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Mill trailer security

Started by Brad_bb, March 14, 2014, 04:52:40 PM

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Brad_bb

Just joined the Woodmizer club with an LT15GO.  Need a quick tutorial on security for the mill/trailer.  For now I have it in an alarmed building.  I want some backup devices.  They won't stop a determined thief, but will slow them down.  I just did a quick look on the web for hitch devices and found the mega hitch vault  https://www.megahitchlock.com/buy-trailer-locks-online/

Any good?  Is there better?

How about securing wheels?

How to secure the head?  Just a chain and padlock?  Remember I want to slow them down.

Thanks, Brad_bb

Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

goose63

Get an old model t coil hook it up to the frame and the battery there is a small nut on top of the points the tighter the nut the bigger the bite don't forget to turn it off you will get nocked on your butt worst than grabbing a plug wire ;D
goose
if you find your self in a deep hole stop digging
saw logs all day what do you get lots of lumber and a day older
thank you to all the vets

Joe Hillmann

Take both wheels and the hitch off.  If someone wants to take it they either need a flatbed trailer to winch it on to or they need to have two tires with the proper bolt pattern and a hitch to bolt on to it.

Chuck White

Some sawyers go to the extreme of removing the hitch, while others will just chain up the wheels!
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

jmouton

      our  lt25   has a  pintle hitch on it and i made a lock that bolts through it ,  it is very secure  , cant get bolt cutters on it , the only way is with a torch,  I  have made  them for all my trailers  and sold them to other people ,  they work,


                                                                                                                           jim
lt-40 wide ,,bobcat,sterling tandem flatbed log truck,10 ton trailer, stihl 075,041,029,066,and a 2017 f-350,oh and an edger

giant splinter

Lojack security system works good along with chains, cables, hitch locks, wheel locks, satellite location system, armed guard with a mean dog and three game can two video and one stills with infrared flash. if all that does not work get extra insurance.
roll with it

Magicman

Mine very often spends the night at the customer's location.  I leave the lowered head on the hitch end.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Small Slick

Somewhat by chance I was able to engineer anti theft options into my trailer when my dad and I built it. The axles are attached to 2" square tubing and are held into 2.5" tubing with a 5/8" hitch pin, one on each side. So both wheels can easily be removed when the mill is leveled on the jacks. Also we make a receiver hitch on both ends of the trailer so it can be hauled/maneuvered from either end. Again the hitch is held in with a pin and can simply be removed.

It's gonna be hard to steal the lt15 with now wheels and no trailer hitch.
John

Brad_bb

The LT15Go trailer hitch (at least mine) is welded on.



So a hitch lock would have to be one option.  I was hoping to get some feedback on which one is best.  There seem to be many on the market.  The video for that one I originally posted shows how many of those on the market can easily be defeated in a short time.

Removing the wheels is an option.  Though it could still be winched onto a trailer.  Is it a good idea to chain the head to the bed?  It would have to be a chain that a bold cutters won't cut, only a cutoff wheel, which would take a bit more time.
Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

Magicman

Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

dgdrls

When I had my Harley I stored it in a little wood shed behind my house.
I sawcut a square out of the floor and dug down a couple feet.
placed a large thick steel eye so the open eye was just below the finished floor
wove-in some rebar  filled with concrete and left a depression around the eye.

I used a kryptonite lock looped through the frame to the eye.
It was fairly hidden and further had a master lock on the factory fork lock.
I also had great neighbors and we looked out for each other all the time.

If you were really determined, sure you could beat it in time.
99/100 thieves will pass on to easier pickings.

If your really worried, pull a wheel and chain/cable it down
make sure its insured .

Best
DGDrls





giant splinter

Brad,
I have a Master brand hitch lock on mine, wheel locks are good and cable locks are also a nice way to anchor the power head down, I bought two from the Harley Davidson dealer and they are strong. I also recommend tarping your entire rig when not in use. Brad anything you can do to secure it will help.
roll with it

21incher

Just a hitch lock doesn't stop theft. You can tow it away by twisting up the safety chains tight and using them to tow it. Best to chain it to something solid to stop a casual thief. Best to get insurance for protection against a professional thief.
Hudson HFE-21 on a custom trailer, Deere 4100, Kubota BX 2360, Echo CS590 & CS310, home built wood splitter, home built log arch, a logrite cant hook and a bread machine. And a Kubota Sidekick with a Defective Subaru motor.

tmarch

3/4 mile driveway, mean dog and a safe full and somextra firearms works for me. ;D
Retired to the ranch, saw, and sell solar pumps.

