gary350
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We should have gone camping today it is going to snow 6" tonight.
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Post by gary350 on Oct 5, 2015 13:10:34 GMT -8
There has been a rash of Camper Trailer Theft in Middle Tennessee area from Nashville to Chattanooga to Knoxville that I personally know about.
My cousin in Smyrna TN had their camper trailer stolen a year ago from their yard. It has never been found.
People from church, Murfreesboro TN had their camper trailer stolen in June from the yard. It has never been found.
2 people had ADs on CL about stolen camper trailer in Tennessee area this summer. Not been found yet.
Last night TV News reports, Investigators report a camper trailer theft ring in the Middle TN area for 2 years. Several owners reported the camper was stolen from their yard, they left for an hour when they returned home the camper was gone. Investigators think it has to be 2 people, 1 is the look out the other is the driver. When the look out sees the people leave home the driver comes and takes the trailer. TV News said, investigators say, about 30 camper trailers have been stolen from the State Parks while the owners were away. Investigators said, many of the trailers had anti theft devices on the hitch and some were chained to a tree.
My personal opinion, Tennessee is one of the few states that does not require a title or tags on any type trailer as long as it does not cross the State line into another state. Someone probably has an oxygen/acetylene torch in the back of a truck so they can do a quick job of cutting off any anti theft device. They are probably repainting the trailers and reselling them. Before I go camping again I want to figure a way to keep my camper from being stolen. There are GPS tracking devices $40 online that will tell you where your camper trailer is all the time this might be the easiest way to know where your trailer is if it is stolen. I am also thinking of jacking up 1 wheel and removing the whole wheel and HUB. It is likely thieves might has spare tires but not likely they will have a hub to fit my axle.
Does anyone else have a good idea how to keep a trailer from being stolen? ??
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kirkadie
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Post by kirkadie on Oct 5, 2015 17:40:54 GMT -8
Staycations? Really, Is this all our own fault? Maybe if we used spray foam and duct tape, carpet on walls, and texture paint and posted on Clist for $100 nobody would care. What I'm saying here is I blame all you craftsmen and craftswomen for making our family outings history come back to life better than when first built is what has caused crud built trailers to be worth 5, even 10 times what they cost new. Why couldn't you all have just left all those awkwardly odd shaped scrap wood and tin derelicts be, huh?
What's next, Canned Ham Cartels? Oh the humanity.... |
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Oct 5, 2015 17:44:00 GMT -8
"Investigators said, many of the trailers had anti theft devices on the hitch and some were chained to a tree."
Depressing.
You can't pull the hub off every time you stop for lunch.
It brings up a good topic. Are you better off leaving the outside of the camper looking dented and rough while the inside is beautiful? New skin and pristine paint is like putting a sign on your camper..."Steal of vandalize me!"
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Post by vikx on Oct 5, 2015 21:36:27 GMT -8
I say leave it hooked to your vehicle or pull a wheel. Possibly flatten both tires, remove the valve stems, then have a handy dandy compressor along. OK, let's get serious. Please post ANY AND ALL ideas. Our fancy wheel squeezer dollies might deter some thefts. *I* can't get the darn things off the tires, much less a thief... www.harborfreight.com/1250-lb-capacity-vehicle-positioning-wheel-dolly-61917.htmlThey would raise the trailer a nip, but the stack jacks would stabilize. This would be a real opportunity to video a theft in sorta progress. Snicker. I believe it was SusieQ who mentioned painting the VIN on the roof. If ya have a plane, yeah... Are the tire block/locks any good? |
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Post by bigbill on Oct 6, 2015 1:42:47 GMT -8
As bad as I hate to say it locks and locking devices only discourage honest people. Probably the best device would be a very loud audible alarm located inside the trailer, triggered by motion. But even that can be defeated by a very determined thief. Thieves don't like noise or lights, this is a proven fact.
Now with all that said buy insurance go camping and enjoy life. Even with all of the thefts the odds are in your favor that you won't have any problems.
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gary350
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We should have gone camping today it is going to snow 6" tonight.
