Own a Cat Key.... Sure You Can Borrow Our Equipment

[joedirt]

I'm sure this happens every where but I am tired of it.:mad: It seems that anyone who has a Cat, Deere, or whatever else key in their pocket gives them th right to "borrow" your equipment.

Just last week a Drilling contractor "borrowed" our loader with out our knowledge. Late that night our estimator of all people gets a call saying "we didn't know how to turn off your loader". Needless to say we took a trip up to shut the machine off. Good thing is they shut the key off and left it running for 10 plus hours. Who knows what sort of damage that did to the charging system? The loader is an older 936f with mechanical shut off ( pull up on throttle pedal).

Granted, there are times I have used other people equipment in what I would call minor emergencies. Something stuck, or needed to load a bucket into a pickup. But I would never get on a piece of equipment I didn't know how to operate.

[RollOver Pete]

Thats just the reason I always turn off the battery or night switch then LOCK the engine compartment with anything other than a Cat lock.
With the battery switch off and the door or engine panel locked, it's impossible for anyone to borrow your equipment.
:cool:

[DirtHauler]

Thats just the reason I always turn off the battery or night switch then LOCK the engine compartment with anything other than a Cat lock.
With the battery switch off and the door or engine panel locked, it's impossible for anyone to borrow your equipment.
:cool:

:naughty I would say it discorages it... I witnessed a chop saw unlock a access panel once. :beatsme

[RollOver Pete]

:naughty I would say it discorages it... I witnessed a chop saw unlock a access panel once. :beatsme

True..
It only keeps an honest thief honest.
If someone insists by cutting a lock, thats grand theft...
And if I catch them, a broken arm followed by ME going to jail.
There's nothing in this world that I hate more than a thief. :cussing
If I had my way, I'd have all of them shot....:guns
And I promise you...I wouldn't loose any sleep over it.:soapbox

Damn....I hate a thief!
C what ya did.....now you got me started......
:cool:

[Dirtman2007]

That why I like our daewoo's only one key will fit that machine, of course one is so worn out that just about any key will start it as long as it fits in the switch.

I have been known to use my master set of equipment keys to move other peoples equipment out of the way if they park it where I need to work, or maybe get my truck unstuck:thumbsup

[mikef87]

True..
It only keeps an honest thief honest.
If someone insists by cutting a lock, thats grand theft...
And if I catch them, a broken arm followed by ME going to jail.
There's nothing in this world that I hate more than a thief. :cussing
If I had my way, I'd have all of them shot....:guns
And I promise you...I wouldn't loose any sleep over it.:soapbox

Damn....I hate a thief!
C what ya did.....now you got me started......
:cool:

amen to that. that's why our country is so screwed up, people are to afraid to punish someone for doing something wrong.

[Dirtman2007]

amen to that. that's why our country is so screwed up, people are to afraid to punish someone for doing something wrong.

Double amen to that,

Thiefs and vandals would all be 6' under up to me. little bastards smashed all the windows out of our buddies motor grader which I had to freeze by butt of in until the job was done. Did $3500 work of damage to his mini excavator, threw rocks at the windsheild of his dump trucks. All this was done in a very nice neighborhood. I would have tried to run them over with the dozer if I witnessed this happening

[RollOver Pete]

amen to that. that's why our country is so screwed up, people are to afraid to punish someone for doing something wrong.

I don't know about that...
Criminals have way more rights than their victims.
This I know....
The "system " had better things to do when I handed them on a silver platter those who did me wrong,
only to watch them walk because there wasn't enough room to hold them.
After receiving death threats, I took matters into my own hands.
You see, the "system" has a way with turning victims or innocent people into criminals.
Those who did me wrong are still doing time.
I now have a police record for domestic violence and assault and battery, and have had my right to bare arms taken from me.
Like that was suppose to stop me?
I did some time, community service and completed my anger management classes.
BTW, I learned absolutely NOTHING in those stupid classes that I didn't already know.
What I got was a new found hatred for thieves and anyone who thinks it's OK to take anything from me, my family, friends and loved ones.
And I've seen first hand how a "system" that has failed the people continues to operate and suck up my tax dollars.
Lesson learned...
I shall beg for forgiveness before I ever again ask for permission.

OK.....I need a drink now......
:cool:

[Ross]

Yeah well Borrowing equipment without the owners knowledge is Bad unless for say, Using the machine to free people from burning buildings etc.

If I was a Owner operator like a lot of you guys are then Tinker with the electrics a little I.E Place a Kill switch between the ignition and starter Relay solenoid. Or place the switch on the stop solenoid circuit if you have a more modern machine.

I have borrowed equipment on-site (Company Machinery) to help with lifting jobs etc but I always ensure the machine is returned in the same condition as it was taken. Sometimes I would even leave a tin of Fly Killer in there if Iam working Landfill.

