Catalytic Converter Anti-Theft DIY Ideas

I keep reading people blaming the left for the rampant crimes, so I’m going to chime in. I’m a proud Democrat, and I would consider myself a centrist but leaning a little left. I don’t condone crimes, and I certainly don’t think criminals should have more rights than the victims. That being said, these are laws people have voted in, and while the results may be skewed, we have ourselves to blame, and here’s why: we allow lobbyists to run the show, so propositions we vote on are covered in legalese and coasted with ambiguous verbiage that the voters don’t get the clear story before casting their votes. BUT, voters are just as guilty for not spending the needed time to do the research and understand what they are voting on. It’s a lot of effort for very little perceived return, and because our society is all about instant gratification, voters either don’t do their homework, or they don’t vote at all. Years ago, there was a joke that more people would vote on American Idol contestants than on a general election. They are probably not wrong. The thing we must do as citizens is to start getting pissed off about the elected officials we have in office, and start treating them as public servants, not untouchable statues in offices. Left, center, or right, we all have valid voices and opinions, but we must work toward a common goal: maintain a government that works for the people, and not the party. Common sense right or wrong agendas and issues shouldn’t involve political parties. SF is messed up for a myriad of reasons, but California has a bad homeless problem for two reasons: rising cost of living, and weather. If you’re going to be homeless, you’d probably choose California over say, Minnesota, so you don’t freeze to death. The bordering states of Nevada and Arizona would also not be ideal due to the heat in the summer. The problems in SF is probably reaching critical mass, if not it already has. When it happens, things will be prompted to change. NYC and Atlanta went thorough the same thing.

We are also an extremely litigious society, which is why a criminal is allowed to hire a lawyer to sue your ass off when he gets hurt while trying to hotwire your car. The day we stop ambulance-chasing shyster lawyers from existing is when we will start having some sanity in our judicial system.

Anyway, back on topic. I’ve seen a product called “Cat Clamp,” and it’s a device that has shackles on both ends of the CC, and you loop steel cables through and over parts of the vehicle’s frame. It’s almost impossible to cut through with a sawzall, and probably not easy with an angle grinder. The point of this is to cause the thief to make a lot of noise and spending way more time on it than they should, which will force them to give up and run along. I think I’ve seen it for about $160, and installation is pretty straight forward. If I have to park my truck outside, I’d be getting one. Hell, since I just raised my truck with the new suspension upgrade, I’ll most likely get one as a cheap insurance policy.

BTW, thanks to Timmy the Toolman for a great video walkthrough. I didn’t think I was capable for getting the job done, but your video helped tremendously.
 
In regards to what Runningfornow was saying, the laws in at least California are alot of the cause of these types of problems. There are no consequences for these type of thefts. The courts don't want to take the time for them so the cops don't want to waste there time arresting people for something that won't get prosecuted. I am Hoping in my life time this will change. If you don't take the time to teach your child rignt from wrong then you end up with a uncontrollable child that's where we are at in California. We need to bite the bullet find a punishment that will deter these types of actions. As for me I don't plan on letting go of my CAT willingly the Governors of the State of California think these CAT's are better than CAT's in most states so I pledge to protect them LOL :rockthrow: One of the Conservative Californians.
 
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RunningForNow said:
I keep reading people blaming the left for the rampant crimes, so I’m going to chime in. I’m a proud Democrat, and I would consider myself a centrist but leaning a little left. I don’t condone crimes, and I certainly don’t think criminals should have more rights than the victims. That being said, these are laws people have voted in, and while the results may be skewed, we have ourselves to blame, and here’s why: we allow lobbyists to run the show, so propositions we vote on are covered in legalese and coasted with ambiguous verbiage that the voters don’t get the clear story before casting their votes. BUT, voters are just as guilty for not spending the needed time to do the research and understand what they are voting on. It’s a lot of effort for very little perceived return, and because our society is all about instant gratification, voters either don’t do their homework, or they don’t vote at all. Years ago, there was a joke that more people would vote on American Idol contestants than on a general election. They are probably not wrong. The thing we must do as citizens is to start getting pissed off about the elected officials we have in office, and start treating them as public servants, not untouchable statues in offices. Left, center, or right, we all have valid voices and opinions, but we must work toward a common goal: maintain a government that works for the people, and not the party. Common sense right or wrong agendas and issues shouldn’t involve political parties. SF is messed up for a myriad of reasons, but California has a bad homeless problem for two reasons: rising cost of living, and weather. If you’re going to be homeless, you’d probably choose California over say, Minnesota, so you don’t freeze to death. The bordering states of Nevada and Arizona would also not be ideal due to the heat in the summer. The problems in SF is probably reaching critical mass, if not it already has. When it happens, things will be prompted to change. NYC and Atlanta went thorough the same thing.

