hitch lock??

[3_dog_nights]

Anybody using a hitch lock? It's either in my driveway or in the campsite. Wife is afraid of someone stealing the camper while the dogs are in it. If we are out to diner or shopping. If you use one, which, & why?

[djtkach]

I agree locks will only slow a thief down, but if it deters them from taking mine and moving on to the next one then I'm a happy camper!

Trimax makes a great product, and you can get a keyed alike coupler pin lock for your hitch and a cable lock for your spare tire. Nice to have all three with the same key.

https://www.trimaxlocks.com/shop/coupler-locks/universal-unattended-coupler/2-umax50d/

[jeeperman]

The locks will only slow them down. What a shame to have to worry about that.
I just put a for sale sign on it,selling for scrap inside gutted. Go figure
No one calls and no one steals it.$1.50 protection

[BarabooBob]

As said before, any lock will only slow a determined thief down. However, I always use a coupler lock with a locking ball in the coupler. I want to make sure that the thief realizes that it is easier to steal someone else's TT instead of messing with me.
By the way, I can probably cut off almost any lock or boot with my battery powered angle grinder in under 10 seconds, 20 seconds tops.

[ajriding]

The Proven industries is the best I have seen, but to tow a trailer all one has to do is connect the chains to the tow vehicle and drive off. Yes, the trailer will bob and buck and bounce, but it will tow just the same, far enough to get to a private place to cut/grind/chop the security locks off. Heck, a thief can just chop the entire tongue off and weld a new one on for that matter (after they steal it).

If you need to be serious then look into those wheel locks like the cities use for parking violations. A braided cable can be cut easily by any ghetto bike thief, so you need heavy treated steel that requires serious grinding to chop off if you want real protection.

If I was a thief and you had a wheel locked, I would just remove that wheel if on a tandem axle and drive away, or maybe just drive away with that one wheel dragging, why would I care, something will eventually break, but I still have most of the trailer...
Think like a thief to catch one.

[colliehauler]

I had a hitch lock on my TT and went to a campground several states away only to realize I had left the key on the dining room table. The owner of the campground come and cut the lock off in less then 10 seconds once he got there for me.

[Vintage465]

I got a "Master Lock" brand hitch lock for a 2 to 2-5/16" coupler. Came with the pin lock for the ball latch too. I think it would cause would-be-stinkers to go to another not so easy to get rig. Got it from E-Trailer. Bout $85.00

[JRscooby]

Guy that stored his equipment in the same lot I did would always drop a 2X in front of his Bobcat trailer tires before he pulled it out. If you tried to move without the boards the axle would catch on a RR tie hidden by the trailer.
Not a good plan for CG, but for somebody worried about trailer leaving home?

[profdant139]

We use one of these:

Reese

Simple and easy to use. We put it on at home because although we live in a nice area, we're in California, and there are thieves here and there. And on the road, we use it when we have to leave the trailer in a parking lot while we are running an errand with the truck.

Never thought about using it in a campground -- but I suppose we could.

The only drawback to this type of lock is that if you turn the key to unlock it and you hold the U-bar but not the base, the base can drop away and land on your toe, which is not good if you are wearing tennis shoes. Don't ask how I know this.

[MitchF150]

In camp I put the hitch head in and lock the latch. I also have a lockable pin in the head and then lock the chains on the WD bars to the safety chains.

At home, I have a lock that has a ball on a flat plate that fits in the tongue and then lock the latch. There is a sliding lock bar on the front that you lock into place and it at least keeps it so they can't just 'hitch and go'..



The latch lock I use looks like this.



Good luck! Mitch

[deltabravo]

One the better locks I've seen is this one:

https://www.provenlocks.com/collections/2-5-16-tailer-coupler-locks

I'd be more concerned about theft of the trailer when parked at home than in a campground.

[Seon]

I have a Hensley hitch that stays attached to the trailer's coupler. One would need a stinger to tow the trailer. If anything, it may deter thieves and move on to the next trailer.

https://www.airforums.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=124166&stc=1&thumb=1&d=1299788089

[Diamond_c]

When you get right down to it locks just keep the honest people honest. If a crook wants to get in or steel it al together they will.

[wnjj]

RICK-ards Red wrote:
I just use a standard padlock to lock the hitch latch down and I lock the WD bars to the trailer frame with the chains around the frame. The padlocks are all keyed the same.

The problem with that is someone could probably still drop the coupler onto a 2" or 1 7/8" ball and drive away, at least far enough to cut the lock.

You could lock a spare ball into the socket to minimize that chance but even with that or one of those wrap around locks, a thief can still just hook the safety chains up the slack removed and take off.

[beemerphile1]

In 25+ years of owning travel trailers I have never used a lock. If I felt that I needed one, it would be a boot that covers the wheel lugs.