stolen machine

PAYTON · Sep 26, 2004

we had a new 580m stolen last weekend from a job site in indy. cab-radio nice tight machine. new of course.. what really sucks is they bought us a old 580 open cab junk yard machine to replace it with.
so people be on the look out at your job site.. take keys out ( yes i know that dont
help . but make sure your iron is a secure as possible

payton

cat320 · Sep 26, 2004

Taking the keys doesn't make to much of a difference but what you need to do is have a battery shut off under lock and key if they can't get it started they can't drive off with it .

earthmoverv · May 16, 2009

I think with the economy we have just seen the beginning of the thiefs skills

Knucklehead · May 17, 2009

cat320 said:
Taking the keys doesn't make to much of a difference but what you need to do is have a battery shut off under lock and key if they can't get it started they can't drive off with it .

When you buy a battery disconnect, spend the money and buy a good one, a company that I worked for bought some cheap ones. On more than one occasion I had to do away with the switch to get back to work because the switch completely fell apart.

Preppypyro · May 18, 2009

Unfortunately, a battery disconnect will only slow down a thief. If they want that machine, they will find a way to get it. (dont get me wrong though a disconnect will slow them down still!)
One guy i know used to pull an injector or two so they really couldnt get the machine moving!

I vote for some good insurance as well as some preventative measures.

Jeff S · May 18, 2009

Nothing worse than a dirty low down, scumbag theif! Payton- of course their gonna replace it with junk, a machine like that is probably worth 100-150k or more?? Not sure who could take a beating like that! One benefit of having equipment that runs on coal is nobody wants it. I never understood why the manufactures never came out with some type of clutch lock or something to lock out the gear select- may be they did, but, again my stuff is ancient. As far as insurance co.'s go there a joke. If they pay anything at all, it'll probably be less than half! I had 26k worth welding and hand tools ripped off from my old shop and the insurance co. said my stuff wasn't covered, oh and by the way "Your payments due"! I absolutely hate theives! Jeff

indian347 · May 18, 2009

Years ago we had a lock on the stabliser cyl and had them down.you need to slow them down good luck mabey a stanless chain and biggggggg lock on steering wheel !!!!!

Jeff S · May 18, 2009

indian347 said:
Years ago we had a lock on the stabliser cyl and had them down.you need to slow them down good luck mabey a stanless chain and biggggggg lock on steering wheel !!!!!

Not to be mr. negative but, there's no way to slow em down anymore. Dewalt's has that cordless 4-1/2 grinder, put a stainless steel/metal cutting zip-disc on those things and it'll chew through anything! They have that tracking becon service but i imagine it's not cheap! Cheaper than another machine thow! I know- "The club" just lock in between joysticks! I should'nt joke it's really not funny at all! Jeff S

SterlingR · May 18, 2009

I would call the dealer to see if that machine was equiped with GPS and not activated. A lot of MFG's put the hardware on their machines and most people do not even realize it is there. Make sure the dealer has contacted the MFG to let them know it was stolen. I worked for a cat dealer in the late 90's and a guy came in from out of twon to get some work done, as soon as I put the serial number in it came up as a stolen machine. Contacted Cat who called the authorities. The guy gave us a certified check for repairs and when he pulled out of the yard they stopped him and an arrest was made.

NeroGPS · May 22, 2009

GPS Tracking is a great way to go.... find out where your equipment is and have the police go and recover it. If anyone has any questions about GPS tracking let me know. I work for a GPS tracking company and would be more than happy to answer any questions you have.

stock · May 23, 2009

Was told recently at a seminar tat a GPS signal blocker was now available and it was about the size of a mobile phone just switch it on place it in the piece of equipment and it will cancel the transmission signal ,so just be warned that it is going to take a combination of a lot of different means to reduce equipment thefts.
Years ago we had a digger collected on a friday night shift by two lads dressed in overalls and a truck with the dealers name on the side they had copies of paper work as well handed these to the foreman loaded the excavator saying that it would be back by Monday night .
On their way down the motorway got stopped by the peelers for no permit and were escorted off the motorway ,and to the best of my knowledge it was the last time that machine was seen in the UK .