We are also an extremely litigious society, which is why a criminal is allowed to hire a lawyer to sue your ass off when he gets hurt while trying to hotwire your car. The day we stop ambulance-chasing shyster lawyers from existing is when we will start having some sanity in our judicial system.

Anyway, back on topic. I’ve seen a product called “Cat Clamp,” and it’s a device that has shackles on both ends of the CC, and you loop steel cables through and over parts of the vehicle’s frame. It’s almost impossible to cut through with a sawzall, and probably not easy with an angle grinder. The point of this is to cause the thief to make a lot of noise and spending way more time on it than they should, which will force them to give up and run along. I think I’ve seen it for about $160, and installation is pretty straight forward. If I have to park my truck outside, I’d be getting one. Hell, since I just raised my truck with the new suspension upgrade, I’ll most likely get one as a cheap insurance policy.

BTW, thanks to Timmy the Toolman for a great video walkthrough. I didn’t think I was capable for getting the job done, but your video helped tremendously.
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Speaking as a conservative, you make good points. Too often I think we let politicians dictate how we should view one another, and as a result, we don't talk with one another as we should, clinging to our programmed biases instead. We'll always have disagreements - we just need to avoid hating the 'other side', despite politicians' encouragements to view that side as evil.

Cat Clamp - gotta look that one up. Thanks.
 
The jails are full the justice system is overburdened and still the criminals are rampant.The police officers and law enforcement are over worked and over stretched. Are the politicians to blame or the society at large? Is the inherent desire of a criminal to commit crime due to lax laws, lax prosecution, lack of enough police officers or the criminal doesn't care? Crime is part of society. In even the most inhuman regimes where they cut off your hand for stealing there is crime. In other countries they kill you for dealing possessing drugs never the less there are junkies and criminals. Is there a answer or solution? f**k if I know.
 
spartacus said:
The jails are full the justice system is overburdened and still the criminals are rampant.The police officers and law enforcement are over worked and over stretched. Are the politicians to blame or the society at large? Is the inherent desire of a criminal to commit crime due to lax laws, lax prosecution, lack of enough police officers or the criminal doesn't care? Crime is part of society. In even the most inhuman regimes where they cut off your hand for stealing there is crime. In other countries they kill you for dealing possessing drugs never the less there are junkies and criminals. Is there a answer or solution? f**k if I know.
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That’s part of the problem with our system. We are not focusing on rehabilitation, but rather locking up and punishing for the sake of punishing and satisfying a sense of retribution. I absolutely agree people should pay for their crimes, but our prison system is interested only in keeping the headcounts steady, not figuring out how we can turn criminals around effectively to become contributing members of our society. Get rid of privately-run prisons and start with a penal system that focuses on making people like they’re worth something after they understand what they’ve done should incite remorse and sorrow. Obviously this doesn’t include heinous crimes. If you murder, rape, or molest kids, or doing anything that is so far off the norm of humanity, you are obviously not fit for living amongst the general population. But the overall revolving door of criminals is the result of doing time with no real incentives to want to be better. Make them learn skills, educate them, and empower them to accomplish good things. A lot of criminals came from environments that lack that kind of nurturing. Again, I’m not advocating going easy on criminals, but I think you can turn people around if you make them feel like they’re worth something. It would also cut down on the amount of repeat offenders that law enforcement has to deal with, which, I can only imagine, gets real tiring and deflating their sense of purpose.

Anyway, good luck on deterring the cat thieves. I don’t know if there’s a way to rehab tweakers, which are almost always the ones that commit these types of property crimes. They’re looking for the quickest way to score the next hit.
 
RunningForNow said:
That’s part of the problem with our system. We are not focusing on rehabilitation, but rather locking up and punishing for the sake of punishing and satisfying a sense of retribution. I absolutely agree people should pay for their crimes, but our prison system is interested only in keeping the headcounts steady, not figuring out how we can turn criminals around effectively to become contributing members of our society. Get rid of privately-run prisons and start with a penal system that focuses on making people like they’re worth something after they understand what they’ve done should incite remorse and sorrow. Obviously this doesn’t include heinous crimes. If you murder, rape, or molest kids, or doing anything that is so far off the norm of humanity, you are obviously not fit for living amongst the general population. But the overall revolving door of criminals is the result of doing time with no real incentives to want to be better. Make them learn skills, educate them, and empower them to accomplish good things. A lot of criminals came from environments that lack that kind of nurturing. Again, I’m not advocating going easy on criminals, but I think you can turn people around if you make them feel like they’re worth something. It would also cut down on the amount of repeat offenders that law enforcement has to deal with, which, I can only imagine, gets real tiring and deflating their sense of purpose.

