Well......the bastard(s) nearly got in!!

Popo..good reminder on the serial numbers, I have recently replaced my mig, tig and plasma setups, and couldnt tell you the first serial number. I would have had to beat a confession out of somebody. anyway, I'll fix that tonight.

I used to make periodic videos of all my stuff in the shop and house in case of fire or theft, this post is a good reminder to update that too.

If the economy gets as bad as they keep saying it is, we're gonna be seeing a lot more of this stuff going on.

 

If my family was in danger I would not think twice about pulling the trigger...If someone was breaking in and trying to steal my tools or stealing my car I would stop them, if they threatened me or tired to harm me I would pull the trigger....I had a 1966 mustang stolen and it ****s..I have the right to defend myself and my property....I am not out stealing from them...so I won't have to feel guilty......so beware if you come to my house and try to break in or steal my car you may not leave alive my 38 has six shots and dead men don't talk.........

 

I say leave the big door unlocked and rig up one of those Indiana Jones logs with spikes sticking out to git em. Either that or tiger traps your choice. Oh or a bear trap.

 

Damn everyone I know thought I was a hard ***...

You can get a spring for a horse fence and bolt it to a 2X12 and your door header, spring load it and trip wire it and when they open the door, the 2X12 will clean their clock. Use what ever you have for garnish... A flat board works pretty well though, especially since it just looks like part of the door they broke.

Or how about a shotgun primer and a little Bullseye and some loose staples and some dog**** in a sardine can with a clothespin spring and nail in it over the primer placed in front of the door, rigged to a trip wire at ankle level. Used to call those toe-poppers. Pretty nasty little things Non-lethal, but makes tracking them easier. If they die its from infection. Likely not legal in most localities.

I still vote for a good security system, its just going to keep you out of trouble better. Maybe not as much fun, but discretion is the better part of valor.

 

I'm not rich enough to afford a high dollar anti-theft system. But a friend gave me some decals and stickers from his hi-tech system and it seems to work so far. I did the same trick with the overhead door rails. But used heavy bolts that they can't reach till they are inside. By then, what would it matter. But the theives are getting bolder and more desperate. Be ready!

 

any type trip wire trap is a federal offense on the property owners part !At least one intended to do bodily harm.When I was a kid a neighbor that was a retired owner of a large machine shop set a bunch of machine tools up in the barn on his property he put an alarm system on the doors and windows the old style where you have a silver tape around the windowpanes.He also put up signs that these were attached to "army ****y traps"these it turns out were just to scare us kids because before he bought the place we used to go in there and he knew it (what he didn't know is we all thought the place was haunted and he was nuts for buying it ) Anyway his alarm went off one day and cops ,fire etc. show up because he was on vacation they see the signs and won't go near the barn,They have the power cut to it and the old guy got arrested !Now the judge did let him off once he showed that the sign was just a scare tactic and not real.My parents went to court as references for the old guy and my parents heard first hand just how deep a trouble he could have been in had anything been for real.The judge made it real clear that it is a federal crime anywhere in the U.S. to use "****y traps"intended to injure or kill anyone.

 

I figured they probably were against the law. Thats why I just think a well thought out security plan is better that IS legal. You can get in bigger trouble than the perp, he'll get off with petty theft if he's caught, you'll get caught with a ****y trap and go up for much worse.

 

the only good theif is a dead one..it really lowers their numbers..and makes the others think twice about ****ing with you..

any theif no matter what their "reason" is for doing it, is a threat to you and your family. Theifs are desperate people that usually move on to more blatent and dangerous crime..Take em out, and save yourself and the rest of the country any lost sleep over their ***. The problem with the USA and our lawyers judges and theifs , is no one makes them own up to their decissions. Come on over to my place un-invited...I know that the law dont care about my rights until they have been violated..so Im getting my shots in first..and it will only be my word as to how things went down.

 

Well, the way I see it is this....

Unless it is a known fact that you have an EXTREMELY valuable item in your possession, 99% of the people breaking in to steal your stuff are going to be garden variety drug addicts (and drug addicts usually don't have guns, because guns are worth more at the pawnshop than anything else) or some dirtbag who knows you and sets you up. About 99% of the time druggies are looking for the path of least resistance, a quick hit so they can score some dope. As soon as they see the "beware of dog" sign and hear the barking, they move on to the next potential victim. If it's someone you know, then it's hit or miss. If they have befriended the dog, they can walk right in and take what they want.

I guess when it comes down to it there is nothing that is 100% effective.

An alarm could malfunction and go off 20 times while your on vacation, and when you return home you could have a $5000 bill from the police for all the times they dispatched officers to your home. And if you don't pay the bill, the police won't come out to your house anymore when your alarm goes off. I know this because I used to work for an alarm company and it would happen to our customers occasionally. Then there's the human error factor - you might just forget to set it.

*Statistically* a gun is way more likely to be used by you or one of your family members in a heated moment against one another than to be used to defend yourself against an intruder, so *statistically* owning a gun makes you less safe (understand that I am simply playing the devil's advocate here. I sleep with a .357 magnum next to the bed.)

And yes, a dog can be shot, poisoned, set loose, tricked with food, pepper sprayed, or any number of things. And yes, all of those things you said about their needing care while you're on vacation & not being bulletproof: all very true and good points. My dog is pretty tough & tenacious, but I'm pretty sure that bullets don't bounce off of her.

The bottom line is that none of us are 100% safe.

 

A sign like i have in my avatar is a deterrent. It dont hurt for thieves to think you are crazy or dangerious! I also have some noisy geese that will bite. And a little beagle on a chain that will bark but not bite. I dont want a vicious dog? What if it got loose and attacted a innocent person or worse yet some small child. I have also found that the theif has usually been at your place and knows you. Nothing is entirely secure. I have had items stolen and found out who it was. I didnt even bother to go to the law or confront them. The law would only have given them a small fine and a slap on the wrist. Since i dont want to kill anyone i just let it go. Karma will get them in the end. My mother always was fond of saying give them enough rope and they will hang themselves.

 

Old wolf I agree with you about your avatar a friend of my parents lived in a small cabin way out at the end of a dead end road .He got broken into a few times but by what was done he could pretty much tell it was young teens looking for a hang out.Out where he was an alarm would be useless well he tacked up a few bullseye targets on the sides of the approach road in sight of the front porch with I can see you written on them and ****tered a few empty br***es around the porch the break ins stopped completely.What no one but my folks and I knew was he shot those targets from about 3 feet away he couldn't of hit an Abrams tank at 100 yards!