Stock

davidd · May 24, 2009

I recently asked the local sherrif about stolen heavy equip. He said he could run the serial # of any machine thru NCIC. It is a national clearing house for serial #s etc.
His comment was if you buy, unsuspecting, a stolen machine and it is found out then the law will come and get the machine and you are out the cost of purchase and may face criminal charges.
So when buying used it might be prudent to have law enforcment run the serial #.
I also suspect many dealers have access to a stolen serial # list.
I would never buy a machine with out a serial # plate.
davidd

Squizzy246B · May 24, 2009

stock said:
Was told recently at a seminar tat a GPS signal blocker was now available and it was about the size of a mobile phone just switch it on place it in the piece of equipment and it will cancel the transmission signal ,

Stock

On the best systems the machine uses a mobile phone to contact you to report an error like lost signal, machine movement etc.....a signal blocker that would kill mobile phones would draw an awful lot of attention.

old skool iron · Jun 15, 2009

i know it sucks but with the problems here in colo, we have been hauling the equip, back to the yard every darn day , which eats into the bottom line.mabe obama can give us a bail out for insurince cost.

Dirt Poor · Jun 15, 2009

Interesting thread. I was talking last week with a friend who worked in Florida and other southern states cleaning up after the hurracanes a few years ago. He said even tho there were "secure areas " for equipment storage, there was a lot of missing equipment every morning. As far as he knew his stuff was never tampered with. But as a little extra precaution , He would loosen the fuel filters before heading back to his camper for the night. Very clever , I think! Gary

later814 · Jun 17, 2009

LoJack

All, theft is becoming a major issue. I'm at a Northeastern equipment dealership and it has been growing in frequency over the last 12 months. We recently became a LoJack dealer.

Not that I ever had a strong feeling about 1 system over another but they do have about a 95% recovery rate on vehicles and are climbing up over 80% on heavy equipment.

We have probably installed about 100 systems, most on backhoe loaders and we recently just recovered 2 machines (seperate occurances) that were stolen. The cool thing is that when they recovered the backhoes they were looking for they found a number of other stolen pieces at the same location.

If you are in an urban or fairly developed area (LoJack only works if the machine is in a place where police with the responder equipment are nearby) it is something you may want to look into. One of the posters said that we are probably going to see more of this until the economy gets better and I agree.

If you want more information like spec sheets or a local contact PM me and I'll be happy to assist.

jrmechanic · Jun 17, 2009

how about you create some mechanism that will lock the fuel line (diesel). and hide it somewhere on the machine that only you just know. no diesel, no combustion. is that a great idea?

CarolinaRavelco · Aug 12, 2009

We have created just that. Not only the fuel line, but additional electrical circuits as well. Makes hotwiring impossible, and no more issues with universal keys. PM me for details.

flashpuppy · Aug 12, 2009

Lo-jack. That's you're hands down best bet.

If so equipped, unplug the ECM. Take some time and install a 1/4 turn ball valve some where in the fuel line close to the pump.

Also, if at all possible, try to park all of your machines in a real crappy way for thieves. Excavator bucket behind the dozer blade. Loader bucket all the way inside the haul truck dump. Get creative.

If none of that machines will start (due to ecm, no fuel, batt disconnect, etc...) and everything is locked into each other parking wise, it will just be easier to move on to another site.

CarolinaRavelco · Aug 12, 2009

Lojack will work; for recovering equipment after the fact, after you have discovered it missing, and if the police in that area use it. Interlocking multiple pieces of equipment is a deterent, if you have multiple pieces on the site. A fuel line shut off valve is a great idea, although unplugging or removing the ECU becomes tedious and that practice doesn't last long. A security device that is convenient, inexpensive (no monthly fees), and disables multiple circuits with one action will provide the most effective, long lasting security. Good luck.

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