Preventing camper theft

[Darwin Maring]

Put a sign on the door, Condemned due to Bed Bugs.

[Borrego Dave]

Originally Posted by Timber Wolf

How does this work? Isn't the weight of the trailer trying to pull the ball down out of the coupler? Or are they both "upside down"? Personally I just left the 1 7/8" hitch on my Scamp. I figure it will pi** off any thief enough that he will leave empty handed out of pure disgust. I do use a coupler lock (ball and yoke) and a padlock type lock as well. I figure most the stolen little trailers end up in the woods as hunting shacks. They are not out running the roads.

Well Tim, he cut off the original trailer coupler and fabricated a 2" reciever in it's place. Looked like the recievers on our TV's. Made up a stinger that pin locks into the trailer reciever just like the TV stingers do and had the ball coupler on the end. The whole thing was about a foot long. He kept the coupler in the garage until he needed it. I did a double take the first time I saw his trailer. When he explained it to me it made pretty good sence. I think some of the Oliver trailers have a sliding tungue, same type design but different reason.
Wish I had taken a pic cuz I'm sure I made this as clear as mud

[TomK]

Originally Posted by Timber Wolf

I figure most the stolen little trailers end up in the woods as hunting shacks. They are not out running the roads.

I think hunters are getting a bad rap here. I've been hunting 50+ years and have never come across any other hunters that steal trailers to hunt out of. Meth labs may be a far more likely scenario. Hunters are no more likely to steal RV's than any other group.

Tom

[Richard Hayes]

is relatively easy - the mantra is make 'em take time, make 'em make noise, make 'em bring tools. That discourages the casuals - I use a hitch ball lock and a hitch lever padlock - they'll need time, tools and privacy to sort those out. If I wanted to add another layer of frustration, I'd go with a 1/4 SS 1x19 cable sized to loop thru each wheel, with a bloody great padlock joining two swaged eyes tucked under the trailer - they'll need the mother of all wire cutters to hack thru the 1x19 or the padlock hasp, and using it on your back under the trailer would be next to impossible. To discourage kayak thieves, a friend who does yacht rigging made me a 1/4 1x19 SS wire loop, with eyes swaged into each end, one small enough to pass thru the other - the small eye passes thru a strong point on the boat, around the rack, thru the big eye, then has both ends tucked inside the vehicle's rear door before padlocking the eyes together and locking the vehicle. They'd have to bust up the boat, destroy the rack, and break a window to get my VK, and there's easier pickings around...

Stopping a pro who has time, tools, privacy and motivation is another matter entirely, but you can still make the SOB work for it!

[deryk]

Originally Posted by Darwin Maring

Put a sign on the door, Condemned due to Bed Bugs.

Nice!

[Donna D.]

I've just about convinced myself to quit worrying about this. Otherwise I'd be hurling in a waste basket every few minutes. Do the best you can to secure your trailer, buy good insurance, then step away and focus on future travels.

[RogerDat]

Insure it, lock the hitch, maybe the wheels too. I'm torn between the bar wheel lock posted by Sid and the cable joining the two wheels. The bar because of it's visibility would cause some thieves to move on to easier pickings. The cable is more of a surprise it's not moving moment or a darn this is going to be harder and take longer than we thought.

If you have the option of setting an eye bolt in some concrete to chain the trailer tongue to it is one more thing to cut. A 4 inch battery powered grinder with cut off wheel will go through any of this fairly quickly but the more there is to cut the longer it will take. And those grinders are noisy and generate a spray of sparks.

Now is a good time to remind folks that collecting the prices from the trailer for sale threads and fiberglassrv.com site will help you prove the value if you have to file an insurance claim. Our FG campers hold value much better than most campers so it may take some proof to convince an insurance company that your 20 year old camper is really worth the current market price. Collecting price during peak season will give you the best prices if you have to file a claim.

[Timber Wolf]

One thing I have going for me is there are a lot newer, bigger, and better looking Travel Trailers in my neighborhood if a thief is "shopping". If however they are looking specifically for an egg, well I am it.

[MinnesotaJill]

My Brahma Wheel Lock arrived by mail. I am impressed.


