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Old 03-04-2013, 03:21 PM   #21
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Originally Posted by dkottum View Post
A coupler lock or Hensley hitch can be ignored if the safety chains are available for hookup by the crook. A wheel lock on one wheel of a tandem axle trailer is silly if the wheel can be dropped off.
Almost all of the thefts reported here have pretty clearly involved advance planning and rapid initial removal to a nearby location where locks can be cut off, identification obscured, and more permanent hitching, lighting, and towing arrangements can be made. Theft of an Airstream is not a crime of opportunity.
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Old 03-04-2013, 03:33 PM   #22
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If you really want security -- I would buy one of the Kryptonite RealTime GPS. You install this device in your trailer, and it notifies you (to your smartphone) if your vehicle is being moved, and provides location tracking.

The cost is around $400 (I found it online for $389) and comes with a one year monitoring contract. The contract is $39 / year thereafter. Installation looks pretty simple, and it is wired to 12v. The amp draw is very low. The only thing I am not sure if is the ability of the GPS to send a signal through the shell of the trailer. Another mounting option would be in the Propane tank enclosure.
Based on reports here and elsewhere I believe that nearly all stolen RVs are moved to indoor secure areas immediately after being stolen where they are prepared for resale or movement across the border. Most thefts occur in the wee hours of the morning on weeknights. The practical and legal barriers to recovery in these circumstances are considerable even with GPS tracking data. You would have to involve law enforcement, gain their cooperation, and have them get a warrant. It's not like you're going to storm Ninefinger Louie's Discount Truck Wash with your own personal S.W.A.T. team because the last tracking blip was 500 yards up the road.
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Old 03-04-2013, 05:39 PM   #23
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I've attached a photo. I use a hardened security chain and a large, high-quality padlock.


.
Thanks, that's just what I had in mind. I appreciate that nothing is absolutely secure but something like that may deter a potential thief.
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Old 03-05-2013, 07:05 AM   #24
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It's not like you're going to storm Ninefinger Louie's Discount Truck Wash with your own personal S.W.A.T. team because the last tracking blip was 500 yards up the road.
But when my mini-van was stolen back in the mid-80's, and New Olreans Police Department told me they don't even bother to look for stolen vehicles because they don't have the manpower to investigate over 300 stolen vehicles per month, I went looking for it myself. Found it sixteen hours after it was stolen, and stole it back at gunpoint. Told the cops I recovered it, to cancel the theft report in case I was stopped while driving it, but didn't tell them how I recovered it!

For the rest of the time I owned that vehicle, I never had a problem ever again, even when the vehicles parked beside it were burglarized. Guess word got around that a crazy person owned it.

For the record, I no longer live in that high-crime neighborhood now that I can afford better, and I'm too aware of my mortality to try such a reckless stunt again.
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Old 03-05-2013, 08:12 AM   #25
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But when my mini-van was stolen back in the mid-80's, and New Olreans Police Department told me they don't even bother to look for stolen vehicles because they don't have the manpower to investigate over 300 stolen vehicles per month, I went looking for it myself. Found it sixteen hours after it was stolen, and stole it back at gunpoint. Told the cops I recovered it, to cancel the theft report in case I was stopped while driving it, but didn't tell them how I recovered it!

For the rest of the time I owned that vehicle, I never had a problem ever again, even when the vehicles parked beside it were burglarized. Guess word got around that a crazy person owned it.

For the record, I no longer live in that high-crime neighborhood now that I can afford better, and I'm too aware of my mortality to try such a reckless stunt again.
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Old 03-05-2013, 09:46 AM   #26
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Thanks, that's just what I had in mind. I appreciate that nothing is absolutely secure but something like that may deter a potential thief.
I got the chain and sleeve from Tulsa Chain. They have great service and have several types to choose from, and will provide a matching sleeve in either red or black.

I only use it when I have to park overnight someplace unattended, which I do when I have to, realizing that it's a risk. The chain may be enough to deter casual theft, but its main purpose is to produce physical evidence to simplify any insurance claim.

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But when my mini-van was stolen back in the mid-80's, and New Olreans Police Department told me they don't even bother to look for stolen vehicles because they don't have the manpower to investigate over 300 stolen vehicles per month,
This is the typical attitude. Police do not see recovery of stolen property to be part of their mission.

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I went looking for it myself. Found it sixteen hours after it was stolen, and stole it back at gunpoint.
I personally would not start a gunfight over a minivan.

When you own an RV, there's an inherent risk of loss due to theft and vandalism. The easiest way to reduce that risk is to avoid parking in high-risk areas, that is, anywhere there are no people. The financial risk can be mitigated through insurance. Locking devices maybe help a little but not much. Once stolen, trailers are hardly ever recovered, GPS tracker or not. I'm waiting for the success stories to come in and they just don't.

We have these threads on coupler locks and wheel locks, and we have threads where people post about their stolen trailer and want all of us on Airforums to look for it so they can get it back. It's all fantasy on both ends. People who steal Airstreams are not casual thieves. They are people with access to serious towing equipment, metal cutting tools, dollies heavy enough for a highway move of a locked wheel, and access to storage that is out of public view. They are going to laugh at your coupler lock and wheel lock because they are either going to tow with a hoist and dollies or because they are going to cut them off with a grinder or torch.

