Anti-theft device

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

Mine had a fusible link missing between the alternator and the rest of the wiring harness when it was winched onto a trailer and hauled off in the middle of the night last year.
If they want it, they'll get it. (they left the bucket behind, though - had to remove it to move the tractor, and it fell off the back of their trailer)

 

[ShenandoahJoe]

My owner's manual describes the anti-theft device this way: "Maximum traveling speed: 7.5 mph".

 

[Soundguy]

Is there any anti-theft devices out there that can be used to prevent the theft of a tractor. I keep my tractor stored and locked in a pole barn and keep the key with me, but would like to secure the tractor more. Thanks

-Prevent- the theft of a tractor? yeah.. armed guarfds.. lots of them.

if theives want your stuff and you aren't there to stop them.. they will get it.. between a set of torches.. or a battery powered abrasive saw.. not many locks, chains or cables will hold up to more than a few seconds of that sort of treatment.

out of site out of mind is good .. but once on the radar.. it's only a time issue.. a few bucks in tools a scout and lookout and a roll back truck will steal lots of tractors.

devices make your tractor harder to steal.. a really well secured machine with lots of deterents will likely make the average theif move on to your neighbors property and steal his.. UNLESS he really wants yours.. in which case.. he'll get it.. unless someone physically intervenes.

a 50$ lock and 100$ chain can be cut open by a chinese 15$ angle grinder in under a minute..

good luck.

soundguy

 

[Marshal9]

I have a fuel cutoff and an electrical cutoff switch on mine. Got the idea from a friend who is a diesel mechanic for a construction company. Like most have posted...if someone wants your tractor, they will get it.

 

[RadarTech]

ya know I have seen so many ideas and methods... but it all comes down to one thing...

HOW BAD DOES THE THIEF WANT IT?


I have heard of people making it hard, electric fences, booby trapped barns, and video etc..

and in addition I have seen the crooks sue the homeowners for injuries..

Even heard of one case where the homeowner shot the thief and got sued.....

Life is just not fair, never has been....

All we can hope for is the best way to mitigate the common threats and move on....



Later,
J

 

[Cat_Driver]

The only true way to prevent it would be to remove all the tires and then put them on when you want to use it but we all know that is ridiculous.

I had a dump trailer stolen in a locked gated are and it was full actually over filled with a load for the dump the next day. You could tell whatever they stole it with was way underpowered because the back tire were leaving spin out marks all the way down the drive. I thought NO WAY would they steal a FULL TRAILER, I was wrong.

The thing is no matter what you deactivate - fuel, batteries, starter etc. they will come with a trailer and winch and fix the tractor wherever they take it.

That's why I started by saying remove all the tires because no was can they get it on a tractor....well easily anyway.

 

[Dargo]

These reasons listed are precisely why the setup I described is the only way to insure security of your unit. As I mentioned, with a prepared thief, you have virtually a zero chance of stopping them. With what I described you have over a 90% chance of having them caught before they get over 10 miles away. You only waste money by trying futile methods of trying to prevent them from starting or securing them. Each of the previous mentioned ideas of preventing the units from starting were all covered in the demo I saw. What we think of as being smart and sneaky are about the equivalent of buying you 5 to 10 seconds of additional time while it's being stolen. Unfortunately, unless you know exactly as it's being stolen, what does an extra 10 seconds mean? Basically, just a waste of your time and money.

 

[Soundguy]

The only true way to prevent it would be to remove all the tires and then put them on when you want to use it but we all know that is ridiculous. .

Yes.. that is ridiculous... a rollback truck would steal that tireless tractor in a heartbeat... if the thief had a few sheets of junk plywood to help.. he likely wouldn't even hurt the tractor as the tractor would slide up the rollback on the plywood as a skid.. then he would just throw the rims and tires on the back and drive off.. or at worst.. buy new... whats 1000$ worth of tires and rims when he got the 15000$ tractor free???

soudnguy

 

[foggy1111]

"LoJack" is a very poor quality tracking system. Their successful recovery rate is extremely low. There is a company called CalAmp CalAmp - Products that is the only public company that actually owns the GPS tracking technology. All others either buy from them or pay a license fee to them for their products. They are beginning to sell their products to companies and equipment dealers and those products are very, very good. They use a combination of satellite and cell phone networks to setup a "geo-fence" around your piece of equipment when you set it. If your piece of equipment moves outside the "fence" you establish you will receive either a call, email, text message that not only tells you that your piece of equipment is being moved but also exactly where it is, what direction it is moving and at exactly what speed it is moving. They even have motion sensors built in that can contact you as someone is just trying to tamper with or steal your equipment.

This is the same technology that some companies use on high risk credit people when they sell them a car. If need be, the lender can shut off the vehicle, prevent the car from being started again, show a repo company exactly where the vehicle is sitting (even uses MS Earth to show physical location and is precise enough to not only show on what floor of a parking garage the car is parked but in what parking space). With this technology on your equipment you have over a 90% chance of catching the thief before they even get away with your piece of equipment.

I've seen this technology demonstrated and compared to LoJack. It's about like comparing two cups with a string between them to a fiber optic phone link. I would assume that this will be available at most equipment and ag dealers within 5 years. Several manufacturers are looking into making this standard equipment on their higher priced items. Let's face it, with a low-boy trailer and a chop shop setup, your tractor or other equipment can not only be stolen easily but parted out and sold in pieces the next day before you ever notice it is gone. Obviously I hate thieves! I'm glad to see this technology emerging. In today's economy it can be quite profitable for crooks to snag a load of equipment and have the parts sold the next day.

What does this cost?

 

[Dargo]

What does this cost?

I don't know for sure, but I'm finding out. Figures I've heard batted around weren't 'cheap', but certainly weren't in the unreasonable range. This is second hand, so I don't know how true it is, but a guy I know claims to have such a device on his Jet Skis he leaves at a lake cabin and supposedly they were 'three hundred and something' to buy and then like $25 a year after 5 years, or something like that. Again, that's second hand, but if it's close to that I think I could see going that direction for a tractor.