My buddy is about to build me a nice aluminum trailer to haul a golf cart around. Unfortunately, there are lots of folks that would love to get a hold of a trailer like this.

While the trailer and truck are parked, I was thinking of using this security chain and lock. Anyone have any first-hand knowledge of these?
I plan on running the chain through the tongue of the trailer where it's welded together and then run the other end of the chain through the hammer lock on the back of the truck.
From the videos Ive seen, bolt cutters are useless against this chain and lock, but obviously a angle grinder will work after a few minutes.
They are expensive, but it does come with peace of mind.
Theres plenty of YouTube videos showing how strong this chain is.

CHAIN https://www.uscargocontrol.com/produ...security-chain
LOCK https://www.uscargocontrol.com/produ...security-chain

 

I've never done anything except lock the coupler onto the ball with a purpose made lock.

 

I'd say your hammer locks would be the weak link there. Generally, my thought is, if someone really wants the trailer and it's parked in a vulnerable enough location, they're going to get it. If it's parked in an area where the use of power tools would be noticed, the chain may be a great deterrent. Personally, I use a locking hitch pin and lock the coupler to the ball when parked. Not the most secure, but it's a visual deterrent and keeps the opportunistic thieves away.

I'd also consider some sort of tracking mechanism in the trailer such as an air tag or something GPS enabled if the cargo is really expensive and something you'd really want to recover.

 

My open deck car trailer with car on it all the time, I use a lock on the latch.

I also store our car club enclosed trailer and it had a lock that fits up inside the ball.
I am also going to ask the club to get a lock for the latch.
This way they would have to deal with the latch lock and the lock up inside the ball and I dont see an easy way to remove this.

If you have dual axle / wheel they make wheel locks that fit between the 2 wheels, jambs them together and then locks in place.
For a single wheel maybe something like a boot they put on cars with over due parking tickets.

But sorry to say if they want it bad enough they will take it.
In that case a tracker is the way to go.
Dave ----

 

The best trailer coupler lock available: https://www.provenlocks.com/collecti...-coupler-locks

Add a wheel lock to make it even more noisy and difficult: https://www.provenlocks.com/collections/wheel-locks

Don't forget - rendering the chains useless as well is essential for stopping a run and done thief.

 

If you are concerned, add a cellular motion detector, ping your phone. Carry mace (or pea shooter)

 

As suggested use a lock to keep the release latch locked. I use this on my toy trailer anytime it's hooked to the truck. If someone wants it they'll find away to steal. Insure it for what is worth to replace it.


Once parked I'll throw on a couple lockable wheel chocks to slow the thief down or go to the next easier trailer.

 

The single best thing that you can do is to make it impossible to remove the trailer by backing it up tight (close) to an immovable object like a tree, guard rail, light pole, or similar so that it is physically impossible to decouple and move the trailer.

Bob

 

On my flatbed, I do the following:

When hitched:
- Lock the coupler to the ball
- Lock the ball-mount to the receiver with a locking hitch pin
- Lock the safety chains to the receiver (now even if they bring the big wrench and remove the ball from the ball mount, it's still locked to the tow vehicle)
- Park such that the trailer is not easily removed where possible, or at least more difficult to remove

When unhitched:
- Install a ball lock on the coupler
- Lock the coupler to the ball lock
- Lower the tongue a bunch, put down the rear loading legs, lock them in place with padlocks that have replaced the pins that came from the factory, raise the tongue more than I dropped it
- Lock the safety chains to the tongue jack handle so it can't turn (combined with the previous step, this thing is a real noisy nuisance to steal now)
- Park such that the trailer is not easily removed where possible, or at least more difficult to remove
- In some cases run a concealed chain from a structural part of the trailer to a tree etc.

I agree: In the end, if they want it bad enough they'll do whatever it takes to steal it. My goal is to make it so that the juice is not worth the squeeze.

Since your buddy is building the trailer for you, maybe have him build rear "loading" legs for it, and use those like I use mine: making it a pain to steal. I seldom use them for loading.

Also, don't be afraid to use those bicycle cable locks that you just hand a padlock through. I keep a couple around for situations where other locking systems aren't easy such as U-Haul trailers and dollies, extra security on the normal stuff, locking detachable ramps, etc. If I have one available, and I'm parking at a hotel for the night with the flatbed above or other trailers, I'll often add one of these cable locks between the tow vehicle and trailer, just to make it a bigger pain for someone. These cables are usually more difficult to cut than a chain link.

 

No wheel lock chocks?

 

I've thought about it, but good ones are expensive and take a lot of space . . . and are more of a spectacle to put on and more of a spectacle while parked. Just about everything else is pretty low key and can be done on departure, as opposed to doing it on arrival, so that it's not a big spectacle locking it down.

Hoping that kind of makes sense. Putting it another way: I'd rather lock everything together etc., start driving, arrive at a hotel many hours later, back into a safe position, grab my suitcase and walk inside . . . than back into a safe position then go about locking and chaining everything, especially in bright yellow like a lot of those chocks are. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like doing all of that calls more attention to the whole thing than just parking and walking inside.

 

They might see it and move on to the next trailer that didn't have one or 2 on both wheels and one on the x4 along with other deterents.

 

This is what I was talking about. It won't stop a thief but it might slow them down or move on to the next trailer.

 

Ah I see. Trailer by itself. Yeah that makes sense.

One suggestion: Make sure the safety chain is welded to the tongue, then when the trailer is parked, run the tongue jack all the way down (so that the tongue is way up high). Then lock the safety chain around the crank handle so that even if someone were to tow it, they'd have to deal with the tongue jack dragging on the ground or have a really really high hitch. Another way to make it enough of a spectacle that they just move on.