Locks & Chains

[escape artist]

Hi: Tin... Called Master cause they're easy to master!!! Locks are there for the honest people anyway. LoL Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[steve dunham]

My paranoia level must be extremely low. We have a lock on our trailer hitch ( $8 @ Menards ) , good insurance and feel secure.
I lost the key to our tool shed a while back , 15 seconds with my battery powered grinder and the lock was toast.
The last thing I want to do is stand outside in a pouring rain for a half an hour locking or unlocking my trailer , ain't worth the effort.

[Tin]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

My paranoia level must be extremely low. We have a lock on our trailer hitch ( $8 @ Menards ) , good insurance and feel secure.
I lost the key to our tool shed a while back , 15 seconds with my battery powered grinder and the lock was toast.
The last thing I want to do is stand outside in a pouring rain for a half an hour locking or unlocking my trailer , ain't worth the effort.

LOL, that must be the diffrence between an escape and a casitas.

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by Tin

LOL, that must be the diffrence between an escape and a casitas.

Or the person who owns the trailer. I seldom lock my truck either !
Maybe if we buy an Escape , I will get the sudden urge to secure it in every way possible but then again maybe not.
Everyone has their own comfort level .

[Greg A]

I'm not a big lock person myself, but certainly don't worry if someone wants to lock it up. I do have my batteries locked as they are smash and grab type items that are more likely to get stolen. Like Myron, I would consider a more robust trailer lock if I left the trailer unattended on our mountain lot for several months, so for me it would be situational.

[Tin]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

Or the person who owns the trailer. I seldom lock my truck either !
Maybe if we buy an Escape , I will get the sudden urge to secure it in every way possible but then again maybe not.
Everyone has their own comfort level .

Hi Steve, I understand your position and have no problem with it, as a matter of fact I count on it. Please understand, I am not implying that you or anyone else should follow suit. I only shared this info because others on this forum asked for more info. I believe my original post cover all of your original comments.
{For me the use of a good lock and chain is only as a preventive measure, with the hope that it will deter a thief should he attempt to steal our trailer while we are site seeing or in town shopping. To be more specific the chain and lock I chose (there a better chains at three times the coast { PEWAG} and thousand dollar locks ) is to defend against blunt force attacks, freezing, lock picking, drilling and bolt cutters in adverse conditions. With the advent of today's technological advances in grinders and cutoff wheels there is no lock, chain, cable, hardened steel, alloy, or clamp device , immobilizer ect. that well stop a determined well equipped thief. I will state that the chain I bought can be cut with a high quality bolt cutter under ideal conditions and the lock can be picked by a master lock picker under ideal conditions.
With that said my first thought was to try and make the condition as adverse as possible, hence the chain and lock are tight to tire and high off the floor making it harder to leverage a bolt cutter on the ground and if the grinder slips possible flat tire. Second the chain I bought has a unique feature, the end links are different sizes allowing the smaller link to slide though the larger link creating less room for the bolt cutter head to bite on or grind, also understand that the chain and lock need to be cut twice in order to take off. If the thief takes the tire off he is either going to have to cut the tire and rim in half or he will be dragging the tire under the trailer.
Other considerations where cost, size, weight and storage space. I know my choice is not for everyone and defiantly was some disadvantages and yes I have full replacement value insurance so no problems.I have attached some pics and some interesting vids for those so inclined safe travels and have fun.
Lastly There is a well-known cartoon where two guys see a bear and one guy starts putting on running shoes. The other guy looks at him and says, " Why are you doing that? You'll never outrun that bear." And the other guy says, " I don't have to outrun that bear, I only have to outrun you."
Tin.}

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Tin

Please understand, I am not implying that you or anyone else should follow suit. I only shared this info because others on this forum asked for more info.

You will see this happen a lot. Sometimes folks seem to think because you post your thoughts and ideas on something that you are trying to convince them your way is the only way, when all you are doing is throwing your ideas out there.

Just as when folks reply to someone's idea with a differing one of their own, is sometimes is seen as though they are knocking the first person's idea, when in fact they are just throwing alternative ideas out there.

I think both are great things, hearing ideas from others, and other ideas along the same line. It allows me to pick and decide what is best for me, while arming me with lots of new info.

