still had to kill them later, after a good hit. You need more gun, if you're going to shoot them. They're tough.

I trapped them for several years. I used leg-holds because at the time I couldn't afford kill traps. They key is to set the leg-hold traps near deep water, and use a cable with an L-shaped connector with a hole drilled in it that allows the chain on the trap to go down, but the L keeps them from going back up. The cable has to have a good weight on the end to hold the beaver down and drown it when it dives into the water to get away.

Maybe now you know why the kill traps are considered better. More humane. I quit because I wasn't comfortable with the method. If you don't drown them they will chew off the leg or foot to get free.

Dan Quillian introduce his son D. D. to bowhunting by setting him up on a beaver pond to shoot a beaver when they came out at dusk. It was D. D.'s first bow kill. Break the dam and they will come.

I had a friend in Bumpass who had problems with beavers. She got permission, and I went in with a rifle to help her out. I used a .22, got one and lost one. Sank into the water and I never found it. There are better cartridges.

Killdeer

You'll have to use trap setters to set those 330's. 40 years ago I could set a 330 with my bare hands. Of coarse I could shoot a 100# bow then too. Last summer I tried to set a 220 conibear which is the next size down from a 330 and I had to use the setters. It's hell gettin old.

GOOD LUCK,,,

Are there any videos of how to set them up? And doing it safely?

Plenty, just search youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRQxdvT0J8I

I used to shoot lots of beaver with a 22 then swithched to a 22 magnum, they both work.  Trapping is probably better if you want to get them all and fast but shooting is a lot of fun too.  Just sit in a good spot at dusk and wait them out, a scope is pretty important.  Everything the others said about trapping is pretty much spot on.

have fun with it!

Just a thought check the Virginia DNR website for laws and licensing.I know in Jersey you have to take a Trapping course and get a trap license and have all the traps and snares tagged and labeled.Then again Jersey is a joke!. Be careful beavers are strong little critters and like any animal when caught can get a little PO'd.Keep us informed

330 Conibears are the way to go....Don't be afraid of them...just respect them for what they are, a powerful body grip trap.  If something gets in a conibear it'll be there when you get back to check.  I used to trap beavers and coyotes for hunting priveledges on a 900 acre peice of private land in South Mississippi.  I think you'll find skinning them is harder than catching them.  Oh, get a good pair of hip waders and a sharp hatchet for your stakes.

I hated skinning beavers with a passion. You have to cut every inch of the way, and the fat layer is very hard to get off. The tanned hides are fantastic, though, and done in the round they make a beautiful rug.