Im doing a job by ohare airport here in chicago at a hotel. I come to the job this morning. My bucket and Frost tooth are missing. I had the frost tooth in the bucket locked against the track. So someone Started the machine put the bucket and frost tooth either on a truck or trailer and Left. Brand new 48" central FaB bucket MY frost tooth. ***. I dont understand how no one at a hotel woke up and heard **** Going on. And they odviously planeed it out because they had a cat key. WHere is this world going.
It's amazing what some people have the balls to do in broad public. Man that was a costly loss. Does your machines have a master power cutoff switch on the batteries? I know my Excavator has a power cut off switch on the batteries that you can switch off and remove the key to make sure the machine does not go anywhere. That's just another bad reason for one key fits all machines.
No yeah it has a master key. I hardly shut it off I thought it would be safe. I have our track skidsteer there Im glad they didnt take it. The hotel is saying there insurance will cover it but I dont think they know how much a bucket and frost tooth is going to cost.
Thats a bunch of BS, I agree with Dirtman2007; "It's amazing what some people have the balls to do in broad public." Its getting to the point were nothing is safe anymore, not even your M&M's Sorry Quick story I had a Huge bag of Peanut Butter M&M's that I was keeping in the loader they are having me run at my internship to snack on because I dont get a break for lunch....or dinner for that matter. Anyway Door was locked before I left and came back the next day and the door had been forced open, for a bag of M&M's! (Latch was broken but you still have to really pull, and at just the right angle to force it open) Nobody else that I work with touched the machine because I was the only one there! Its getting really bad, I mean come on M&Ms! Stupid Kids..... :my2c You could alway sleep in the machine with a shot gun..... J/K
Man wouldnt that be awsome tint the windows on the machine sit in there with a shot gun. Those dirtbags open the door. And there staring down my shotgun barrel. Ohh what I would give.
Glad I could help.... LOL
Then they would sue you and take all your equipment... Like you said "what is this world comming to."
They can only sue you if they live...... J/K
Those master keys are universal as well. Taking it out would stop the majority but I know I've got a bunch in my glove box along with several cat ignition keys. Most of the older stuff only uses master keys anyways, for example 16G graders or any of the D series scrapers. There's not really much you can do if someone REALLY wants whatever you have. My friends company had a light plant/genset (minus the wheels) keeping a circle of machines warm. They had it completely corraled with machines. Someone came with a picker truck and plucked it from the middle. Not sure what they did after that since it had no wheels on it, so I guess they brought a trailer too =p They parked the D11 with the blade holding the locked doors of our C-can (metal storage container). Someone climbed up the blade and dropped down between the blade and the doors, cut the lock and stole a bunch of cans of hydraulic oil. Then they parked the grader sideways and leaned the tire right on the lock. Couple weeks that worked ok and then someone came with a torch and cut the side off the C-can and took a 2" pump and a 3" pump. After that I almost ran outta fuel for the 385. Usually I have just over half a tank by the time they come tp fuel me for the day. Extra 500 liters which was sort of odd, but I had just started ripping out some heavy rock so didnt think much of it. Then the next day all 4 rock trucks ran out of fuel 6 hours before they are normally due for a top up. We ended up getting a couple light plants and security for overnight. Worked like a charm (until we finished the site and moved out all the gear, someone came back that very night and stole the light plant!!!).
This area is bad man. My buddie had a skid steer bucket stolen from his shop. It had to have taken 4 mexicans to pick that sucker up too ointhead What makes me mad is that I know they just took it to the scrap yard, and got away with it without any questions. The scrap guys were going crazy around here the last few weeks, but now that the price has dropped, mabey the theft will slow down. My other friend had some punk kids light his ag tractor on fire and burn it to the ground. He bought a new one and put all really tinted windows on it and he sits in it with a shotgun, waiting for them to come again!
Work hard, get sued, Welcome to America
I take it you saw them? Or are Mexicans the only ones that steal in your area?
The gravity of the situation: Are you sure??? If this happened at about sun rise... It could be laying in the weeds... just off site!!! OCR
It was over xmas break last year. Wide open basement site down town. Was there on a friday, then came back monday and it was long gone. Nothing was moved either! All the cords and stuff were still there, just the genset wasn't haha.
The gravity of the situation:!!! Whoops, that was supposed to be a joke, Vantage_TeS.... From the Burning Question thread.... below... You need to read it, to understand... LOL OCR The moon dropped it when the sun came up... I know... Bad.
That's correct. Want a good laugh? Look in your yellow pages under "attorney"....see how many of those bastards are in there!!!!
