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Gooseneck trailer anti theft locks, which is best ?

Milacron

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Staff member
Joined
Dec 15, 2000
Location
SC, USA
Something that inserts where the trailer ball normally would go that would be extremely difficult to remove without the proper key. Ideally not involving a padlock that could be sledge hammered off.
 
Here is what I do.

1) Take the crank arm off the landing gear/jack and store it inside. I also remove the bolt holding the driveshaft to the stubshaft of the jack-post. So to jack the trailer one needs a crank arm and a bolt/pin. These could be overcome but difficult if you didn't plan ahead :D

2) Drop the adjustable collared post (that drops over the gooseneck ball) out of the trailer and store it inside. Again, it could probably be replaced or not needed by a rollback type setup, but damn hard to tow the trailer without a way to connect it to the ball.

3) Store things on the trailer. Heavy things that would get thrown off and be an obvious red flag to cars on the road and would obviously get attn of law enforcement. To tie them down would need tie downs and some more time.

4) Park truck in front of trailer where it's "in an alley" of sorts and really no way to move it any other direction.

5) Assorted tricks with the truck so its "hard to start" and one would have to start troubleshooting.

I try to put up a good challenge...:D

Granted it does take me just as long to get the trailer ready for transport as I have to reverse all the steps. I don't use it every day, and so the PITA factor is acceptable.
 
Take a new ball and drill a 3/8" hole thru the bottom of the side of the stem. If you have the West Texas straight pipe down tube, lock the ball in and slide a piece of casing(heavy wall pipe) over the flange and weld a plate with a hole for the stem inside so a lock can't be mashed.
If you have a ball receiver on it(both types use a ball), slide a piece of rectangle heavy tube over the receiver, notched for gussets and covering latch. Weld angle iron inside with just enough space to pass the ball stem. Slide lock in and attach to stem.
If you have material necessary it takes about 20 min. to a**hole resistant a lock.
A pic of the type you have would help.
Padlocks are good if you protect them, you can't sledge a lock you can't get to!

Ben
 
I just have a tag trailer, but do 3 things to slow them down, and 1 final measure.

1) chain the wheels together, usually on a "hidden" side, even if they do get hooked up, they arent going far with 2 back wheels locked.
2) tounge jack cranks were removed and hexes cut in the top 7/16 socket fits with a cordless drill in low gear, they better come prepared for that.
3) standard tounge lock with a heftey military padlock.
4) last line of defense, motion detecting cellular alarm, it is progrmmed to call my cell phone and enter 777777 every 5 minutes when the trailer is in motion (only when armed)

I guess a Lojack could be used as well, but you have to know its stolen before you can track it.
 
At the shop - aircraft tie-down buried several feet deep in cement. Very hard and heavy security chain run through said tie-down and the trailer frame and at least one wheel. This is of course useless when traveling. And didn't prevent somebody from cutting a box trailer open and stealing the contents - but at least the trailer is still there.
 
Well EXCUSE ME MR BILL. Seems like I was the only person to answer the mans question. Not anything about super duper alarm systems or anything. BTW we have used these lock covers on the east coast where I live without fail.

READ THE OP

Ben
 
Milacron,
Obviously nothing will keep a determined thief from stealing your trailer. This is the only avenue you have to secure it. Remove the axles, tongue, deck, ramps, lights and wires. Bury the frame under 40feet of concrete 80'x80'. Make sure to put an alarm system on it before you start mixing the sacks of quickcrete.

Happy Bill?

Ben
 
Milacron,
Obviously nothing will keep a determined thief from stealing your trailer. This is the only avenue you have to secure it. Remove the axles, tongue, deck, ramps, lights and wires. Bury the frame under 40feet of concrete 80'x80'. Make sure to put an alarm system on it before you start mixing the sacks of quickcrete.

Happy Bill?

Ben
I could set it on the loading dock with the forklift but then I couldn't get the forklift back inside as the trailer would be blocking all doors.
 
I could set it on the loading dock with the forklift but then I couldn't get the forklift back inside as the trailer would be blocking all doors.

At your own place with a forklift is easy, set it up on ecology blocks or even just one under the gooseneck
should do it. Something portable you can clip on is more of a challenge..
 
With the forklift you have would the roof handle the trailer? Maybe paint it camo and park it in the woods.