For some reason, and I really don't understand in, there are people out there who disagree with my very sound reasoning on things.

[thoer]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

For some reason, and I really don't understand in, there are people out there who disagree with my very sound reasoning on things.

Stop throwing me these hanging curve balls...... I'm trying to be good

[steve dunham]

My neighbor had a small Ford tractor with a plow attatchment.
He cabled the rear wheels together plus wrapped the cable around the axle. Thieves backed up a flatbed trailer to his tractor and winched the tractor on to the flatbed with the cables still attatched. They were in and out of there in less than 15 minutes .
According to the local sherriff this is a common method of theft .
They take the time to cut the cables or chains off at a safer location .
This being said , taking reasonable precautions to prevent theft is always a wise idea. How one decides to accomplish this goal is a personnal decision and my way is no more correct than others .
An Escape is an expensive and extremely nice trailer and I fully understand and respect others desire to protect their property.
If I came across as criticizing someone's approach to securing their trailer / property , I apologize , that was not my intent.

[Fun&Sun]

This has been interesting reading and with great information, I looked at the wheel locks like the city might use and they are cheap looking but lots for sale on Amazon & Ebay. I like the idea of the chain after you arrive at the camp site (boondocking) you can use it to lock up your generator if you have one.
Any other ideas out there?

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

You will see this happen a lot. Sometimes folks seem to think because you post your thoughts and ideas on something that you are trying to convince them your way is the only way, when all you are doing is throwing your ideas out there.

Just as when folks reply to someone's idea with a differing one of their own, is sometimes is seen as though they are knocking the first person's idea, when in fact they are just throwing alternative ideas out there.

I think both are great things, hearing ideas from others, and other ideas along the same line. It allows me to pick and decide what is best for me, while arming me with lots of new info.

For some reason, and I really don't understand in, there are people out there who disagree with my very sound reasoning on things.

Couldn't have been said better . Pat

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by Tin

Hi Steve, I understand your position and have no problem with it, as a matter of fact I count on it. Please understand, I am not implying that you or anyone else should follow suit. I only shared this info because others on this forum asked for more info. I believe my original post cover all of your original comments.
{For me the use of a good lock and chain is only as a preventive measure, with the hope that it will deter a thief should he attempt to steal our trailer while we are site seeing or in town shopping. To be more specific the chain and lock I chose (there a better chains at three times the coast { PEWAG} and thousand dollar locks ) is to defend against blunt force attacks, freezing, lock picking, drilling and bolt cutters in adverse conditions. With the advent of today's technological advances in grinders and cutoff wheels there is no lock, chain, cable, hardened steel, alloy, or clamp device , immobilizer ect. that well stop a determined well equipped thief. I will state that the chain I bought can be cut with a high quality bolt cutter under ideal conditions and the lock can be picked by a master lock picker under ideal conditions.
With that said my first thought was to try and make the condition as adverse as possible, hence the chain and lock are tight to tire and high off the floor making it harder to leverage a bolt cutter on the ground and if the grinder slips possible flat tire. Second the chain I bought has a unique feature, the end links are different sizes allowing the smaller link to slide though the larger link creating less room for the bolt cutter head to bite on or grind, also understand that the chain and lock need to be cut twice in order to take off. If the thief takes the tire off he is either going to have to cut the tire and rim in half or he will be dragging the tire under the trailer.
Other considerations where cost, size, weight and storage space. I know my choice is not for everyone and defiantly was some disadvantages and yes I have full replacement value insurance so no problems.I have attached some pics and some interesting vids for those so inclined safe travels and have fun.
Lastly There is a well-known cartoon where two guys see a bear and one guy starts putting on running shoes. The other guy looks at him and says, " Why are you doing that? You'll never outrun that bear." And the other guy says, " I don't have to outrun that bear, I only have to outrun you."
Tin.}

I appreciate the time you spent with the information you shared . While at home our trailer is safer . We are concerned when we are out . Hopefully they will move on to something less protected . Yup we have full coverage still , who wants to go through losing their trailer .
Really don't want to start over . Only you know what you went through to get your trailer . After your posts last night , have those items in my cart . It comes out a lot cheaper then the routes I was thinking about . Also learned a lot about locks I didn't know . Thankyou again .
Pat

[float5]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

You will see this happen a lot. Sometimes folks seem to think because you post your thoughts and ideas on something that you are trying to convince them your way is the only way, when all you are doing is throwing your ideas out there.