Would seem to be a very big problem all over ,as an old hand said to me once a lock only keeps an honest man out.On one site I was on when they chouldn't steal anything they vandalised all the equipment. Another tale for you years ago we were working on a live motorway at night when a lowloader pulled up the driver walked up to the shift foreman gave him some documents to say that a 30ton machine that was only 6weeks old was recalled by the manufacture on a safety issue and to bee piped for a breaker, so he went down with the truck told the excavator driver to load it and when done to call it a night and to be in again the following evening (a Friday) the machine was loaded with a brand new breaker and escorted off the site. On hand over the foreman told the dayshift that the machine would be back that night and what had taken place,we arrived in that night and no excavator/breaker and again the following night ,so Monday they rang the suppplier who knew nothing about any recall,they the police who had seen the lowloader pulled it over gave them a ticket for not permit and escorted the truck off the motorway and to the best of my knowledge that was the last that was seen of that truck and load. On a final note from personal expierience I have found that most thefts are by exemployees who know the system that all sites use,and very little to the oppertunist thief
Did anyone ever read that article in "Equipment World" magazine. Titled "HOT IRON". IT was really Good. They had a EX equipment thief write in anonymously about how he used to steel equipment. He had all kinds of stickers for his truck from different equipment Co's, same thing with uniforms, same with work orders etc. He would go get the serial numbers off the machines he planned on stealing and show up during normal work hours show the super the work order load it up and head for the border. He said he never ever stole after normal working hours. He even had a cop escort him through heavy traffic when he was stealing a piece. Very very brazen
Frightening statistics This is from the front of the Equipment Recovery News and while aimed at UK & Europe manufacturers have a global customer base http://www.ter-europe.org/ ‘Institutionally indifferent’ to equipment theft Equipment theft is up 2%, the cost of equipment theft is up 11% and yet still all the equipment associated industries appear to be unable to see the herd of elephants in the room. How can it be that you can start a £50K machine with a Swiss Army knife or a bent nail? Why are there no integrated immobilisers on equipment? Shouldn’t tracking devices be fitted as standard? Why is it that sites have the security of a wet paper bag? How come no one checks whether a used item is stolen before they buy, sell, auction, finance or insure it? Why don’t insurers know what they are insuring when it comes to plant and equipment? Shouldn’t this crime be more of a priority from the Home Office to the police, after all it pumps £1M/week into the coffers of serious organised crime? Have a look at the chart on page 9 of TER’s 2008 Equipment Theft Report which compares Your Car with Your Equipment – read it and weep. There’s still a lot to do to address this crime. END QUOTE. It is up to us that operate in this industry to do something about it. How many owners of plant & equipment that frequent this forum have added or specified additional security systems to thier equipment? and how many have bought stuff whether a Stihl saw or excavator and know that they didnt check as thoroughly as they should have done to make sure the seller was the owner ? I dont expect confessions just think about it.
I read that entire article, it was good stuff. He said that if he saw any equipment with weird antennae's or "James Bond stuff" as he so put it, he wouldn't bother. He also said if the iron was lined up at night that would deter him a little as well, although as you say he was one to use fake work orders and swipe them right under everyone's nose.
Think of it this way, how many people ask questions when a lowboy, or pickup truck show up on the job site to pick something up. Around here there are a few companies that dont have names on the side of their pickup trucks, and they dont have a fleet of alike pickups. I think this may get a little more obvious next year when pickup trucks are required to have DOT #s on the side if they are a company truck. I have worked for guys that you have to beg to get a piece of equipment such as a saw, or a plate packer. Something that every jobsite should have. When I finally got it, i have no way to make it secure, and im not going to be throwing a plate packer in my car. I also wont take the saw home and have the responsibility for it. Im not a foreman. Owners solution. Well, just put the saw in the cab of the machine, and put the plate packer in the bucket of the wheel loader, park it up against the dozer blade. Then, hang the machine key on the dipstick like all of our machines. I have worked at companies that send a connex box, or C can as some call it, to every job. That doesnt stop these pricks. We always tried to park one machine in front of the box so that someone cant winch it up on a trailer. Then we always parked a machine at the back of the box. On one job, someone busted the dash apart on a brand new D6N to hot wire the machine and rip the doors off the box. Same job, a month later, we had a D8N parked with the blade against front of the box, and a komatsu D85 parked in front of the doors. The low lives used the weight of the 8 in front to their advantage. They fired up the d85 and proceeded to open the C can like a can of sardines.
grammer and punctuation, PLEASE
with a handle like you've got !
My older brother used to be a mechanic for a paving company who had been broken into a few times, and had his toolbox cut open with a torch twice. So my brother being the mean SOB that he is started leaveing cans of starting fluid in his box. No one outside of the garage help knew that they were in his box and it never got cut open again, just stolen altogether even though other locks in the building did get cut. Always lead me to believe that it was an inside job. A friend of mine built a new garage and the alarm company did'nt show up on time. But as the rent had run out on the building he was in, they moved in anyways on a friday night. Had 3 1 ton dump trucks parked in the garage loaded with tools,lasers,saws etc waiting to be unloaded, you guessed it someone else unloaded them.
if you are going to start painting , better get a bigger brush, or as a famous book says,"let he without sin cast the first stone":beatsme:beatsme
About keys. I noticed that this sold on Iron Planet to someone from B.C. for $90. It had 24 keys from many different types of heavy equipment. Seems like you would go to a dealer if you needed a key for your own machine. Why would this be sold? This key chain will cover about 99% of your heavy equipment key needs. All keys are 100% tested for accuracy and operability and guaranteed to work. This is a brand new keyset designed to cover the most common machines on the market. See Specifications below for details. Free Shipping within Continental United States.
Im just sayin that was nearly painful to read.
Then don't read it, but you really shouldn't complain about other people's spelling and grammar, after all in just 9 words you made 2 grammatical errors yourself. But on a bigger note there's no need for anyone on here to criticize anyone's typing there's enough of stuff like that in arguments over equipment here.
sayin??????? Is that a word and there sould be a comma after saying, and also its I'm. ointhead
OK guys, grammar lessons are over. I have to agree though that I have difficulty in reading posts that are not punctuated or in paragraph form. Most times I end up skipping them over. Let's get the thread back on topic please.