But seriously, a lock cover of 3/8" box will stop a quick hook and run. I learned a little trick when I worked for the county. All our trailers were wired wrong. All our truck plugs were wired wrong too. All wired the same. If someone took one they'd blow fuses and lights won't work.
IIRC the center ground post and running lights were switched, the brake and left turn were switched. Grounds were hot and hot were grounds. The shop sup had a diagram in his desk and a pigtail that converted the trailers to normal in cases where we got a new truck in and needed it before we rewired it.

You could rewire your trailer and make a pigtail like that and leave it locked in your truck.

Ben
 
With a forklift on your home grounds you could always position the gooseneck post up against a wall or something so it would be difficult to get to it with a truck.
That's pretty much what I have been doing sucessfully for years. Place it against the dock wall such that no way a truck can back under the neck to actually get it out. (plus remove the landing gear crank handle) But figure someone determined enough could probably drag it from the wall with a chain...hard to say...with 8 wheels of friction on a 6,000 lb trailer, maybe not....perhaps I should try it sometime.

I figure the ultimate would be to somehow create a hole in the dock floor large enough to set the neck in with the forklift. They could raise the landing gear and crank it up on blocks to get it out of hole but then how to drag it from dock without it crashing off the blocks....
 
Go to your local caravan dealer and look at the locks for different hitches. My present one I have a removable post in the ground with a ball fitted to it, park the caravan, insert post, swing caravan round, drop onto ball and lock with proprietry hitchlock. I can tow with this type still fitted and when I pitch the caravan I have a plastic ball (supplied) to stop you putting a temporary whatnot into the hitch, not worth the effort to try to get past that unless you have time and privacy My present hitch is a Winterhoff, my previous two were Alko, Iprefer the Winterhoff
Here "caravans" typically use "5th wheel" arrangements similar to semi trucks. They are unlikely to have anything for gooseneck trailers.
 
Ive got one like the Blaylock TL-50 on mine. Never had a problem other than I lost the keys for the lock and had to cut it off. They also make one for the downtube to prevent it being removed. It's been on the trailer so long I;ve got no clue where the keys are for it. I'll have to cut the lock on that one too when I go move the trailer this summer.
 
Airstream and at least one other US manufacturer supply caravans with a hitch (non US use perhaps). I looked on Google and there are a fair tidy few available, some which just go into hitch and lock, not using a padlock. May well be worth a look.
Yes but a Reese hitch tag along like an Airstream might use is different from a gooseneck, which needs a different locking system in general.
 
Ive got one like the Blaylock TL-50 on mine. Never had a problem other than I lost the keys for the lock and had to cut it off. They also make one for the downtube to prevent it being removed. It's been on the trailer so long I;ve got no clue where the keys are for it. I'll have to cut the lock on that one too when I go move the trailer this summer.

I've got the same one on my trailer, plus I have the lock over the bolts holding the hitch. I use the masterlock Pro series padlocks with an iron shackle guard on each. I made a new pin out of hardened 4140 so it can't be hacksawed too easially, but the TL50 is cast aluminum. One day I may rebuild out of SS plate with guard plates for pin
 
I recall one setup I saw at a welding & fab shop in GA. It was a post, say 6" dia and about 10' tall embedded in concrete. The neck of the trailer was entrapped by the post (IOW "a tree growing up thru it" :)). Apparently they used the forklift to move it on and off. I would get a little worried about lifting something that large, that high, regularly. Probably would add fork pockets if it was a chosen solution. ;)
 
How are those locks that wedge between the tires, are they easy to remove? I've never known anyone to use one.

Or how about a police 'boot'? They appear hard to defeat.
 
The boston boots look easy to cut, and one time I needed to cut one off with a torch, I had not problems doing so. I think they are designed to resist freezing, hammer, chosels, prybars, etc but not a torch.

I've had good luck running a chain through the openings on the wheel (PEWAG square link security chain form mcMaster), but not on my gooseneck where the brakedrums doesn't leave any clearance.

In my mind, if it won't stand up to a 36" crowbar, torch, or sawsall (with some time limit), it's of marginal value. the PEWAG chain is the bomb, torch and bolt cutter resistant, it has to be cut with an abrasive wheel. And it fills the opening of a Masterlock pro series or S&G padlock, so there is no access to the lock shackle.

Professional security engineers also like large (1/2"+) stainless aircraft cable, preferabally braided, or 1/2" Gr70 chain. with the lock secured in a pipe.

Something else that might work is using a McGuard bolt head and key on the jack, either to lock it in place, or to use the handle.
 








 
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