Asking for help in thwarting thieves:
- Thread starter Allen_Wrench
- Start date
DuctTapedGoat
Active Member
Has anyone ever had their bike's exhaust hacked off? I mean, people have been stealing catalytic converters for years, and this forums been up for a few years as well. If it were an issue, I'm sure someone would have had at least one stolen.
And really, if I was after an exhaust from a motorized bike, it'd take me 30 seconds with an end wrench, it's pointless to use a cutoff wheel or sawzall on a motorized bike since it's bolt on.
And really, if I was after an exhaust from a motorized bike, it'd take me 30 seconds with an end wrench, it's pointless to use a cutoff wheel or sawzall on a motorized bike since it's bolt on.
The_Aleman
Active Member
Nah DTG, there's no black market for chinagirl exhausts. There's a huge one for Toyota cats tho, hence they are the most commonly stolen (and very easy to get to). New Toyota cats are very expensive.
Lance Portnoff
New Member
buy some guns
because A.) you can scare/shoot someone in your sleep, which is when these things are usually getting stolen, and B.) if you told a judge you hot him snd killed him for stealing a part worth a few hundred dollars, he's probably going to call you a psycho and toss you in jail (again even though it would never have happened if he wasn't under your car stealing your things).
guns are great, but i really don't see having one as a means of protecting you from this type of situation.
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
I'm sorry, DTG. I didn't mean to mislead. I really was mostly referring to the problems my car-driving friends are having. And I do know people who've had a cat stolen from their cars. You are right to assert that we MBers have very little worries about cat thieves. I guess that the amount and worth of palladium in our cats isn't enough to interest them.
DuctTapedGoat
Active Member
Well, as far as mxb's are concerned, there's just not enough on the road for it to even be an issue. I would seriously be more concerned with someone stealing the whole engine off a bike - it wouldn't take long at all. 8 bolts with a metric 10 on a power drill and a chainbreaker - it'd only take a minute or two and the whole engine is gone.
With cars, there's a second commonly stolen component - and that's radiators which are recycled for the aluminum.
Really though, your best protection for your automotive cats is going to be just building a plate box, coating the inside of it with a large amount of really any kind of epoxy, mount it around the cat and weld it to whatever is convenient. As long as it prevents people from being able to get a cutoff wheel up in there.
With cars, there's a second commonly stolen component - and that's radiators which are recycled for the aluminum.
Really though, your best protection for your automotive cats is going to be just building a plate box, coating the inside of it with a large amount of really any kind of epoxy, mount it around the cat and weld it to whatever is convenient. As long as it prevents people from being able to get a cutoff wheel up in there.
Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
Just got paid, so I'm going to start looking at sandpaper and muffler repair kits that include epoxy resin. Still going to pursue the poor-man's anti-theft plan here. In the meanwhile my old buddy Tim, who was a safe cracker for a locksmith (an honest, law-abiding citizen his whole life, I might add) had this to say about my plans regarding AUTOMOTIVE specific cats:
He imagines that if one were to take a piece of 3/4 inch steel bar stock, cut it in half with a bit of a diagonal cut, take it to a place that does heat-treating, then have a muffler shop tack-weld it to the top of the exhaust pipe with the slightly angled ends snug up against the cat, he said that a determined thief would have to cut the pipe quite a distance ahead and quite a distance behind it if he didn't want to be there a while sawing away at a piece of hardened steel bar stock.
Tim also said that up in the Cleveland area there seem to be quite a few places that'll heat-treat a piece of steel for just a few bucks if you ask. He imagines this might be true of other major cities. Same with muffler shops. He says if they understand what you're asking, they'll probably do it for you for a few bucks. They'll almost certainly not warranty the work, but they'll probably do it when they understand you're trying to repel thieves.
So, if you can weld or have a muffler shop nearby, and you know a place that does heat-treating, here's an idea that could help you hang on to your cat.
He imagines that if one were to take a piece of 3/4 inch steel bar stock, cut it in half with a bit of a diagonal cut, take it to a place that does heat-treating, then have a muffler shop tack-weld it to the top of the exhaust pipe with the slightly angled ends snug up against the cat, he said that a determined thief would have to cut the pipe quite a distance ahead and quite a distance behind it if he didn't want to be there a while sawing away at a piece of hardened steel bar stock.
Tim also said that up in the Cleveland area there seem to be quite a few places that'll heat-treat a piece of steel for just a few bucks if you ask. He imagines this might be true of other major cities. Same with muffler shops. He says if they understand what you're asking, they'll probably do it for you for a few bucks. They'll almost certainly not warranty the work, but they'll probably do it when they understand you're trying to repel thieves.
So, if you can weld or have a muffler shop nearby, and you know a place that does heat-treating, here's an idea that could help you hang on to your cat.
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could always get the car lowered
helped my bro install some coil overs on his car. doubt thieves would even be able to find the cat with how low the car is, let alone get under it.
45 seconds with a jack solves that problem for them, and i own a jack that will hold up any sedan on the market atm, that weighs under 30lbs, easy enough to carry around for 20 minutes if it means i make $500. not that i'm running around stealing catalytic converters, just trying to show a point.
Skarrd
Member
not when the car is too low to get the jack under it.
if your car sits that low i think your catalytic converter is the least of your problems (at least where i live) cause you hit a pothole here that low, you're gonna here some really nasty grinding noises.