Three thing's , one is that i'm sure "theft" of machinery will rise as owners find no other way out of their finance debts in such bad times . Two is that a court of law would have a field day with an equipment manufacturer that not only has no theft deterents fitted too machinery but also supplies a master key that fits all of them . And three is that not everyone is well schooled , like myself . Having too leave school early to help with the family income has taken it's toll , but i never felt bad about it until now .
theft we need statutes like Texas. one can defend property with what ever force is necessary.
deterrent the company i work for has had these fitted to all their plant, although not fool proof it is a deterrant and also results in low insurance premium http://www.kosran.com/
Three thing's??? No reason for this at all!!!... Iron Horse.... OCR
OK, the way it was and likely still is, is that equipment operators tend to take keys home with them at the end of a shift. Guess what, they either forget to take the key into work with them the next day, or perhaps it is that the fella on the next shift needs the bloomin key, but it's no where around and the dealer either isn't open, hasn't opened yet, or is a zillion miles away and doesn't have a spare key anyway. What to do then? Leave a couple hundred thousand dollar machine sit while numb-nuts goes home for the key? Well, that's one solution, but most operators just say, "well, it was there when I got off you know....... On some projects with big spreads, the number of keys missing might be several. I've had this happen many times. If I had a dollar for every bloomin lo-bed driver that snatched a set of keys, I have a tidy fortune. On older models of diesels, all you needed was a short piece of iron or steel to short the starter solenoid anyway. No key needed at all. As some here have said, all a lock or a key does is keep an honest person honest. They don't deter thieves for very long. What to do? Simple. The manufacturers either install a T-handle style master switch, or uses two standard keys on every machine they build. I sincerely wish I had a buck for every Cat key I have purchased in the last forty some years. The number is probably in the several thousand range, would make a nice payday for me. I've stocked hundreds of foremen, superintendents, and project warehouses with Cat, Case, Deere and other manufacturers keys. Back in the seventies when I was hangin with some 651B's, I could sell a Tachometer reset key for a hundred bucks cash. But with today's computerized engines, jumping the starter isn't a good option anymore and you really need to have a dedicated key, though I'm not seeing that much yet. Maybe it still isn't a good idea. To my recollection, most of the stuff that was stolen around me was almost certainly done by guys from the inside. I've related elsewhere on these forums some of the stories so won't repeat. Have to admire some of the takings, the guys that did them had big brass ones.
If I remember correctly Doosan rubber ducks use a standard key but you have to put in a code before it will start and as long as the key is in place so is the code, take out the key and you need the code to start, by the way it's a 4 digit code. so no chance of winging it.
I Guess it comes down to the old saying. If They want it bad enough, they will get it. One way or another.
I still don't get it really. There are trucking companies with fleets of truck in the hundreds . Not one of those trucks would have a key that will fit another truck . You would be hard pressed to find two trucks that use the same key anywhere . What's the difference ?
Actually, I was told at one time by a Locksmith that Freightliner only used 7 keys for thier trucks. How much truth there was to that,I don't know. :beatsme
I dont know what to tell you about trucks where you are located. Around here it is common for fleets to be keyed alike. At least each brand truck keyed alike. I know of 25 Sterlings and 30 Volvo- White GMCs that are keyed alike. They are part of a national auto carrier fleet. I also of a few excavation companies that have all their trucks keyed the same.
Fuel thieves Caught one of my employees sucking fuel out of a machine after work one day. guess he figured i had gone home already so was a bit surprised to see me.been having that problem for quite a while already. could have just fired everyone but in a small country like Belize its hard to find a good operator. so just fired one to warn the others. Plus i put padlocks on all fuel tanks. not cat locks though..ha. seems to have fixed the problem for now.
Welcome to the Forums Oil&Dirt!:drinkup
I stand corrected then , i'll shutup now .
Thats what I had fitted on this duck, last duck has over 70 seperate stamps by Thiefbeaters, thats all the glass etched every panel and every solid item like rams, boom dipper, chassis. The Zaxis duck I cross hired earlier this year had exactly the same set up, not sure if they are kosran or thier own but a very good idea. I thought the same as you, never dreamt some road trucks might be key alike
how about the new machines with keypad codes?
Something about the electronic keypads doesnt sit well with me. Seems like it would be too easy to have something break, and even easier to get around.
What to hear a funny story? Well your going to anyways I was on a job a couple years ago and there was a new bobcat mini excavator with the keypad start. Well having never seen one before i was looking at it, sure enough you could see that there were 3 of the 9 buttons that were dirty... you know what that means don't you??? those are the ones used for the code. punched 3 numbers in and it said something like 4 numbers requires so that meant that one # was used twice. Sure enough after 2 or 3 tries I fired the little digger up. I guess it's a little better than a one key fits all
I hear you Chris, but the important thing is that was " A COUPLE YEARS AGO." The Kosran ECV ( electronic control valve ) I think it stands for, is available with key pad and/or a touch button. If you enter a wrong code 3 times it locks out for a couple of minutes, then each time you are wrong it doubles the time delay, AND the ignition has to be on, so no hidding in the dark for 10 minutes till you get another go. The Kubota system ( individual keys ) seems to be VERY effective as several mini exc in the UK have had ignition switches, dash ( only very small ) and arm rests ripped out in attemps to HOT wire the machines with no luck. A lot of damage, Yes but the machine is still there in the morning. For those not aware of the Kubota system, they have a master key that then can copy secondry keys for when the machine goes out on hire/rental.
A lot of the mini-excavators we rent have a keypad system. That makes it a pain for the hauler and mechanics, etc. so they just write the code on the back window in numbers about 6 inches high.
Yep, thats the plant hire industry for you :Banghead
the keypad number is easily changed ,and alot of uk hire co,s will program a number of your choice in we also have the round metal transponder which will bypass the keypad as for the clean /dirty keys ,i keep mine wiped clean as would most operators who keep their cab clean at the end of the day it,s a deterrent not an anti theft device hopefully the thieves will go and find a machine with no devices
I'll give them a hand to take my gear and throw in a carton of beer .