And once they're at their stepcousin's tire shop, they're going to remove or cover up all the identifying marks, swap the vin tag and license plates, and find your GPS tracker and throw it in the back of some poor pizza delivery guy's beat up Kia and lead you on a merry wild goose chase around town:

GPS & Cell Phone Detector | Detect the Presence of Any Tracking Device

And then they're going to take your trailer across the border or use it for a fancy hunting shack on some private land where no one is ever going to look too closely at the VIN tag. Either way, you'll never see it again.

There are really only two things you can do to prevent this. First, you can get insurance, which isn't going to bring your trailer back or make up for the hours of time spent finding it and customizing it, but at least will cover most of the money. Second, you can park your trailer only where there are people who care who are watching it. Campgrounds, rallies, behind your house, places like that.

Because, see, your garden variety thief who is just trying to support his meth habit with a little smash-and-grab isn't going to steal your trailer. It has a built-in deterrent in that it weighs more than the nickle-ante burglar's car can haul. Trailers are too big to hide and too hard to sell for a casual thief to have any interest. So it's the guys who are serious about crime who are going to come for it and if they have the confidence that they can get 30 minutes alone with your trailer there's absolutely nothing you can do to stop them from hooking it up.
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Old 03-05-2013, 10:08 AM   #27
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I personally would not start a gunfight over a minivan.
These days, neither would I. But back then, it was the only thing of value that I owned, and my attitude was different.
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Old 03-05-2013, 10:14 AM   #28
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I think a visual theft deterrent such as a wheel lock provides a message that you are aware of the possibility, and have taken steps to prevent it. Two visible devices sends two messages, you are more serious about it.

The professional may laugh, but the half-wit may go look for an easier trailer to break into.

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Old 03-05-2013, 10:40 AM   #29
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I have a wheel boot but only use it when the trailer is being stored, next to my house, which is in a good neighborhood.

While I suppose a trailer could be stolen from a campground, I'd say its more likely to be taken from a storage lot.

On another topic, Protagonist rocks!

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Old 03-05-2013, 10:41 AM   #30
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I think this is a very rare occurrence, and much more likely if you are in a very remote spot and there only occasionally.

We've never had anything stolen in a campground.

Some folks are just very security conscious.

Maggie
Damn, I had never worried about having my trailer stolen while boon docking until I read this thread. Most of my camping is done well away from anyone else, and I leave my trailer most days during daylight hours to bike, hike hunt and fish. When I come back in the evening I just expect it to be where I left it. And it always has been. Now I'm going to worry about it, although it is fully insured.

My general policy is to get rid of anything I worry about losing, but I love my trailer and the lifestyle it makes possible. Maybe re-reading the insurance policy will make me feel better.
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Old 03-05-2013, 11:19 AM   #31
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"Locks keep honest people honest" Old timer told me that when I was a young adult.
He might have said "Locks are for honest people". It was 20 years ago.

I always like to think like a thief, and then figure out what would stop me.
So to steal an Airstream you'd have to plan it out. If you're planning it out and you see a theft deterrent like a wheel lock, you might just move on to an easier target.

I don't really think it matters how robust the lock is. It can even be a fake lock. Bright in color, and obvious to see. I think that's what's important. A determined thief will defeat any security system. Just having it there might prevent the plan from ever evolving into action.

-Kevin
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Old 03-05-2013, 11:25 AM   #32
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These days, neither would I. But back then, it was the only thing of value that I owned, and my attitude was different.
Of course. My thought, exactly.


Maggie
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Old 03-05-2013, 11:57 AM   #33
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A few years ago I had my "87" trailer stored in a u store it facility under a roof.
One night over 20 vehicles in that locked, gated, fenced, and with 35 motion sensor cameras, was broken into during the night.
At the time my old airstream was untouched.
Here is what the difference was between mine and all the others.
I had a dust cover on the trailer that was secured with 4 nylon straps tied underneath so it would not blow away and to minimise rub marks. I had an old set of spray painted wheels and weathered and cracked tires on it that could be seen because they wern't covered.
Vehicles on both side of me were broken into.
My way of thinking is that if it looks good it is a target.
Covers aren't good for Airstream finishes but they seem to work as good dererrent for thieves who are looking at smashing and grabbing..
By the way, they were never caught. The 35 cameras were useless as they all were wearing hooded sweatshirts.
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Old 03-06-2013, 04:19 PM   #34
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wow Bluto, what luck. One of the reasons I have not raced to polish our trailer, leaving it with a failing plastic coat, is that it would draw less attention this way. I figure too that the smaller trailers are more vulnerable and desirable. Who knows, the lock is mostly for my own comfort level.
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Old 03-06-2013, 04:52 PM   #35
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Globie,
Yep, I feel very fortunate and still can hardly believe my luck.
I'd like to park my newer trailer next to my house, but the HOA has other ideas, so I just try to get the best insurance I can and hope the thieves pass my trailer by in my new storage facility.
I'm also thinking of the boot you bought and have it earmarked on my wishlist.
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