Thread: Locking up your trailer

The drama with any type of lock that stops the coupling being attached to a towball, is that there are instances where I've heard of thieves just hooking up the chains alone behind a stolen car. They don't really care what damage it does to the car, and it's enough to make a quick getaway.
I've done one trailer for a customer where I welded a chain link to both the inside of the wheel rim and the axle, joined by a short length of chain and padlocks. The more difficult you make it, the more likely they'll move on.
But if it's a planned theft, then nothing short of a 24hr security guard will stop them.

This type has saved my trailer twice and I'm still using it.
Trailer Cop Anti Theft Insertable Trailer Lock - a2zCamping.co.uk
Maybe I had lazy thieves

Phil

I have heard of a removable drawbar. The entire thing. I want to rebuild my trailer and make it tippable. The drawbar will pivot from just in front of the spring mount. With a seperately mounted jockey wheel and some arrangement with the wiring? It will take up much less space and you won't belt yourself on the hitch in the dark. A bit hard to bring your own drawbar!

Dean

crocodile .jpg

You could always buy this as a pet keeping it near the trailer.

Keith_W

Yer seen the price of crocodile skin lately. Suspect you'd find a skined croc next to the vacant boat parking space.

Try a piece of round bar which has a short T on one end , put it through the rims on both axles with a heavy duty fabricated lock cover on the locking end .

That stops opportunistic thieves , but a tilt tray will still be able to pull the trailer up and drive off.

The price of GPS trackers is dropping and most large trailers have a battery for brakes etc so powering the unit is no big deal.

I have seen a cutoff ball with a lock in it that pushed two small pins out so removal of the ball was next to impossible . I have not seen another , I suspect the owner had made it .

I have my trailer in a yard behind an industrial fence with three cattle dogs that like to chew on strangers , worked ok for years , just need to replace the mutts occasionally .

Michael

If the trailer has wheels and is not physically tied down, it can be pinched in seconds.
All your coupling security devices are rubbish and only deter thieves who do not possess a brain!
Simply throw a chain around the draw bar and over the tow cars ball and drag it off. Do you really think a thief needs to have it all coupled up correctly? Its about speed, not the niceties of lights and couplings. Should the trailer fall of the ball, who cares - go steal another one...

If you are that serious about going beyond the cost of insurance to protect your trailer then you have to immobilise it. Take the wheels off and have a bloody big hardened chain anchored into a very large concrete slab. It can still be pinched but it will slow them down - make it easier to pinch the next guys trailer.

Trackers are a great idea but you need battery power for them. The internal batteries do not last long on their own and you'll likely forget to charge them up plus you have to hide it on teh trailer whilst still givings its antenna a view of the world. Also 99% are mobile phone tower based so unless the cops catch it within an hour or so, you can easily drag it out of the phone coverage area. Even in Sydney, you can be outside of mobile coverage within 2 hours.
Satellite based systems are much better but you need to set up an account plus buy the gear and you still need 12v power.

Wheel clamps are nice but must cover the wheel nuts as well however a 12 angle grinder removes clamps pretty quickly.


There's no one answer to this otherwise cars would not be stolen. You need to combine a lot of deterrents and simply make it too much bother to pinch yours.

This may help deter some thieves-

Made from 22mm steel bar and rod (just what I had on hand and fitted through the rims), heatshrink over it to stop chipping the rims. Painted the Tube bright red so it would be noticed!
Not my idea, found similar while surfing the net.....

IMG_2916.JPGIMG_2912.JPGIMG_2913.JPGIMG_2914.JPGIMG_2915.JPG

Originally Posted by danielwaus

This may help deter some thieves-

Made from 22mm steel bar and rod (just what I had on hand and fitted through the rims), heatshrink over it to stop chipping the rims. Painted the Tube bright red so it would be noticed!...

A good simple idea that should slow up the scum.

Originally Posted by danielwaus

Made from 22mm steel bar and rod (just what I had on hand and fitted through the rims), heatshrink over it to stop chipping the rims.

Can't quite see, but does this cover the lug nuts and stop me unbolting the wheels and leaving them behind?
A rod going side to side through both rims might be more effective with your padlock idea.

The tube does cover one wheel nut, would make it difficult to unbolt, but could me possible with a spanner. Its more about the length of the rod sticking through the rim, its just long enough to slide the tube on and pass the padlock through, even if you got the nuts off there's not enough space to come forward to clear the studs.
Not saying its full proof, nothing is, but it just might make it too hard.....

I like the idea. Not everyone carries a Dremmel

[QUOTE=Keith_W;1901170]crocodile .jpg


[/QUOTE

I believe it is a pedigree Long Tailed Horny Backed Swamp Dog

Originally Posted by danielwaus

This may help deter some thieves-

Made from 22mm steel bar and rod (just what I had on hand and fitted through the rims), heatshrink over it to stop chipping the rims. Painted the Tube bright red so it would be noticed!
Not my idea, found similar while surfing the net.....

IMG_2916.JPGIMG_2912.JPGIMG_2913.JPGIMG_2914.JPGIMG_2915.JPG

Nice idea I missed this post . Ive been to busy carting stuff back and forth on the 200K move Im doing with my new trailer.
I have been locking it with a wheel clamp and a hitch cover , a cheap thing .and locking it behind gates as well . I'm just making it as hard to take as I can ATM .

I had a thought of welding up either a wheel lock or / and hitch lock , made from pipe . keeping the pipe open on the inside so it can be filled with a substance that a cutting disk that's for steel will struggle with . A cheap substance ? any one know what cutting discs Hate that could be put in a pipe ?
Glass ? rocks ?

A cheap substance ? any one know what cutting discs Hate that could be put in a pipe ?
Glass ? rocks ?

I have heard of safes having a loose material that just keeps falling down into the gap as it is cut.

Maybe small pieces of gravel.

Dean