Sucks I hate thieves
Doesn't matter what it is, I had having things stolen from me. Regarding security devices, avoid 4 digit keycodes like the plague! If it's not 6 or more digits, it's no good. As far as dirty keypads. All numbers should be dirty. False numbers, should be even dirtier than the right ones. (for the logic "Dirtiest=most used" Meaning they'd focus on the dirtiest numbers) As far as universal keys, regular automobiles have universal keys. Only 3 different keys are used for 2010 Honda Accords. Only 2 different types of keys are used for 2009 Ford F150s. And personally, you can rig the ignition system to jeopardize itself if it's not jumped properly. Just google ways on how to do it. It'll create a $1,400-7,000 repair. However, It'll save you from losing that $250,000+ machine. Just change what you did to the ignition system prior to your operators getting in the cab. (And make sure none of your employees see what you did, for added security) Just my 2 cents. In my car, I jury rig the transmission and breaks. (I have a way of linking the two) Somone hotwires my car, instant they start going above 35MPH, breaks go out, and the transmission goes out. Insurance will pay me for my stolen, destroyed vehicle, and the guy responsible feels my pain from having my car stolen. And best of all, it's legal. Because there are no state, or federal laws that say you can't jury rig your own car to do the above. Because it's the owners problem. Even had a Lawyer discuss it with me. But you'd BETTER know what you're doing. Legal, and a win-win. I just remember to change my changes prior to driving myself. (And NEVER allow anyone else but myself operate my car, unless I say otherwise, and change what I did prior to lending it if eveR) Mechanics, when they worked on my transmission, the noticed some "wierd stuff" with my transmission, but didn't get what the alterations did. Just some thoughts... OH, and another home-made anti theft system award, goes to my neighbor. If you try and hotwire his truck, there is a 9mm rd placed in a certain spot, where when you break in it to cross the wires, you'll short the box the 9mm rd is in, and said 9mm will shoot into a 5'6'' (average height) mans neck. (where it'd be as if he was leaning over to hotwire it, although, it is seriously extreme because if something goes wrong while driving, he'll get a 9mm in his gut, but hey, if you got a $67,000 truck, you'd take more measures) Another neighbor, further down the road. He's got a built in tazer in the seat. Embedded into the pleather interior. If you don't know where to look for it, you get a tazer to shoot into your SPINE (literally, it shoots darts) so possible spinal damage on top of probably messing up your nervous system from the immediate shock. He flips a "switch" he made in a certain part of the car prior to getting in the drivers seat each morning. (and everytime he plans on driving his car) when he's not driving it, it's switched to "on" and it works... Just another idea of an anti-theft device. Your imagination, and creativity, and mechanical ability, are the only limits. In my neighborhood, people are tired of having things stolen from them.
Rouge bastards =CROSSHAIRS in a nice shootin gun..
My biggest gripe with people who steal, especially, are instances like this mentioned in the thread. Not only does some jerk steal from someone, but takes away from their lively hood. The heavy equipment that had items stolen etc. Were for a job, a job that got people money. Whether employee, or employer. The person who stole the items, stole from everyone. Why that wouldn't be enough for an employee to go ape poo on another employee for stealing (if that was the case) is beyond me. In the long run, employees suffer from the thefts. sometimes even more-so than the Employer. Employer can always pull another loan, refinance, or just close down shop, cut losses and move on. The Employees, get to be left in the dust. Things that tick me off the most, is when someones entire LIVING rests on a piece of equipment working. Or having that one wrench, or that one hammer, or that one truck to be fully functional. Or that person doesn't get to be paid for the work. He don't get paid, his family suffers. Any theft in a workplace, in the end, ultimately effects everyone involved in the company. Small or large, it will have an impact. In my area, when we have construction or anything going on. Even if the residents despise the project being done (taking away property, etc. for it) No one takes it out on the workers, nor their machines. No one dares steal from work sites either. Why? Because they are messing with someones livelyhood by doing so. In a poor town, (relatively) with little budget. Thieves look to suffering personal injury if they were ever caught. If you go up in the mountain area around my town. There is an old lady whos husband rigged "devices" along the doors/windows. (The ones the old lady never uses, ever. So no consiquence) You'd think it was Jigsaw from the SAW series who set them up. (32oz hammer end up going into your face via opening a certain back window from the outside, etc.) When I first started reading this thread, all it ever did was tick me off reading through it. The thieves aren't just taking something for personal gain, they are outright attacking another mans life/job. That's not cool at all.
in aus there was a thing a few years ago where they were going around in a truck with a big hiab and picking up skid steers from yards, go to a rental place where they are all along the fence bingo.
That's just disgusting....
In southern California they had no land line service, here some thieves chopped out some phone line to sell- what is going on here? No fear of God. No prayer in school, no ten commandments on courthouse walls, well what do we expect?
the government sucks at raising kids.
^^^^^^^ big 10-4 fellas. If you catch them, hang them high in town square.
I have a real problem with that. What happens when somebody's wife and kids are in the way when the brakes go out?
I could see where that would be a big problem. Maybe something that renders the vehical useless if moved. I'm sure if you figured out how to make a car takeoff like that you can make it useless.:beatsme
It all sounds perfectly illogical to me. I'm sure its just me though.
A much better thing to do would be to have it go into neutral and apply full breaking power. On my dads jeep that he pulls behind his motor-home, he has a air ram on the master cylinder to assist the breaking while being towed. he hooks an air line up to it when it is parked and applies 120 psi to the jeep breaks, which keeps it from being driven or towed away.
brakes
That happened in Texas too.They cut phone lines,cable for emergency communications.But the real winner are Weiner was the guy who cut into hot electric wires in a fenced in and locked with signs Sub Station.Around 50,000 volts.Wasn't Karma nice?Toasted Thief.
Yeah, they got caught trying to export them. Turns out they were a worldwide group and Australia wasn't the only place they were stealing from. They probably only got a slap on the wrist and away they went
Fortunately I'm single. and don't lend the car out to anyone. (insurance wont cover if the car would crash if someone other than myself was driving it- Unless it's stolen) I'll pick friends up, but wont allow them to drive. It's very simple to rectify via unhooking a latch, and then disconnecting a cord from a home-made plug-in that links the electronic components. Very simple, and take 30 secs to do. To redo it, repeat process in reverse. You were refering to someone elses... Quite frankly... I haven't put that into consideration...... To be honest, up until now, I've never thought about that........... I'll be looking into potential modifications for a more safer means of the process after it reaches the 35MPH with the mods made....(particularly methods on making the Engine Drop or something, ultimately shutting it down. Going to see how it'd be possible and cost of modifying it/re-certifying it afterwords.)
