Hitch locks

[Yves Pelchat]

Hello;

I would like to have more information about hitch locks. What are the different hitch locks available, and where to purchase them.

Thanks.

Yves.

[Benny K]

Hope we are on the same wavelength and you mean locking the trailer coupler as opposed to a locking pin on the hitch stinger......coupler locks won`t stop real thieves from stealing your trailer, only the honest ones....and stopping the honest ones is as easy as locking an old hitch ball in your coupler with a decent padlock thru the latch on the coupler.....apparently real thieves will close couple your trailer to their hitch with a chain and tow it away to a place where they can remove the hitch lock at their leisure......seems that the best systems lock at least one wheel of the trailer so it doesn`t turn.....there should be others on here shortly with types and suppliers of hitch locks...Benny

[Frederick L. Simson]

MASTERlock Coupler lock
I use product #377DAT, in addition to a long shanked padlock through the coupler latch.

[Byron Kinnaman]

Hitch locks are one way, but a chain wrapped around the coupler will defeat it. A better way might be this one.

[Bernie Seward]

In addition to a hitch pin lock and a hitch ball lock I also use a wheel lock (Trailer Keeper available from Cabelas ). The advantage of Trailer Keeper over other wheel locks is that the wheel cannot be removed in order to bypass the wheel lock. The lock mounting bracket attaches to one of the lug nuts which is inaccessible when the lock is in place.

I also have installed in my trailer an electronic security system called Security Guard III from Desert Security Systems. This has a motion detector for the interior and a sensor mounted on the door. If someone breaks in, it triggers a very loud siren and since there are houses all around my parked trailer, someone is going to hear it. I think the warning signs (which come with the system) I have placed on all sides of my trailer also serve as a deterrent (If the bad guys are literate!).

Bernie

[Lew King]

I use both types of hitch locks and I also
fixed up a 2 foot threaded rod with a heavy chain on it
I drove the rod into the ground and then wrap the chain
around the and through the yoke and padlock it with
a case hardended lock. It wont stop a determined thief
but it sure makes it difficult. I also have a light on the garage that comes
on when there is movement as light is the last thing a thief wants.
Lew
thieves

[Donna D.]

stopping the honest ones is as easy as locking an old hitch ball in your coupler with a decent padlock thru the latch on the coupler.

Seems to me you'd also want to hack off the shaft off the ball too. Otherwise what's to stop a thief from bolting their stinger to the ball, reinstalling the stinger into the receiver hitch and driving off???

[Mike-B]

Years ago I worked as a recovery agent (repo man). Nothing on the hitch would slow me down. A quick chainup and I was gone. Trailers with any type of wheel lock would be drug down the street to a "safe area" and undone. What DID stop me was a trailer with no wheels.
Also a cable around the axle and a fixed object was a problem. Easy grab for me was a trailer with any kind of hitch lock in a nice quiet, no light, no neighbors, no dogs area. The last thing I wanted was to be noticed. Being shot at did not make for a good night. Mike

[jack maloney]

...what's to stop a thief from bolting their stinger to the ball, reinstalling the stinger into the receiver hitch and driving off???

Time. Time is the thief's enemy. Anything that slows him down increases his risk of being caught in the act. Short of setting it in concrete, you can't make your egg perfectly theft-proof - but there's a whole spectrum of things we can do to make it less convenient for thieves. Each of us makes his own choice as to where, on that spectrum, he feels comfortable.

[Brian B-P]

I believe that Benny's ball-in-coupler scheme is an economical alternative to the coupler locks such as those shown in Frederick's Master Lock page. The biggest difference to me is that the actual locking mechanism of the commercial coupler locks is in addition to anything done on the latch, and probably much harder to cut or otherwise disable.

I agree with Donna that this would be more secure with the stud removed; if I were to go home and do this today and wanted to avoid the effort of sawing off a 3/4" stud, I would use an old ball which has a threaded hole (used with a bolt) instead of a stud (used with a nut). The threaded hole could be filled with epoxy (or whatever) to keep the prospective thief from bolting up to it. This is a less common type of ball, but I have two on my garage shelf, so I know they're out there.

I find Mike's comment about wheel removal interesting. In some discussions of this subject, it seems to be assumed that any well-prepared thief can come up with a generic wheel (with tire) or two, so removal is ineffective. It may be that the time to mount wheels is significant. It seems to me that it would also be advantageous to have an oddball bolt pattern, so a prospective thief's wheels would not fit.

Finally, on that spectrum of levels of inconvenience which Jack mentions, I have to consider that what takes a thief's time also takes mine: its not just what makes me comfortable, but what I am willing to do in order to unlock my trailer. If you use nothing but a simple padlock on the coupler latch and your trailer is stolen, I won't be telling you that you should have done more - it's your trailer, and the thief is the one to blame.

[Loren G. Hedahl]

Just thinking about this, some time ago a co-worker of mine lived in an semi-rural area that was "hit" several times by thieves. We were working as a group of electrical engineers and came up with motion detectors that set off high powered repeating strobe lights. These were installed by any of the residents in that area that were interested. Most were. Problem solved.

I said high powered, but since the flash is just for a split instant, no much electrical power is needed to produce a huge amount of light, especially on a dark night. Also this attracts a lot of attention. It shouldn't be too hard or expensive to outfit a small camper with such a system.

[Benny K]

Yes Donna, I thought about the stem on the ball but didn`t put it in my post, and if I did use that system to lock the trailer coupler I would cut off the stem with the friction saw or blow it off with the arc welder at 300 amps,LOL......Funny that with 2 trailers, I have a coupler lock but don`t use it....both trailers are insured and if someone wants them bad enough they can have them....sometimes it doesn`t matter what you do it`ll be stolen or vandalized anyway........and Brian, the hitch balls with the internal thread are good for use in applications on equipment where you may need a stem longer than 2-3 "....have a couple of them around here too.....Benny

[Loren G. Hedahl]

It's one thing to have your rig stolen or vandalized when parked at home and quite another when on a vacation.

My policy is to not look too rich or spiffy especially when traveling. It isn't that I want to appear scruffy. Well traveled is ideal. No obvious damage, but a significant amount of wear-and-tear in the right places to portray an image of experience. Used but not abused.

I used to have a NRA sticker on the trailer door window and an empty gun rack in the back window of my pickup, though I've never even owned a firearm. However in the last 10 years or so where political correctness has become an issue, I don't use these props any more. It just might be that they would invite a break-in to steal a non-existent firearm.

I've never had an incident or even a close call. My favorite response to a noisy group nearby is to tell them I'd like to join them, but I already drank more than I should have and am nursing a nasty hangover.

It's amazing how most times they start to empathize and even apologize for the noise.

[Rick B]

Anyone think of a means of locking the handle of the tongue jack? If the trailer was raised at sufficient height, and the handle was secured, would it mean extra work to connect to a tow vehicle (this in addition to the hitch lock)?

Rick B

[jack maloney]

My policy is to not look too rich or spiffy especially when traveling.

Hmm - never realised I was following your policy, Loren - I guess it just came naturally.

[Benny K]

Hi Rick, I`ve thought about that but the problem is dependant on the terrain you are parked in....your trailer may be level but the thief`s hitch could be higher and when on his, the jack would never touch the ground.....suppose with an electric jack, you could dig a 1 foot deep hole in the ground and drop the jack all the way down , push the dirt back and disconnect the power.....that would get some thieves thinking as they tried to lift the tongue to fit their hitch, LOL.....guess that would be a bit of work at every campsite....especially the ones with the concrete pads........Benny