Re: Locking a trailer
All of this talk about how to secure a boat to you truck reminds me of one I saw years ago at a boat ramp parking lot, we were coming in for the day, I left a buddy with the boat and went for my truck, I couldn't help but notice that the truck next to me had no trailer and was parked the same distance from the curb as I was. The rear step bumper was torch cut out in the center. As I was loading my boat, the owner of that truck motored up and in horror started yelling that someone stole his boat. He said he had it locked to the step bumper and had even pad locked the safety chains to the bumper. They cut the center plate of the bumper out and made off with his new trailer. Both the truck and trailer were less than a month old. My truck however was 25 years old, rusty and my 20 year old trailer was totally unsecured, they left mine in favor of his. Both were similar trailers. Whoever stole his boat trailer, really wanted a new trailer, mine was the easier one to take, it had no locks on it at all. They went for the shiny new trailer. Not only did they take the trailer, they ruined his rear bumper, part of his spare tire carrier, and burned the paint on the hitch. The boat was hitched and locked to the bumper and not the hitch for some reason, I have no idea why, but if they had a torch, I don't think that would have mattered much.
I've also seen boats taken by flatbed too, cut free of the truck and hauled up onto a car hauler. Those pin style locks aren't fool proof, I've seen and been able to remove the smaller ones used on hitch couplers with only a blow of a hammer. The pin is very small in diameter and shears too easily. I bought a boat last fall for which the owner had left the coupler locked for several years out in the weather, the lock was corroded and seized and no amount of penetrating oil would budge it. I got tired of messing with it and figured that I was either going to just swap out the coupler tongue or remove it by force, I was actually surprised that when I took a good fast swipe at it with an old hammer it snapped clean and fell off, with the tumbler end flying across the guys yard.
I would think that the best way to safely secure a boat trailer to the truck would be heavy chain and armored pad locks, maybe several of them.
I don't usually park in places where I have to worry about my truck or trailer being there, but from past experience, I've found that they pay far less attention to a rough old truck and trailer than they do those shiny new $50K SUV's and new trailers. I rarely lock my truck at the ramp, but I tend to frequent ramps which are manned by their owners, it may cost a few dollars, but it's well worth the piece of mind and several will even have your truck ready and waiting at the launch ramp when you pull back in. All it takes is a phone call stating that your on your way. There's no parking hassle, the truck and trailer are parked at the marina on private property where it's watched at all times, and they have several very experienced hands on the dock at all times to speed the launch and get you under way asap.