Only issue to making it useless, the methods I've found, are rather costly and time consuming. To the point it'd take almost an half-hour to rig it/re-rig it before/after driving. ointhead Well, if it's stolen, it's legal. If it's someone you allowed to drive the vehicle, it's illegal. It's legal, if you're the only one operating the vehicle, and rig it yourself. If the vehicle fails because of you while you operate it, insurance doesn't cover a dime. (that's the risk) Because there are no laws against modifying a vehicle, and/or its components for performance purposes or otherwise. (The modification that links the breaks to the transmission, improves the ease of the transmission to shift gears, thus, it's arguably performance improvement, just it has a mean side-effect of deactivating the brakes when it goes above a specific speed that causes it to switch to a certain gear. Meaning if someone steals the car, without my approval/without my personal key for it. and any injury occurs to them, it's totally legal because I had no means of communicating the hazards of operating my vehicle without changing some things prior to its operation. So taking someones stuff, without their knowledge, means they can't tell you anything about the item you're taking, and legally, are not bound in anyway for any injuries/liabilities that occur afterwards. Laughs on the idiot who makes his living making others lives bad. :scool . Same laws apply if someone ran on a construction site, stole a bulldozer, and then the person operating it, didn't know how to shift from nuetral to reverse/drive, and goes into a lake/river/ocean and drowns. Owner of the bulldozer is not liable in anyway/shape/form, because they couldn't instruct the thief in the safety considerations, and how to operate the vehicle) And the mods to the vehicle, were approved by the State of WA, and certified for safe road use. (they looked at my modifications and everything, and are deemed street legal for roads 25MPH and under with the mod active. with Mod de-active, it's good for roads up to 75MPH) In short, if someone wants to make my life difficult, potentially cost me a job because I wont have any transportation otherwise if my car was stolen, and give me a horrid week/day. I'll give them the greatest scare they've ever had in their lives. Regarding the topic of the thread. An international equipment theft ring, the thought of it is insane. Disgusting, but insane. Wouldn't be surprised if they were linked to some kind of a terrorist org, or some kind of cartel or something.
Ok, guy steals your car, and gets to 35 MPH Brakes and tranny go out like you have it rigged, It plows into my wife and kids and kills them. ointhead Please think about the rest of us too.
I am now. Didn't put those factors in when I decided to mod my vehicle. Going to look into a more safer method to cease vehicle function if it's ever stolen. I've always thought on the single ideology of someone stealing my vehicle, and getting what they had coming to them. Never put in consideration for possible collateral. (which I'm now considering putting thought into it) I'll be looking into ways on possibly dropping the engine after X speed is reached (forcing the entire vehicle to shut down, and potentially mod the axle to when said speed is made, to possibly force it to slam breaks and aim for the shoulder as it shuts down. But that's all theory currently. Gotta draw up some plans, and see what would have to be done for said mods to take effect) All it'd take in forcing the breaks to activate once the car shifts into a certain gear, is just a matter of doing the reverse to the mod that causes the breaks to deactivate. So that shouldn't be hard at all to do. But it'd have to be forced to the side of the road, or else it'll block the lane, and possibly force the person behind the vehicle to go into my car. (Which wouldn't be good) End goal would to force the vehicle to be inoperable once the transmission switches to the specified gear. In effect totally the car internally. (engine essentially destroy itself would be the ffect I'd want. Insurance would pay for new Engine/Parts if it would be a result of theft) It's all a matter of going over my Engine, Axle, Steering system, and brake schematics to see what further mods I can make. I'll be getting on it ASAP.
This happend several years back ...Working at one of my dairy farms my customer tells me one of his tractors got stole the nite before ..Phone rings the law found the tractor and the thief ...My customer tells me get in the truck ,so i'm thinkin where going to get the tractor ....When we get to the jail my customer tells the jailer he's here to bail the guy out ...Ha Ha ..Well from there things didn't go so good ...He damm near got locked up ..Oh he had to wait for the trial to meet the thief ..Ba ha ha
koldsteele, now that is *awesome* pay the guy's bail, whip a sack over his head and drag him out of the police station.
MrMechanic...think about the fact that there could be people on the shoulder if you make a mod that will force the vehicle one way or another. Does your car have airbags? Why not just make it so the airbag goes off when he's bending down to hot wire the car? Or when he puts it in drive? Or hits 10 miles per hour?.....there really is a long list of possibilities....turn signal, fastens seat belt....doesn't fasten seat belt. If it has side impact airbags, put the side bags on a 10 second delay...this way it will be like a 1-2 punch. You could also rig the side impact bag to go off when he opens the door to get out after the first bag goes off...I'd pay the price of a movie ticket to watch a thief get owned like that. I suppose you could even add airbags....ceiling...head rest, under a seat cover.
Why not a positive air shut down system on the intake. Can't run with out air. A simple lever operated system world work just fine.
I like the one under the seat.But not an air bag.Make a new sun roof.
Last summer we were doing alley jobs in down town Marshall, putting in new water, and sewer. We finished the day up right behind the Municipal building, where a couple of police officers have their office, and parked the 302.5 next to the 312C and we had the jack hammer for the mini sitting between them. Over the night, someone came and hauled off the jack hammer, a used Cat one. Musta had a few guys to help carry it out of the alley. Then like 2 years ago, some one drove onto one of our jobsites over the night and made off with our 20 foot Underground crew trailer! Everything was in there. It was white and said D&G Excavating, Inc. in big yellow and black letters. Everynow and then, something that was in the trailer will turn up somewhere and we'll get it back, but no one ever found the trailer. Like 5 years ago, a guy that worked for us went out to our main crusher plant, cut the main line from the generator (locked in the box truck) all the way to the crusher and out to the stackers. Hauled it into the local salvage yard, which my dads friend manages, and they contacted us letting us know who brought it in.