The Topic of this thread is not about Killing or Having killed or Wish the killing of People (Scum or not) but the fact that Ignorance prevailed in the account posted.


Ross

[rino1494]

That is why we have a master switch hidden on most of our equipment and we have master locks on everything.

[Construct'O]

RollOver Pete!

Did you get your t-shirt????:rolleyes:

My brother got a t-shirt.It says:

These anger management lessons are really starting to PSSSSSSS ! Me off !!!!!!:notworthy :usa

[d4c24a]

i usually pull the fuse on the starter circuit if the machine is left somewhere i dont trust
also alot of the hired equipment has a third party immobiliser fitted and tracker its a company policy
cheers graham

[Buckethead]

Joedirt, if they had your phone # to ask how to shut it off they should have called to ask you if they could use it in the first place.

[joedirt]

Buckethead,
Your preaching to the quior. Just a simple call would have made the difference. The loader was at a remote cell site so maybe they had no service:beatsme . I wouldn't be as upset but they called us fisrt thing in the morning stating they didn't need us or the loader. When I got up to the site late that night to shut it off I saw where they had moved about 500 plus yards of dirt. Little more than just your " borrow for 5 minutes."

[Construct'O]

Send them a bill !!!!!!!!!:drinkup :usa

[Dwan Hall]

I aggree "send them a bill"

[Eric]

Where did you say this equipment was parked?? I think I'll put a new pool in this weekend!!!;) ;) ;) :drinkup

[Grader4me]

Speaking of keys..a little off topic, but here's the story. One of our instructors was taking a new guy out in one of our new International plow trucks. All of our new trucks are keyed the same, so basically the same key fits all. So after the day was done the instructor went back to his car only to discover his keys was missing. In his pocket was the key to the International truck. Scratching his head he went back to the truck only to discover his car keys in the ignition. We didn't believe this so all of us (we were all at the same place as it was a one person plow training course) went out to the truck and low and behold the key out of his Chrysler Intrepid will start a 2007 International truck. The rest of us have different model cars etc. and none of these worked in the truck. What's the chance of that happening?:beatsme

[Squizzy246B]

Yaeh, but who'd want to steal an International:rolleyes: ;) :D

[Grader4me]

Lol..Good point...

[qball]

by buddy "borrowed" a 973 to move 2 36" pipes. he SWAMPED it. tough phone call to make. it was the only machine on site.DOH!

[surfer-joe]

Send them a bill !!!!!!!!!:drinkup :usa

10-4 on sending a bill! That may make them hesitate before pulling that stunt again. I've worked for a couple of outfits that have done that in the past. The folks that got the bill also got real irate about it, but eventually paid up when the prime said if they didn't pay us, the prime would take it out of their settlements. Another outfit worked out a trade for some future work from a guy that "barrowed" a D8 for a day.

I can see using a machine for an emergency or a fast tow out of a sticky situation, but a phone call ASAP works real well to smooth things over. Those that try to pull a fast one rarely get away with it.

[John White]

I don't know about that...
Criminals have way more rights than their victims.
This I know....
The "system " had better things to do when I handed them on a silver platter those who did me wrong,
only to watch them walk because there wasn't enough room to hold them.
After receiving death threats, I took matters into my own hands.
You see, the "system" has a way with turning victims or innocent people into criminals.
Those who did me wrong are still doing time.
I now have a police record for domestic violence and assault and battery, and have had my right to bare arms taken from me.
Like that was suppose to stop me?
I did some time, community service and completed my anger management classes.
BTW, I learned absolutely NOTHING in those stupid classes that I didn't already know.
What I got was a new found hatred for thieves and anyone who thinks it's OK to take anything from me, my family, friends and loved ones.
And I've seen first hand how a "system" that has failed the people continues to operate and suck up my tax dollars.
Lesson learned...
I shall beg for forgiveness before I ever again ask for permission.

OK.....I need a drink now......
:cool:

Pete: you sound like a fellow I would like to have for a next door neighbor. This thivery is braking the backs of working people. The story of the " little red hen" isnt told much any more. The mind set is if you got it, i'll steal it. I was in business for over 30 years. Tools that I purchased in the 40's by picking up pop bottles along the road and selling and many sentemental items, that cannot ber replaced at any cost. The first thing the police wanted to know when they showed up was if I owned a gun. I told them its none of their business. Just investigate the theft. In 30 minutes someone destroyed what I worked for 30 years, basically putting me out of business. After I did some decetive work, I found some of my tools being sold at a flea market. After calling the police, they treated me like the criminal. Would only let me have the items that had my initals on them. Checked the fellow out and found he had a history of selling stolen stuff, but would not proscute because "not enough evidence". So Pete if you come to work some morning and you find a body in front of that big cat. Just close your eyes and drop the blade and shove dirt.

