It was found that wood traps wore out frequently and washed ashore more often as a result of storms and strong under-currents. Lobstermen pull their traps by attaching a hook to the rope of the buoy and pulling it up by hand. These traps can weigh up to 100 pounds when full of lobster. It is common to spot a lobsterman by his muscular forearms, shoulders and back, an all around rough burly breed. It takes a lot of guts to be a lobsterman, but it's a good honest living.
Lobstermen can identify their traps by the colors painted on the floating devices called buoys.
Each lobsterman has a different color scheme. There is no governing body to issue these colors, they just know who has which colors. These buoys are attached to the trap by a long rope. A flat piece of concrete block is used as a weight to hold the trap down. They also have different territories for their traps.