I have had everything stolen !! the stupidest thing i have ever had stolen was on our welding truck. our mech had it parked out front of his room and because the boxes were locked they unrolled the cables and stole them. Have 3 10000 gallon fuel tanks 500ft away from my dads beadroom and some one got in and built a syphin out of 2" suction hose and made off with atleast 500 gallons Some one stole our 70XT skid steer started it and loaded it into our roll off garbage bin and then drove off ! found our machine a month later not far away when i seen a new bobcat buisiness starting up. The police came there and i showed them my unit number and company name on my pallet forks that I made. The guy clearly screwed the serial number on the machine and the cop told us that we got our insurance money so leave the guy alone. Because of this *** i think i might steal equip for myself no consequences I do feel sorry for all of your losses and i hope that you guys can atleast find humor in some of these
It sucks, and some people are really ballsy! Thats a b***h that he got away with it. The law enforcement doesn't do crap it seems like. A long long time ago when Cat first came out with the tractor hoes with the curved hoods, we had a brand new one sitting in our shop yard. Some kids started it up in the middle of the night, hit a telephone pole with it, ripped the doors off and drove it off a 15 foot drop onto the rail road tracks! My dad got to work in the morning and noticed part of the stick just barely sticking out above. We were doing a 5 mile long railroad spur near ADM in Marshall, the whole thing is lit up, and the security there is pretty tight. Some farmer drained a 1,000 gallon diesel cart over night. We've had sabotage happen were clearly it was someone familiar with Cats because all of the masters were off and the keys were hidden. We were stripping black dirt out of this field to start a pit, over night someone started up the old D6D, took it a pushed one of our old TS-14s sideways about 20 feet, then the fired up the 950E and dumped about 4 full buckets on top of the D6D. One employee at this Road Construction company by us, was sick of running a 980C and wanted a newer loader, so once again overnight, he dumped silica sand in the oil, the tranny, and the hydraulics. Came to work the next day and ran her til she locked up stiff. At the other road construction company by us, this disgruntled employee dumped silica sand into everything on his 345B, and then just kept loading trucks til she locked up. I don't know what some people are thinking. One that wasn't soo bad but was a pain to clean up, some person went out to our big screening operation, and set off the dry fire extinguishers in the cab of the D6R, the generator truck, and in the cab of the 980G.
.....
I think I would've been tempted to put some sand in that skid loader as well! If he can get away with stealing it, you should at least be able to get away with sabotaging it.
koldsteele, I'd do as the previous guy said. drag a bag over his head, and hang him up like a pinata. (not bieng serious, because that would get YOu in trouble) That really blows. And to the others asking. Roads around my area are 25MPH. Only places that go above 25MPH, is the 55MPH highway. which leads to nothing but trees on the shoulder. Pedestrians aren't even allowed to walk along the highway at all without a $125 fine. All homes/property items, are well over 50-100ft away from the road. So either way in my area (where my car would be most likely stolen) bad day for the guy who stole my car, general public would be safe for the most part. (No one in the right mind even dares walking the highway anyways) Regarding altering airbags, doesn't matter why, it's a felony to alter an airbag and its components. (not kidding, found this out when I inquired about doing somiliar several months ago)
Next time, contact the FBI. Anything above $700 is a felony. and warrants FBI involvement. If the Cop is that big of a jerk, should've called the FBI, they would have not only ripped him a new one, but also his police chief, and if it wasn't a sheriff, they'd go straight to the Sheriffs Department and rip them a new one as well for not managing the subordinate PDs. Found out earlier today snooping around while looking for legal methods of modifying my vehicle. That an Officer can't legally tell someone what they should/should not do. And may not impose, express, recommend, or hint to any course of action that could influence a "victims" decisions in anyway. Why? Because they are NOT lawyers. And also, any theft of any single item above $700 value, outside of a personal Automotive Vehicle, warrants FBI involvement. Town PD is supposed to notify the County Sheriff Department, which in turn notifies the FBI itself if the victim hasn't notified the FBI already. Any failing on the PDs end, can cost a LEO his badge. Failing to follow proper/federal procedure of law. And since apparently majority of Heavy Equipment/Construction Thefts, have ties or orgenized crime, 70% of the cases mean FBI needs to get involved. Just learned this stuff snooping around the Internet today, and thought a lot of you gents may want to know the info for future purposes. (Hopefully not) OH and another thing about Law Enforcement, since a Police Officer is not a Lawyer, they cannot tell someone they should let someone else go etc. It's the "victims" choice to press chargers or not. And it's the Police Officers job to follow instructions. Police officers are not allowed to provide Legal Counsel in anyway, because it's practicing law without a license to do so. Which, in turn, can cost a LEO his/her badge. Regardless of the incident. Badge number, and the Officers First/Last name, or just the Last Name. is all you need. First line supervisor for the public, is automatically the Chief of Police, or the County Sheriff. If neither seem to be doing their job, the States Justice Department is the next in line to get a piece of the pie. Other things I just learned earlier today.
My next step would be to tell the cop to do either do his job, or be prepared to see his face on the news in the AM.......I'm sure he wasn't looking forward to the paperwork, but tough, that's what he does for a living.
Many years ago I was on a job in New Jersey. Couple of guys showed up in broad day light to pick up a new D8 which was on rental (not mine or who I worked for at the time) Security guard let them in, they loaded it up and away they went with it. The local police went to work on the security guard. Sooner than late he sang like a bird. He was in on the whole deal. Got the machine back before it got loaded on ship for export but not by much.