Sent from my iPad using Fiberglass RV

[blodn1]

Here's a guy who knows what to do:

Stealing Camper in the Middle of the Night Should’ve Been Easy Pickings. Except for the 75-Year-Old Owner Sleeping Inside It — and His Handgun. | Video | TheBlaze.com

[TomK]

Good for him!

Tom

[RogerDat]

I'm a little concerned that he was trying to shoot around a door while hanging out of a moving trailer. You shoot only at what you can see and identify as a target was what I was taught. The exception might be someone in those bushes is shooting at me I guess I'll shoot back at those bushes. With some thought to what is behind those bushes such as a neighbors house etc.

The other issue is the woman in the truck that is reported to have been unaware that this was a crime. While I am skeptical of that, thinking it is more likely that she was aware but is more useful to prosecution of the main criminal as a witness than a co-conspirator. It is possible she thought they were just picking up a camper and it was all legit. That woman was just as likely to be hit by the trailer owners gunfire as the thief. That also seems like an argument that shooting without clear aim on the driver was poor judgment

I'm glad the thief is known and will be apprehended. Me I would like to think I would have been rational enough to just sit there looking out the window and telling police on the phone which way we were going. Never having been in the situation I don't know how I would have reacted but would like to think I would have been a little more thoughtful.

If we stopped and I was confronted by the thief the pistol in the hand not holding the phone would have been reassuring. If I was just kidnapped from my own driveway in my own camper I would say the perpetrator of that crime could be reasonably assumed to be a threat to my life if confronted. What happens next depends on them.

Heck if I walked out to see what was that noise and found someone stealing something from the garage or driveway I would assume the thief or thieves were a threat until proven otherwise. Best way to prove they are not a threat would be to lay face down, hands behind head and wait for the police to arrive.

One more reason to love the Scamp with the big front window, better line of sight if trapped in your trailer while it is being stolen.

[Darwin Maring]

RogerDat said: You shoot only at what you can see and identify.

That's why when I was growing up in IOWA some farmers would paint COW on the sides of their Cows so the city folks would be Be able to identify them and hopefully not shoot them thinking they were deer.

[Byron Kinnaman]

Considering the huge number of stolen fiberglass trailers, I think I'll just enjoy camping. I do keep the trailer locked with a chain and a hitch lock when it's next to the house. Plus I have a motion detector that tells when anybody is near the tong. From what I've read most of the problems, (all ??? I think I count them on fingers and still have some left over) occur when trailer is stored.

[RogerDat]

Originally Posted by Darwin Maring

RogerDat said: You shoot only at what you can see and identify.

That's why when I was growing up in IOWA some farmers would paint COW on the sides of their Cows so the city folks would be Be able to identify them and hopefully not shoot them thinking they were deer.

I heard some of those city slickers were too dumb to read COW but that putting $1,500 on the side usually did the trick.

[Paul O.]

Scamp 19' "fifth wheel" is not a standard fifth wheel, nor is it a gooseneck; what is it? That makes it somewhat safer, I hope, and I also use a padlock on the coupler latch. I believe that by law the latch must be secured with a bolt or pin, so why not a padlock.
I do like Donna's sticker - very clever!

[Donna D.]

Do ABSOLUTELY, whatever YOU NEED to do that allows you to get a good night's sleep. Insurance, extra insurance, decals, motion detectors... whatever. Owning an all molded travel trailer is supposed to be fun... not stressful! R E L A X!

[Paul O.]

How true!

[Jim Bennett]

There are the few (a couple good friends included ) that are constantly concerned with 'dangers' that potentially exist. I don't think some people of this type ever fully relax unfortunately. But definitely do whatever it takes to make your experience as enjoyable for you as you can.

[V'sGlassSleeper]

This is an old thread, but I am considering buying a Brahma wheel lock for my 1988 Bigfoot B19 and wondered how you like yours, Jill? Is it relatively easy to install? I tried PM'ing you but your settings don't allow PMs, so figured I would post to this thread and hope you see it.

I noticed on one website that they sell an optional different-style wheel hub cover but I can't reach anyone (manufacturer or distributor) by phone to determine if I would need that flat version if I am using hub covers.

Mainly before I spent that much money, I wanted to check to see if you feel that it was a worthwhile investment.

Thanks in advance for any input!