Soft-shell crabs are what we get after stone crabs go through their molting stage and shed their hard shells. The process typically takes two to three hours. It's extremely difficult to determine how old a stone crab is. So, its age is determined by how many times it has molted. It's estimated that, in wild and unharvested populations, males live between 7 and 8 years while females live between 8 and 9 years. Stone crabs are generally right-handed – The right hand is often bigger than the left and stronger. The animal has powerful claws either way. The limb is capable of crushing 19,000 pounds per square inch.