312King, did the insurance company ever pay? Or did you guys end up having to pay for the whole thing yourself?
Any time you screw up or grind off a serial number the cop should have impounded the machine.Then investigated it.
had someone steal $600 worth of chains and binders off my trailer but they left a $200 gr80 20ft chain. a framer had a trailer filled with all the crews tools. They got cleaned out TWICE on the same job. Pipeline crew had two racks of 8 inch sewer pipe and all the Y's and 45's for the job stolen.
Figures. All my best ideas seem to be felonies. There seem to be a lot of felonies on youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APsaCeIkWV0 Combine that with a power sunroof.... You could use a firestone airspring connected to a CO2 bottle with a big mouth solenoid valve to get the same results. The link isn't showing up. Just search for airbag test.
Warning! This advice could result in death or serious injury, or worse! @MrMechanic There are some points you don't seem to be considering in your reckless endangerment of the public. So somebody steals your car, and as he is driving down the road your defense system kicks and it And the next thing you know, you either find yourself at the wrong end of his shotgun, or, maybe worse, the wrong end of his lawyer for a Wrongful Death lawsuit and maybe a criminal murder/manslaughter charge as well. And granted, maybe the roads are back country roads with well, except for the work crews and little old ladies with flat tires or maybe the local sheriff chatting with a speeder, nothing you need to worry about! Oh ya, and I have been on many wrecks were the person ran off the road, hit the bank or a tree and got knocked back into oncoming traffic. I remember this one where a guy in an F350 towing a boat was driving toward a school bus... Oh, no gory stories here. Basic law that applies in all states: If you modify anything from it's Factory condition without approval, not only are you breaking the law, you are criminally and civilly responsible for any harm it may cause. This law isn't often used because usually they are citing for specific infractions so you don't hear about it much, but they use it when needed. I have heard it most often used with Smog control issues, but man oh man, you mess with safety equipment.... There are racing supply companies that quit making steering and brake parts for any roadworthy vehicles because they were too likely to be included in lawsuits just because they hadn't gone through the crash testing that Factory stuff had. It sucked too because they made some great Jeep parts! I know you are an Expert on the law, and an Expert Mechanic, so I can't claim to know better than you, but I would seem to think there would be a pretty good case against you for tampering with Federally regulated Safety Systems with Intent to cause Bodily Harm. Heck, even the thief would probably win if he sued you! And don't even get me started on your friend with the Improvised Explosive Device rigged with Intent to kill. That would just be a straight murder charge, well, plus the ATF and FBI would be all over it, being a bomb/home made firearm. It sounds cool, and makes those of us that have had stuff stolen chuckle and ponder, but with most of us, logic kicks in before we start plotting how to kill people and endanger others. Oh, what happens when he gets injured and is in the ICU in a coma and his truck gets towed and ends up going to auction and the mechanic goes to replace the ignition switch and gets his head blown off? How many other scenarios could see it leaving his control? Some Jeeper friends of mine down in the San Diego area had some really nicely set up rock crawler rigs (think $30-40K+ invested in upgrade parts, and they did the work themselves). They would often run down into Mexico to go wheeling, and then stop in some little town watering hole. They would park all the rigs down the middle of the street and then sit outside and tell tall stories. Well, one guy would park off to one side and leave his keys in the ignition. After a while, they would see somebody sneak up to it, hop in, fire it up and go racing down the street. About the time it got to where they were, it would stop, and the person would jump and run, everybody would laugh, he would weave back to his jeep, flip the hidden electric fuel pump cutoff switch, drive it back to where it had been and wait for the next victim to try for it! You want to mess with the thief and not risk murdering someone? Make it so once they hit 25, it locks the tranny in 1st gear and cuts as many injectors as possible while allowing the engine to continue running. (killing the engine at speed makes you lose steering and brakes with you assuming full liability for any accidents caused as a result) Oh, and lock the horn on, leave power on to door locking motors, windows disabled, and flash the light while you are at it. Ya, no wrecks or anything fun, but they can't get very far like that. Or, the simple and safe method: Make it so it can't be started/driven in the first place! Shift linkage disconnect/lock preventing it from shifting out of park? Pin/lock preventing the parking brake from being released? (Could be built into the axle if you were worried about them cutting the cable) Power disconnect to the ECU? Electric Fuel Pump switch? Solenoid valve in the fuel line? It sounds like you are a better mechanic than I am, so I am sure you can come up with much better ideas that won't endanger DirtHauler's kids. As you have more recent Legal training than I do (I haven't studied anything today! , I will have to accept your legal advice, but I do have a few questions. (and I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night) In my training a LEO is supposed to tell people what to do. If they are investigating a report of a crime, they have to look at the evidence and decide what the best course of action is, and then advise the parties of the course they have chosen. They then report to their superiors as required by their policies, and if the matter is serious enough, it gets passed to the DA who then decided whether to press charges. With some cases the DA can't do anything unless the victim decides to press charges, and in other cases the DA can press charges regardless of the victims wishes. The victims wishes do sometimes affect what the officer does in the short term, but it is their job to advise the victim on what they recommend! It's not Legal Advice unless they get into the part that the DA takes care of. In the case of the stolen bobcat, I think the advice to just drop it may have been the best course. If they got insurance for the machine and then recovered the machine, they would have to pay the money back, would be getting a possibly abused machine back and their rates would still be higher. If the person found with it wasn't the one that stole it, what would be the point making life bad for them? If they had bought it, they would be losing their investment, and it would be as bad for them as if it had been stolen! Plus you have all the public costs of police time and courts. Since most LEO's follow department policy and training, most that provide advice would be doing what they were trained, and at most would get some retraining and a slap on the wrist. You look at how hard it is for the really bad ones to lose their badge with