[activeorpassive]

I do not know what other manufacturers are doing for machine security, but Caterpillar offers Machine Security System (MSS). The unit replaces the standard key switch with the MSS key switch. The unit has to be programmed using Cat Electronic Technician (diagnostic and parameters tool), but it may be worth the $680 investment (plus installation unless purchased with a new machine).

MSS will only accept MSS keys (they look like regular Cat keys with the exception of being yellow instead of black). Users can configure as many keys as they wish, and there is one "master" key (unrestricted access). Owners can even restrict certain users to certain parameters. For example, if you want your newbie operator to be restricted for safety purposes, you can program the MSS to recognize the newbies key and limit him to whatever you wish to limit him (speed, engine RPM, functions, etc).

There is also Product Link, which became standard on most Cat machines as of July 2007. Doesn't disable, but will locate the machine. Worthless if the machine gets parked in a building, though, as the antenna will not transmit unless the machine is outdoors. Can also be a battery drainer. But that's for a different post.

But sometimes it's worth saving $700 just to catch somebody in the act and kick the snot out of 'em...if you catch 'em

[Squizzy246B]

There is also Product Link, which became standard on most Cat machines as of July 2007. Doesn't disable, but will locate the machine. Worthless if the machine gets parked in a building, though, as the antenna will not transmit unless the machine is outdoors. Can also be a battery drainer. But that's for a different post.

I have (in the last week) seen one of these GPS located machines. I could not for the life of me locate the mobile phone type antenna on the machine...but anyway, it was working well inside a large warehouse. We were able to locate the machine (Cat Loader) from the phone interface to the owners Laptop or get the coodinates, speed and direction direct from the mobile.

The system activates as soon as it moves more than about 30 metres from "home" (where it was activated) and will report position as often as you want. So the system will report position up until the time the machine is hidden in a area not able to receive GPS, telling you within 5 minutes of it being moved in the first place. So you will still know basically where it is.

It uses about 0.1 of an amp when fully active and less when its just sitting. The machine I looked at was shutdown for 3 weeks over christmas with no discernible drain on the batteries.

In a recent case of a skidsteer in Sydney the owner reported the last known position to the cops. They police went to the site and couldn't find the machine so a technician from the company came out and double checked...then told the coppers to move all the (1000 odd) pallets in the warehouse....can you guess what they found behind the huge stacks of pallets?.

The best thing I found this system was there is no ongoing costs or fees...the system reports to your mobile phone so you are not relying on some pot smoking zoob in a monitoring centre to do the right thing. Once you know the location the thieves need to hope that you report it to the coppers........

[joedirt]

Thanks for the input. Yes we have sent them a bill. We will see if we get paid.

Eric, don't be getting any ideas.:)

I was unaware of the new technology on cat keys. It would definitely be worth looking into. Thanks for the support.. Joe:usa

[activeorpassive]

Iit was working well inside a large warehouse. We were able to locate the machine (Cat Loader) from the phone interface to the owners Laptop or get the coodinates, speed and direction direct from the mobile.

The system activates as soon as it moves more than about 30 metres from "home" (where it was activated) and will report position as often as you want. So the system will report position up until the time the machine is hidden in a area not able to receive GPS, telling you within 5 minutes of it being moved in the first place. So you will still know basically where it is.

It uses about 0.1 of an amp when fully active and less when its just sitting. The machine I looked at was shutdown for 3 weeks over christmas with no discernible drain on the batteries.

In a recent case of a skidsteer in Sydney the owner reported the last known position to the cops. They police went to the site and couldn't find the machine so a technician from the company came out and double checked...then told the coppers to move all the (1000 odd) pallets in the warehouse....can you guess what they found behind the huge stacks of pallets?.

The best thing I found this system was there is no ongoing costs or fees...the system reports to your mobile phone so you are not relying on some pot smoking zoob in a monitoring centre to do the right thing. Once you know the location the thieves need to hope that you report it to the coppers........

Newer versions of PL will communicate if not in view of the sky, but there must be ground stations for VHF signal reception (Product Link has two antennas - GPS and VHF). If there are no ground stations and no view of the sky, then PL will be of no use unless "Global Grams" is enabled. Global Grams configures how PL sends messages when a ground station is not in view to the satellites. I am not sure what the options are for transmitting, but I will look into it.

Product Link will send a signal when the machine moves in or out of it's "virtual fence". You can trigger PL to alert when it leaves an area, and you can configure it to trigger if the machine enters a certain area (restricted). But it will only tell you that it moved outside the area for 24 hours. But the report is not continuous and not unlimited. You have to select how many position reports per day you want (0-4), and PL will evenly space that number over 24 hours. So the smallest gap is 6 hours between reports. After that it will not transmit until the machine moves back into the "fence" and then leave again (or leaves the restricted area and then enters again).