Just as when folks reply to someone's idea with a differing one of their own, is sometimes is seen as though they are knocking the first person's idea, when in fact they are just throwing alternative ideas out there.

I think both are great things, hearing ideas from others, and other ideas along the same line. It allows me to pick and decide what is best for me, while arming me with lots of new info.

For some reason, and I really don't understand in, there are people out there who disagree with my very sound reasoning on things.

Exactly. The problem with questions many times is that we cannot figure out what a person or family is about, so that makes it difficult to give a good answer for that person. The answer that the OP needs, however, is certainly not necessarily the right answer or the only answer, whatever their situation, because it may not be ours. So one may get very diverging opinions.

And many questions simply invite people to give their various and differing way of addressing something. We do not camp the same. And we, with Escapes, do not even camp, according to some. I still call us campers.

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by float5

And we, with Escapes, do not even camp, according to some. I still call us campers.

And I for one never argue with them, I go inside turn on what keeps me warm or cool, have a hot or cold drink, wash my hands with hot water and turn the lights off or on, and lay down on the bed and say this. " They never had it this good in Prague"
Dave

[StanLewis]

We thought about using Tin's approach to security, but I didn't find a source for chain that I thought was sufficiently tough and would still thread through the holes in the (painted steel) rims. But I do like the idea of making it sufficiently painful that the thief will decide to take the next trailer over. I don't have any big emotional attachment to the trailer - it's just a means to an end - but at the same time I don't want a ruined trip and I sure don't want to have to wait another 10 months for a replacement - I'm way to old to want to waste the time.

Instead of the lock/chain arrangement, we got a Brahma Wheel Lock. IMO, a better design than the other wheel locks you see, takes me 1-2 minutes to install or remove. The company that makes them is in Burnaby (for those not from BC, about 45 minutes west of Chilliwack), so we just ran over there and picked up the wheel lock when we were in Chilliwack to get the trailer. Fairly inexpensive, too, at about CAD 275. Works for us; YMMV.

[luckyone]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

I have a removable jack since I use Jack-E-Up for tailgate clearance. Why not just leave your jack off, it would take at least 3-4 people to raise or lower your 4-500lb tongue manually, something most thieves do not have, friends.

Couldn't they use the stabilizers to raise the trailer?

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

I gotta admit to being a non-worrier. I just make sure I have adequate insurance. Am thinking about adding locks to the X-Chocks though.

X-Chocks are not as secure as they look. I have one that I secured with a small lock. Twice (I think) I forgot to remove the X-Chock when leaving a campsite. It popped right out from between the wheels. I need to put a bright orange ribbon on it before I use it again, so I don't forget to remove it.

So the X-Chocks are good for stability when parked, but not that secure. They look secure, though, so maybe that's all that matters.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by luckyone

Couldn't they use the stabilizers to raise the trailer?

That would take a lot of hard cranking. A buddy and me lifted the tongue on my 19 over a 4" stump when we were manually spinning it into where we wanted it positioned. Not real easy, but not that tough either. This was on hard packed gravel.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

X-Chocks are not as secure as they look. I have one that I secured with a small lock. Twice (I think) I forgot to remove the X-Chock when leaving a campsite. It popped right out from between the wheels. I need to put a bright orange ribbon on it before I use it again, so I don't forget to remove it.

So the X-Chocks are good for stability when parked, but not that secure. They look secure, though, so maybe that's all that matters.

We are tied. I did it twice too. The first time they ended up popping out because I took of like a banshee, the next time was after we tightened them more, and they held. As soon as I pulled forward, I realized what I did. This was all within the first few months of owning them, before they became a part of our hitching procedure.

[wetzk]

I did it the hard way. Locked ours and could not get the key to unlock one of them. All you have to do is let most of the air out of one of the tires and you can wiggle them out. Maybe I should have tried the banshee trick