Soft Shell Question

[BA23]

The other day I was fortunate enough to pull up my trap (hotel style) and find a huge crab that had just molted. He's been in there a few days. The reason I say "fortunate" is because in the past I've had crabs molt, but they're quickly devoured by the others in the top compartment. I toss a piece of bunker in the top compartment to make sure they eat while I'm waiting for the trap to fill. Needless to say, I fried him up and it was delicious. I'm on a lagoon, so I usually always have a few crabs out back for a quick meal. My question is - other than an elaborate set-up, is there any way I can concoct something to hold a few crabs (waiting for them to molt)? I'm thinking a set-up that I can toss into the lagoon? I know there's a way to tell when I crab may lose its shell by examining the back flipper so this might be a good way to test my "knowledge." My wife is actually behind me on this endeavor since she's the one who ate most of the soft shell crab - so I need to take advantage of the "situation"  Any suggestions are appreciated.

[Mikie]

Any type of cage or float is all you need. Just make sure you only put ripe peelers in it, any other stage of crab will eat the soft crab as soon as it sloughs. If you have eels there, you will have to use a very small mesh (less then 1/2") because the eels will eat the soft crabs faster then the other crabs will.

[jack1747]

https://www.bluecrab.info/redsign.htm

Get a cheap minnow trap at walmart..   pinch the funnels shut.  put the peeler in that...  eels and mini's cant get to the soft crab. 

[Harford Crabber]

I used to do this very thing when I was a kid in the 1960's. I made a box about 2 feet x 2 feet out of slats of wood about 2" x 1/2" and spaced them about 1/4" apart.  The top was also the same slats, even the door.  I always broke off the moving side of the end of their claws before putting them in the box.  That way they can't pinch you when you reach in.  Once they're bustlers you'll wanna  move em to a seperated section alone. You gotta check bustlers about every hour otherwise you'll end up with papershells.  I didn't check em often enough and we ate a lot of softcrabs that we had to pull the flexy backshell (carapace) off before frying em because they had gotten too hard.  

[jack1747]

Buckram.. 

[evinrude 130]

I have put them in a bucket with water form my crabbing area. They sloughed out in the bucket. Also used my live well one fall, filled it with water and checked the next morning and had a soft crab. It was neat to see them slough out, truly a miracle that they can do that.

[Harford Crabber]

Buckram..  

Guess it depends on where ya grew up.   I grew up in Dorchester County but I never heard of a buckram til I read it on this website.  Growing up they went from being papershell that you threw back to being a "trash" crab that you got a couple cents a pound for.