Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: Notesfiles $Revision: 1.7.0.4 $; site trsvax Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!whuxlm!whuxl!houxm!ihnp4!inuxc!pur-ee!uiucdcs!convex!trsvax!mikey From: mikey@trsvax Newsgroups: net.auto Subject: Re: Protecting Car Stereos (and eve Message-ID: <55200187@trsvax> Date: Sat, 29-Jun-85 10:11:00 EDT Article-I.D.: trsvax.55200187 Posted: Sat Jun 29 10:11:00 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 3-Jul-85 07:33:01 EDT References: <2788@pesnta.UUCP> Lines: 60 Nf-ID: #R:pesnta.UUCP:-278800:trsvax:55200187:000:3527 Nf-From: trsvax!mikey Jun 29 09:11:00 1985 After talking with a few people years ago when I had to regularly commute into NYC and I lived on Long Island, I came up with a few tips for keeping what is yours, YOURS! 1. Don't use a standard alarm system. This came from a house protection company. If a thief knows what systems you have, what is to prevent him from buying a manual and learning how it works, or even in one case in my old home town, contracting with the security company to find out how they operate? 2. Don't entice the amatuers, i.e. don't leave valuable things in view. It may be impressive to leave $600 worth of speakers on the rear deck, but it's better to mount them in and put a whole sheet of acoutsic cloth over the entire deck. I did that on my '68 Mustang. I removed the rear deck, installed my speaker systems in the metal work, and cut the appropriate holes in the pressboard. I then "wrapped" the board with grill cloth that matched my interior and put elastic on the bottom to keep it stretched tight. When I was done, you couldn't tell there were speakers in the rear deck. I forgot to put in a metal grillwork under the cloth, so I couldn't set anything on the deck until I ripped it out and did it over. 3. After thinking it over, I put in a dual alarm system. I used the Radio Shack remote pager. I hooked the microphones to the frame and also put a line from the interior light to the trigger. In addition, I bought a little module they used to sell that gave you 15 seconds to to enter the car and turn on the ignition key. Since the pager triggered immediately, I fed its trigger out to the timer alarm. The timer alarm was hooked to a "whooper" under the hood. I never had a chance to use the alarm, so I can't really give an account of its performance. Maybe the false alarms I had in my neighborhood until I got the microphone level adjusted warned all the "would-be"s away. When I moved to Texas in late 1980, I had my Honda CBX tampered with 5 times in four weeks. Needless to say, I was "PISSED". One time they even punched out the ignition key and when that just jammed up the head, they tried prying off the lock tab. I got another pager and started to mount it under the seat but I never finished the job. Once I was out there jacking with an alarm though, my bike never got tampered with again. I think a local was doing it and now he thought the bike was dangerous, or at least I was. I thought about the razor blade trick, but I discounted it not for fear of what may happen to a burglar, but to me. I can just see me kicking my foot under the dash or reaching for something and getting sliced. The laws that everybody tries to mention about dangerous devices getting the owner in trouble I don't think apply here. In every case that I've heard about, the only way the owner gets in trouble is if there is some possibilty of an innocent person being injured. The case that specifically comes to mind is the guy who rigged a shotgun at the door of his house. What if it went off when a girl scout knocked on the door to sell cookies. What if it went off on the mailman. Even a far out case, what if it went off if an accident victim busted into the house in an emergency? These arguments don't apply to a clear case of theft. I'm not saying that it's right, but you'd better have some different arguments that apply. Personally, I think that anyone who steps outside of society gives up his rights to the protection of society while he's out there. mikey at trsvax