The crooks broke into my shipping container

[Chuck_Lind]

Here in central Pa, we're constantly aware of the copperheads and rattlesnake hiding in equipment, trailers and what-not.

Place a professional-looking sign outside the container that displays: BE AWARE; copperheads and rattlesnakes have been caught in this container.

There's nothing worse than hearing that chilling sound of rattles...I run the other way.

 

[Soundguy]

Too bad you simply can't dispatch thieves. I've no use for them. what happened to the good ole' days when a thief got a free 'rope-swing' ride ??? /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

( guess justice has now become 'new & improved'.. based on what I heard on the radio yesterday about the MJ trial... )

Soundguy

 

[Highbeam]

The good news about washington, western at least, is that there isn't a single poisonous critter out there. The biggest fear we have is stepping on a bee hive or being jabbed in the eye by a blackberry bush. We have garter snakes here and the worse thing they do is squirt some foul yellow stuff on you when you pick them up.

Motion cameras start at 100$ for film versions that look to have no features and climb real fast in price. To have a no-flash digital version I would have to pay several hundred and then have one more thing they could steal. The market for these things is wildlife and the sales literature verifies that the flash doesn't effect wildlife so there is no emphasis on eliminating the flash.

 

[EddieWalker]

I agree with you on the cameras only being good for wildlife.

It sounds nice to be able to take the crooks photo, but reality is a little different. Just look at profesional survelance cameraas and how difficult it is to identify somebody by one of those.

The game cameras have to be pretty close just to see if it's a decent buck or not. Getting a face shot of a criminal would be pure folly.

The few times I've heard of somebody actually trying to use one to take photos of tresspassers have resulted in missing or destroyed cameras.

Ask yourself this. If a camera takes your picture when your doing something you shouldn't be doing in the first place, what will you do. Destroy the evidence.

You did the best you could Highbeam. I'm sure they will come back from time to time to make sure you've locked it and haven't left anything out, but eventually they will realize your serious. Just like racoons and garbage cans. In time, even they will give up.

Eddie

 

[Highbeam]

But at least I can shoot the racoons /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Just this week I whopped one in the belly with my benjamin 0.20 cal pellet rifle. In the suburbs, the Ruger 10/22 0.22 rimfire has to warm the bench.

Thanks for all your help folks. If nothing else I/we have learned that the container may be the most theftproof option but it is not 100% theftproof. Later this week I'll post some pictures of the joebuilt lockbox and the defeated OEM locking mechanism for your viewing pleasure.

 

[TORQUIN]

If they attempt another break in, you might just cut a window in the door or side, and put bars on it, so they can SEE there is nothing of value for them to steal, without them having to break in to verify your sign.

Chris

 

[Westonium]

Put a CHEAP PC Cam atop the thing with wires going into the container. Get a dead mini satellite dish from someone (if you were close, I'd give you one) and mount that on top too.

Put video surveillance signs up. Put a sign on the door explaining that it is wireless internet streaming video surveillance. If they buy it, they'll think there is no way to stop the pics from getting to you.

That is precisely what my neighbor and I are going to build. Pictures will stream to a remote server in a different town before they'll have a chance to cut the feed. Our stuff will be the real thing. Both of us will be concealed carry. The official looking metal sign on my garage reads "Tresspassers will be shot. Survivors will be shot again."

If that, the gate, the dogs, and the warning signs don't scare em off - I'll probably have to shoot them.

 

[Soundguy]

I imagine a bb-gun or .22cal at about 50yds would take out that v-cam before anyone was within 'good' view...

Soundguy

 

[goodoleboy]

Also note it is a criminal act to distrub survaillance equipment such movings cameras, moving lenses and such.

 

[Vsshooter]

I am a little paranoid by nature, I don't trust strangers by default, I even carry a concealed weapon lots of times. My wife thought I was a little nuts for buying a 20' steel shipping container for use as a secure garage on my vacant 15 acre property out in the boonies. I use it to park my bulldozer inside and store fuel, rigging, and floodlights.

I lock 3 of the four handles with three different types of locks. The container is out of sight from the road and the driveway has a locked gate.

Well the crooks managed to come in on foot around the gate and then popped off a plain masterlock, then a padlock with the stainless steel shrouds that cover most of the lock bar. The third lock was one of those rotary style locks that looks round and the bar rotates around the center to lock, they couldn't get that off and it had to come off to open either door of the container. It looks like they then took a wedge and sledge hammer and drove a wedge between the container and the locking door handle until the assembly was pried from the container. The rotary lock was still hanging from the handle when I got there, completely reusable.

The crooks must have been looking for good pawn shop stuff since they took nothing and didn't even vandalize the dozer. I thought they would at least take the floodlights.

I relocked the unbroken door handle with the surviving rotary lock and wrote a note on the door with my black magic marker. "No tools, fuel cans, or generators inside, please stay away." This is the first attempted break in in the year it has been there.

The crooks spent a lot of effort to get inside, the oppurtunity thief would have walked away. I highly recommend the rotary style locks unless you want to intentionally make it "sort of" easy to get inside.

You might try another approach and have a 1/2" thick steel hasp and steel box houseing just big enough to get one of your hands in to manipulate the lock. The hasp is welded to the left doot the steel housing is welded to the right door with a slot for the hasp to pass thru to the inside of the steel box. There is no way the lock can be cut or wedeged off without destroying all the welds that hold it to both doors. The steel box is made out of 4"x4" thick wall square steet tubing with the top plated over and welded.