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Post by gary350 on Oct 6, 2015 4:40:06 GMT -8
I am going to check into insurance today. I think I will buy a hitch lock and 50 feet of 3/8" chain today I don't want it to be easy for the thief. Maybe a motion detector siren near the camper trailer will scare away thieves. Maybe some type of booby trap will work. One pound of black powder in a pipe bomb attached to the trailer hitch lock, if a thief puts a torch to that it will blow his arms off.
A few years ago we had someone break into our house one night while we were asleep, we never woke up. They came in through the back door in search of car keys to steal a vehicle in the garage. Next morning both garage doors were open and all the doors on both vehicle were open. They never found the keys so they stole the neighbors SUV and drove the wheels of it for a week then dumped it in the river. Police said, motion detector lights out side will keep thieves away and a loud barking dog will keep thieves out of the house. You can buy motion detectors that BARK.
When I was in college my room mate slopped several different colors of paint all over his new bicycle. He glues broken glass, nuts, bolts and all kinds of trash to the frame. He tries pieces of wire, rope and plastic around the frame. He even splattered paint on the tires and wheels and stuck pieces of cardboard between the spokes. It looked like it had just been pulled out of the trash. Bicycle theft was very high but no one every tried to steal his trashy looking bike.
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nccamper
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Post by nccamper on Oct 6, 2015 4:54:24 GMT -8
"You can buy motion detectors that BARK." We can also get escorted out of the State Park by the Trooper when it stays on all day while we're hiking.  |
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gary350
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We should have gone camping today it is going to snow 6" tonight.
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Post by gary350 on Oct 6, 2015 5:01:33 GMT -8
"You can buy motion detectors that BARK." We can also get escorted out of the State Park by the Trooper when it stays on all day while we're hiking. Put the barking sound maker part inside the trailer so it sounds like a dog locked in the trailer but have the motion detector outside near the trailer hitch. I have not seen one of these barking motion detectors yet not sure how they work? |
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Post by trihartsfield on Oct 6, 2015 7:55:55 GMT -8
German Shepard
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Post by vintagebruce on Oct 6, 2015 8:29:31 GMT -8
Put up blackout curtains and a bear trap just inside the door...it will still get stolen, but the police will have the advantage of eliminating anyone who is not limping badly.
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61corsair
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Post by 61corsair on Oct 6, 2015 9:41:52 GMT -8
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Post by bigbill on Oct 6, 2015 10:48:36 GMT -8
A wheel boot again works well for honest people but only takes a thief less than a minute to take off using a power inverter, a compressed air tank, and a plasma cutter. This makes very little noise, light, or anything else to draw attention.
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Oct 6, 2015 11:54:05 GMT -8
A wheel boot again works well for honest people but only takes a thief less than a minute to take off using a power inverter, a compressed air tank, and a plasma cutter. This makes very little noise, light, or anything else to draw attention. Also what if the thief destroys the lock trying to bust it? Then how do you get it off your wheel? The best anti theft method is to never leave your trailer unattended or out of sight. If you are stuck with parking it in your drive way then chain it to the concrete like John Palmer does. Even if you have a lojack in it, are the police going to drop everything to help you find it? Probably not. Here in CA. If your car is stolen they don't even show up for 8 hours to take a report. So the police are completely useless unless you want someone shot. Then just give the person you want shot a beer bottle and tell him to throw it at a police car. The cops will jump out and empty their clips into them. |
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gary350
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We should have gone camping today it is going to snow 6" tonight.
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Post by gary350 on Oct 6, 2015 12:38:16 GMT -8
Campers typically close the doors and windows then leave during the day to hike, explore, canoe, fish, swim, etc. I would assume thieves drive through the camp ground looking for camper trailers that appear locked up and vacant. IDEA. Leave the camper door wide open, leave window open a little bit, open all the curtains, put a dummy inside at the table so he appears to be on the laptop computer. Leave a dummy taking a nap in the bed with window blinds open. If you have a very realistic looking dummy put it outside sleeping in a recliner lawn chair next to the door under the awning. If you can make it appear people are home thieves will drive by and not stop.
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Ten
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Post by Ten on Oct 6, 2015 14:42:17 GMT -8
Hire a guard.  |
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