But you can configure PL to report with minimum movement. If the default is set to zero, then you can still receive your maximum of four location reports. But if you have four reports per day selected, and the machine doesn't move the minimum required distance, then no reports are generated.

Product Link definitely has a cost to subscribe. The more messages and data you transmit and receive, the more it costs. All data goes through the Equipment Manager server at Cat, then it is transferred to a dealer, then to the customer. The process works in reverse when configuring a machine remotely.

[JDMGrading]

So what happens if a smart theif was to cut the wires going to the antenna? or cut the antenna off.

Just curious as these theifs are going the extra mile this day in time to not get caught and as bad as it seems they sometimes succeed.

[Squizzy246B]

Product Link will send a signal when the machine moves in or out of it's "virtual fence". You can trigger PL to alert when it leaves an area, and you can configure it to trigger if the machine enters a certain area (restricted). But it will only tell you that it moved outside the area for 24 hours. But the report is not continuous and not unlimited. You have to select how many position reports per day you want (0-4), and PL will evenly space that number over 24 hours. So the smallest gap is 6 hours between reports. After that it will not transmit until the machine moves back into the "fence" and then leave again (or leaves the restricted area and then enters again).

activeorpassive: Thanks for that but maybe I should have been clearer, I was not referring to the Cat system. The one I looked was called Ezi-Track which is a dedicated theft tracking system. While the Loader was being driven around a site we were receiving fairly continuous reports to the mobile phone of speed, direction and coordinates. Larry (CE Writer) does a press release here: http://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=5066&page=2

No useage costs unless you subscribe to the $99/year (AUD) tracking but you can do it yourself.

[Squizzy246B]

So what happens if a smart theif was to cut the wires going to the antenna? or cut the antenna off.

Just curious as these theifs are going the extra mile this day in time to not get caught and as bad as it seems they sometimes succeed.

That was the first question I asked, but I was assured the installation was so covert that it couldn't be seen. I looked long and hard on a small loader and only with some help was I able to find the GPS receiver. I could not find the mobile phone antenna so I'm thinking it must be one of those clear stick on the glass ones or something:beatsme

If they were actually able to get to the GPS antenna wires the system would still activate and tell you its last position.

[activeorpassive]

Got it. I'm all plumbed up now...

[Turbo21835]

Ive been in a few situations where we have "borrowed" another contractors equipment. Usually with permission. When you are a finish grading crew, and all you have is a paddlewheel, smooth drum and dozer, you are limited to a few things. We were finish grading a set of streets on a tight schedule. The pavement contractor was starting the next morning with roller compacted concrete. Unfortunately we found some water boxes that the general contractor had run over with their skytrack. It broke one, and pushed the other one way out of vertical. We called the office to have a lowboy ship a rubber tire backhoe. Since it was after 8 pm there were no trucks left running. A quick call to the general that gave us permission to borrow their backhoe. Thus saving the day.

Ive been on a few other sites where the general stacks material in an area we need to grade and get ready for pavement. You ask and ask and ask them to move this stuff. Finally at the end of the day they take off without moving anything. A phone call to the general asking to borrow their skytrack to move the material usually doesnt sit to well with them, until you offer the solution of moving that stack of iron, wood, or brick with your dozer. I cant say ive really ever borrowed a piece of equipment without permission. There have been a few machines ive been tempted to hop in and run. Its hard not to when theres a Komatsu Pc1100 or a cat 16G sitting there.

Ive been on sites where we have had some interesting cases of our machines being borrowed. One morning we showed up on site to find out Komatsu Pc 400-6 was gone. At first everyone thought the office moved it on us and there would be one there shortly. That is until a half hour later a police officer came to our site. He asked us if we were missing a machine, then informed us it was a quarter mile down the road. Seems a guy came home to find a strange car in his driveway. He peaked in the windows of his house and found his wife engaged in some activity with that strange man. Upset, the homeowner came down to our site and took the excavator back with him. Smashed his wifes new lovers car with our machine. We sent our operator to go get the excavator, hour and a half later he got it back to the site.

[637slayer]

when i hear people say lowjack in reference to cars and machinery are they talking about a theft retrieval system?

[Steve Frazier]

Lojack is a theft recovery system. A radio transmitter is hidden on the vehicle and when the vehicle is reported stolen, Lojack activates the transmitter. The transmitter emits a homing beacon that properly equipped patrol cars can track to locate the vehicle. The system works very well, but many rural areas don't have coverage. If you ever notice a patrol car with four small antennas arranged in a square, that is the Lojack receiver.