MAI

Hey Guys,
These are all great ideas (well, a few of them are ????).  Our physical loss policy covers theft, vandalism, flood, fire and transporting the mill in all 50 states.    We can insure a typical LT15GO for approx. $315/yr.  Is it worth a little peace of mind for a mill that is worth thousands of $$$$$$?   

AnthonyW

Due to other pending projects, I decided to move the mill to a temporary parking spot until the mill shed is on top of the list. The mill is on my property, in the middle, but out of the way. If anyone tries to make off with it, they will be easy to describe. They will be the thieves with the massive poison ivy rash on their legs. Luckily I had taken tick precautions (pants tucked into socks. I didn't realize there was a MASSIVE poison ivy patch under the front half (from the axle forward) then some. My socks and pants are now sitting in a cocktail to breakdown the ivy oils.
'97 Wood-Mizer LT25 All Manual with 15HP Kohler

goose63

On the bottom of your hitch is a nut take it off  then pull out the latch then it cant belatched to the ball there is 3 things in there aplate spring and the part that locks to the bottom side of the ball if you cant lock it to the ball you cant steal it
goose
if you find your self in a deep hole stop digging
saw logs all day what do you get lots of lumber and a day older
thank you to all the vets

delvis

Reading these posts I am starting to get paranoid about my mill being stolen.  The worst thing we ever had done, was someone stole the gas tank off the old mill.  It didn't even have any fuel in it, they just took the tank.  Argghh.  Now I am thinking maybe I need to get a rugged kryponite type wheel lock or something to keep people from dragging it off. 

If I never saw another board I will at least die happy having spent the last few years working with my dad!

Chuck White

Quote from: goose63 on June 08, 2014, 08:34:16 PM
On the bottom of your hitch is a nut take it off  then pull out the latch then it cant belatched to the ball there is 3 things in there aplate spring and the part that locks to the bottom side of the ball if you cant lock it to the ball you cant steal it


Umm, yes you can!  :-[

Twice, I've stopped a mile or so down the road, just to double-check the jacks, rest pin, hitch, light plug-in, etc. and found that I had forgotten to latch the hitch onto the ball.

The mill having about 130-140 pounds of tongue weight it is definately possible, but not suggested!  :-[  ::)
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

yukon cornelius

a place I worked right out of high school was located in a bad part of Kansas city. the building was like a vault with 1/4 inch plate doors, no windows and concrete block walls. the company trailer was parked beside the building with a chain that passed through the wall in 2 spots and locked on the inside. one morning we got to work to find a giant hole in the wall where these jackwagons hooked onto the trailer took off and pulled the side of the building out. then they loaded stuff out of the building onto the trailer and left. they were caught with the stuff on the trailer a day or so later after an officer stopped them to let them know they were dragging a chain from the axle.
It seems I am a coarse thread bolt in a world of fine threaded nuts!

Making a living with a manual mill can be done!

yukon cornelius

what about leaving a mountain lion/ wolf/ bear/ alligator  tied to it
It seems I am a coarse thread bolt in a world of fine threaded nuts!

Making a living with a manual mill can be done!

Dave Shepard

I was thinking the A Team would suffice, but I don't think I could afford the liability insurance. :D
Wood-Mizer LT40HDD51-WR Wireless, Kubota L48, Honda Rincon 650, TJ208 G-S, and a 60"LogRite!

boscojmb

Hi Brad,
I used to have a manual mill simmilar to your LT15. When I got to the mill site, the first thing I would do is remove the Axle and lower it closer to the ground. I did this for 3 reasons.

1.) Safety. Loading big logs onto a 30" tall saw bed using ramps and peavys is dangerous. It is also a safety concern when you unclamp the log and turn it at this height. It is alot safer to load and turn logs at half this height which you can do without the axle.

2.) If you are using a tractor to load logs onto the mill, it eliminates the possibility of dropping a log onto the wheel and bending something. ( I learned this one the hard way.)

3.) It makes it near impossible to steal, unless they have several people and some type of equipment which should alert someone.

I used never-sieze on the four bolts that held the springs to the frame. Removing  the axle will help keep you and your mill safe.
John B.

Log-Master LM4

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