U**** contracts and such, I don't think somebody is gonna lose it because they tried to do their job and solve a problem. Oh ya, I was gonna ask questions... Where is your Lawyer License? You seem to be dishing out a lot of legal advice! Have you talked to any LEO's or Lawyers about your findings on LEO's not being allowed to tell people what to do? Have you dealt with a LEO as if they were supposed to follow your instructions? How did that work out for you? :Banghead After I follow your advice, how do I get a hold of you? Well, I guess I should ask how my lawyer should get a hold of you, because I won't have too many phone calls allowed! My rule when I am hauling Big Heavy Stuff (or anything else potentially hazardous) is to consider the possible ways what I am loading could end up on top of a minivan full of kids, and plan a way to prevent that from happening. Most of the people on this forum are very safety conscious, and I would have no fear working in a trench or under a load with them at the controls. I am amazed that this has not been protested more than it has! Any of you that haul wide loads, do road work, good operators, etc, know that it is your responsibility to look out for the safety of everybody else because you are doing something inherently dangerous. Some people just don't get that I guess! Can ya tell this hit a button? Sorry about the long post folks, but I wanted to explain things clearly enough for all to understand, and I have never been accused of being too quiet. MrMechanic, I did note that you have begun rethinking the safety issues, so if your thinking has changed to agree with mine, don't take it personally! A thought for you to remember, most of the stuff on the InterWebs is wrong, either from error or omission. What you may have found could apply in one town or state and not others, or could be old, or most likely is somebody quoting a source such as this thread... Also, the text in some book somewhere may not agree with the way things work in the real world, either due to poor legal systems, or because case law interprets it differently than you might see it. There are a lot of rights that will end you in jail if you try to exercise them because you may be more familiar with them the the LEO just trying to do his job. :my2c :my2c Ben~
Thank you Ben!!
One that shows that carma can come back around. This guy 20+ years old decided after he broke some windows on our new packer decided to stab the tires with his pocket knife. After 20 or more stabs the knife folded over and the guy lost 2 fingers, My dad thought that was punnishment enough and decided not to press charges if he paid for the windows, and little to no dammage to the tires.
Knife Safety lecture And that is why I tell my youth group kids and the wilderness survival/primitive skills classes to get locking blade knives! You never know when you are going to need to stab tires, and you want to protect your fingers. I mean, it isn't safe to use a non-locking folding knife for crafts and whittling. Oh, and it should have some sort of guard/dip/bump to prevent your hand from sliding down the handle onto the blade, that ain't pretty! Ben~ (and what does everybody get? Swiss Arsmy Knives! Grrr. :Banghead )
Mr Machanic ....................would it help your cause is the car remained stationary?? http://videosift.com/video/Anti-Car-Jacking-Device-The-Serious-One Cheers
Hey Marksan, it would surely be satisfying, wouldn't it.
Heh, a guy over in the UK somewhere built something like that. I think he had a car and motorcycle set up. They got confiscated... And to continue my party-pooping, just remember that any injury you cause another person for any reason other than defending yourself or someone else from Imminent Threat of Bodily Harm is an assault, in these cases with a deadly weapon. (and the burden of proof is on you that you were justified) And I would make my flamethrowers so I could control which direction they shot! No need to toast the kids on the sidewalk when the bad guy is on the other side of the car, besides, it wastes a lot of fuel.... (and don't forget the forward and rear-facing nozzles to get the attention of tailgaters and slowpokes) Ben "Mad Max" Blackburn
Dang glad I live in Texas not Cal.Here if we catch them stealing or vandalizing our property instead of dialing 911 we dial 357.Then call for a body bag.
Contractor here in the West of England went to work on a monday morning to find his dozer had gone, less than 12 mths old. Contacted the Police and the tracker firm, it was located by tracker in Poland on it's way to the Russian Border, the Polish Police grabbed it before it went for ever. He got it back!!!
Booby trapping things isn't smart in most states and will allow you to spend some time with whoever it was that tried steeling or breaking in......cause you will be sharing a cell with them. It will also allow them to sue you for damages. If any bystanders are injured or killed you will be charged for that too. Heck a few years back a guy broke into a home of a family on vacation. His last stop in the home was the attached garage. He entered the garage through the kitchen door that had an auto lock and the garage door opener was broken too. He spent several days trapped in the garage by accident subsisting on pop and dog food. While in jail for the break in he successfully sued the homeowners insurance to the tune of $70,000. And this guy did get his money because the insurance company decided not to appeal the decision/award because of the cost. As far as giving legal advice is concerned your best course of action is to tell someone to consult their state/local police and or a lawyer. If you give any other advice and as a result someone is injured you become liable. If by following your advice they break the law you can be charged as an accomplice. I even know of a case (we know the family) of a kid assaulted by a teacher. The school did inform the parents but told them that if they wanted to press charges that they would have to pay to prosecute the teacher. It wasn't until we told the then county sheirf what had happened (2 of our kids witnessed the assault) that he went to their home and told them if they wanted to charge the teacher all they had to do was file a complaint and the county would take care of it from there. Because the school had already canned the teacher they let the matter drop. But the school could have been in big trouble over telling them what they did, giving them bad legal advice in that case made the staff subject to being investigated at a minimum for aiding abedding. Rick
A little late to the discussion, but my father has invented an anti-theft device that solves just such problems. Check it out, we call it Universal Lockdown . We are trying to market it to all the big equipment manufacturers.
That's a good idea, and it will stop some thieves and people who want to "borrow" the machine. But a determined theif will simply bypass the entire ignition switch.
Welcome to the Forums Daniel. If you would please take the time, scroll through the Forum rules and familiarize yourself with the site rules. There is one specifically about advertising: I chose to leave this post as your one "freebie", since of the four places you posted it, this is the one that had a reply. Please feel free to join any of the other discussions here, but go forth, and spam no more. :cool2