Hello Mark,
Thank you for getting in touch. We would not recommend drilling a hole in the treadle plate and would instead suggest that you place the bait underneath the treadle plate rather than on top. We wouodl also suggest using a loose bait such as a grain bait. It may be the case that the vermin you are trying to catch are too light to trigger the plate, and in this case we would recommend adjusting the sensitivity of the trap.
Full directions on how to do this are inside the instructions which came with the trap but to summarize; 'the amount of brass trigger caught under the brass notch will determine the sensitivity of the trap. The trigger mechanism can be adjusted by gently pushing the treadle plate upwards or downwards, according to personal preference.'
If you would like us to email you or post another copy of the instructions, which can also be foudn on our website, we would be more than happy to do so. We also have a Youtube video showing how the trap should be set: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOxocGuAcu4
If you would like to speak to one of our team we would be more than happy to help on 01258 818239.
