What are thoughts on securing your tractors from theft if you must leave it outside and be away from it for a while?
Security from theft
- Thread starter HungSolo
- Start date
bookemdano
Member
Equipment
L3800, FEL LA524, ROTARY CUTTER RCR1260, LP QUICK HITCH QH15, A&B BOX SCRAPPER,
My State Farm Homeownwers Ins. covers that. First thing I checked
when I bought my L3800.
Dano
Like stated in the previous post, it's called an insurance policy. If a thief wants something bad enough there isn't a lock or alarm system in the world that will stop them. The only thing locks and alarms do is keep honest people honest.
Well, locks and chains are good proof when the insurance adjuster or police show to make a report; then you can say, "See they cut off the lock and chain. Wanna take it for prints?"
I did that one time to a Samurai that I had. It would crank all day but not start.
I agree about securing it- in our area, if you leave your keys in your vehicle or your vehicle unlocked, the perp can't be charged with breaking and entering. It goes a long ways to satisfy an insurance company if you did all you could to thwart theft.
Most Kubotas I have seen have a fuel shut off on the filter. I would suggest shutting off the fuel among any other security measures you want to do. My feeling is that if a thief gets something started and it stalls and won't restart, they are likely to abandon it. Most don't know about the shutoff.
MY $0.02..............
MY $0.02..............
bcbull378
Member
Equipment
GL3830,fel,brush hog,pallet forks,disc,gannon,auger,springtooth,plow,drag,ripper
We leave the equipment in the field when ever its to far to road it back to the barn at night . Even here in Ca I have never had anything stolen, but remember theres a silver linning in every black cloud and that is if they steal your tractor theres a new one on the way.
For Hodge, others:
How did you wire a switch that would permit 'cranking all day' but not allow a start?
Thanks for responding.
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I like the idea of shutting off fuel supply but I experimented with that idea and found that fuel in the bowl would run it several minutes, plenty long to mount a trailer before dying. And I tended to forget to turn the fuel on before heading out of the barn. After bleeding air from the system in a freezing rain I started thinking of electrical switch-type interlocks. Might be as simple as wiring a small switch across the seat safety switch wires, just out of sight. All ideas invited and appreciated.
How did you wire a switch that would permit 'cranking all day' but not allow a start?
Thanks for responding.
______________
I like the idea of shutting off fuel supply but I experimented with that idea and found that fuel in the bowl would run it several minutes, plenty long to mount a trailer before dying. And I tended to forget to turn the fuel on before heading out of the barn. After bleeding air from the system in a freezing rain I started thinking of electrical switch-type interlocks. Might be as simple as wiring a small switch across the seat safety switch wires, just out of sight. All ideas invited and appreciated.
My thoughts on this as I have a almost new Kubota as well as motorcycles and other equipment....
As long as reasonable and prudent (remove the key, perhaps secure to a post with a chain/cable and lock) steps have been taken to prevent theft, I can sleep well and leave the rest to the police and insurance company.
I mean seriously, this small equipment is like motorcycles. Except easier as there is no title / title washing to be concerned with. It does not help that there are very few different keys as well. I mean really, walk down to your Kubota dealer, try one key in many machines and it will work in many.
Just like installing a wheel lock on a smaller motorcycle, which just keeps honest people honest as three guys will just pick up the "locked" motorcycle, throw it in the back of a truck and be gone... the same with your tractor! Unless it is a big one, someone will just back up to the "locked" or "disabled" tractor and winch it up on there flatbed.
Well it slows them down augument comes to mind here? Really? What is faster, 2 or 3 mins to load up your tractor and driving away at 30, 40, 50 or 60 mph or starting it up and trying to drive away at 10 to 15mph? Really think you can drive fast enough on a noisy tractor to fade away into the night?
Sorry to be fatalistic here, but short of NOT owning a piece of equipment, there is absolutly no way of securing it absolutly. Just watch legit tow truck / repo drivers, they can be off with a car in a very short time....
My thoughts!
As long as reasonable and prudent (remove the key, perhaps secure to a post with a chain/cable and lock) steps have been taken to prevent theft, I can sleep well and leave the rest to the police and insurance company.
I mean seriously, this small equipment is like motorcycles. Except easier as there is no title / title washing to be concerned with. It does not help that there are very few different keys as well. I mean really, walk down to your Kubota dealer, try one key in many machines and it will work in many.
Just like installing a wheel lock on a smaller motorcycle, which just keeps honest people honest as three guys will just pick up the "locked" motorcycle, throw it in the back of a truck and be gone... the same with your tractor! Unless it is a big one, someone will just back up to the "locked" or "disabled" tractor and winch it up on there flatbed.
Well it slows them down augument comes to mind here? Really? What is faster, 2 or 3 mins to load up your tractor and driving away at 30, 40, 50 or 60 mph or starting it up and trying to drive away at 10 to 15mph? Really think you can drive fast enough on a noisy tractor to fade away into the night?
Sorry to be fatalistic here, but short of NOT owning a piece of equipment, there is absolutly no way of securing it absolutly. Just watch legit tow truck / repo drivers, they can be off with a car in a very short time....
My thoughts!
Yes but we've been trained to handle your car without tearing it up and we're doing it legally also!
Up until a few weeks ago we never thought much about locking thing around here. Then "stuff" started happening. I usually left a key in one of my little tractors all the time because, face it you do have to know how to start these older tractors. Then I found the key broken off in the B6000 one evening after I know I left it in the other tractor. That got me to thinking a little. Since then I've found a few things missing, still a little under the insurance deductible. In these parts i'm known as the gun tote'in preacher, I know how to use it too. i'll catch'em soon.
That was on a Suzuki Samurai- I wired a switch into the power to the distributor, so it would turn over, but not fire.
Similar subject- a young man at our church works on his families pumpkin farm. They have many fields, with loading operations at each location. They sell something like 80 or 90 tractor trailer loads of pumpkins a year. He left his truck, a 97 Dodge 2500 CTD, at one of the loading areas overnight, because he had to drive another truck home and fuel it up. He left his keys in the truck, assuming that no one would know it was there- you couldn't see it from the road. Someone came that night, and took a joy ride, blowing the engine. They haven't torn it down yet, but it is blowing white smoke, blowing oil out everywhere, and it shakes like mad. It was running fine the day before, and he could see three things that had been changed- heater settings, a photo of his girlfriend, and a piece of cardboard that he had used to lay under the truck the day before, was now under one of the tires. They have found a used engine to put in it. It is a costly lesson- don't leave your keys in it, to begin with; don't leave it unattended in an isolated place, if at all possible; and carry full coverage, if you can afford it.
I understand. If you legit guys (and gals) can do it so fast, just think of a amped up thief.... who is not concerned with damage or not.
That is one way to discourage theft. Unfortuatly as much as I agree with you, in my State of Washington, in order to use deadly force, you must be in immediate danger of loss of life (or someone else) as well as generaly being indoors or where you cannot readily escape. We do not have a stand your ground law here. IE if you shoot someone and they make it outside your house... drag em' back in.. lol
So, since I do not want to go to jail, and since I live on the more liberal side of the state so to speak, with the chance of a more liberal viewpoint jury of my peers, with a potential more liberal viewpoint on weapons and those laws regarding them, I will not use my weapons to protect any property, only in the protection of immediate danger to life and limb.
And no... darn, can't even wing em' either, that would as well be considered use of deadly force under the law!
David