Anyway, good luck on deterring the cat thieves. I don’t know if there’s a way to rehab tweakers, which are almost always the ones that commit these types of property crimes. They’re looking for the quickest way to score the next hit.
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From your post before this, you missed a FREAKING huge cause and the main cause of why these people are homeless in the first place and it's not because of the home prices or that they're taking advantage of the nice weather to sleep outdoors. It's drug and alcohol abuse. You took your causes of homelessness right out of the Democrat/Liberal play book. When you can figure out a way to lead a horse to water and make them drink, let me know. You can give these poor souls all kinds of programs, hugs and whatever else you want to do for them and it still comes down to one thing. Do these people want off drugs and alcohol so they can live a more functional life? If the answer is no, they will continue to use and slowly pickle their bodies and minds. The other big reason is mental illness. When you figure out a way to fix these folks too without just numbing them with drugs, you be sure to let me know also.

Do you know why so many homeless come to liberal states and cities like San Francisco? It's because these liberal states and cities pander to them. Hey, set up camp wherever the F*ck you want, here's a bunch of free food and for desert, here's some free needles so you can shoot up heroin right on the public sidewalk.

I don't care how somebody was raised. At some point, we all reach the age where we know the difference between right and wrong. It's not ok to break into cars to steal things to support your drug habit. It's not ok to burglarize homes. It's not ok to take a dump on a city sidewalk or shoot up heroin in public with little kids watching.

In closing, I'll use a quote from a great movie. Big points to anyone who can name the movie and the actor who said it. "Sell crazy someplace else. Where all stocked up here."
 
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brillo_76 said:
So much for staying on Topic. Oh well could be worse. ;)

Sent from my SM-J337V using Tapatalk
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People have strong opinions on the subject of crime and punishment. This topic was bound to go off in the weeds a bit. I was a correctional officer for 11 years, another year as a deputy sheriff and the last 13+ years as a firefighter. Maybe my opinions aren't popular to some, especially to the bleeding hearts of the world, but people certainly can't argue that I've earned the right to my opinion because I've dealt with the lower elements of society for over 25 years. Anyone who's worked in public service, especially pubic safety, knows where I'm coming from.
 
My solution to catalytic converters theft was to get hooked on meth and steal my own cats for drug money, you can’t be upset about the theft if you’re the one that stole them, that’s a real 500 iq move
 
mtbtim said:
People have strong opinions on the subject of crime and punishment. This topic was bound to go off in the weeds a bit. I was a correctional officer for 11 years, another year as a deputy sheriff and the last 13+ years as a firefighter. Maybe my opinions aren't popular to some, especially to the bleeding hearts of the world, but people certainly can't argue that I've earned the right to my opinion because I've dealt with the lower elements of society for over 25 years. Anyone who's worked in public service, especially pubic safety, knows where I'm coming from.
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Oh I know exactly where you are coming from. I try keep quiet on forums. As my opinions are extremely strong as well. I worked as a contractor for county government for a while, which included the jail and sheriffs offices and work with several local police departments as well. So I completely understand your view point as I despise any level of theft and want capital punishment restored so that actions have consequences.

I have to agree when it comes to a theft issue on a thread. It will go more off then the weeds. This one has actually stayed mostly on topic. I am really quite impressed.

2 possible solutions:

1.) Skid plate to cover the cat area
2.) Cat Clamp

So we did make progress on what the OP Wanted..:D
 
Back in the 80's I questioned why Toyota's and Nissan's were getting broken into a lot in Hawaii. I was told that citizens of Japan don't break into cars so the manufactures didn't fortify counter measures in the cars designs. There was no need to.
People there respected other people and their station in life. There was honor in who ever you are and what path you chose, and it's citizens respected that.

Today is a much different story in the US. People who still give a sh*t are getting less and less, or don't want to get involved. Crime has touch almost everyone in the US. Or people know someone first hand who was touch by crime. And I'm sure every facet of law enforcement is tired of it also, I'm sure some even have become victims.

Look to other nations if you want to see where all of this crime is going. Despite of how bad the crime is in the US, we are still way better off than other nations, but, it's slowly getting there.
 
Obviously nothing will be cured over night. Society's wows will take time, but for the first time in many years I think we are headed in the right direction as a nation. Here is my play on it. First the drop in unemployment is a great first step but This can only be sustained by a control on the illegal immigrant population. That flow can be looked upon by water like water to much water is bad no matter where it comes from. Not enough just as bad so we need a way to control the flow like a faucet. This allows us to give people jobs who want them because with out jobs people can turn to crime. Crime and drugs go hand in hand so we need to do all we can do and I mean all we can do to combat drugs. Next deterrents there needs to be repercussions for people doing things like stealing your CC and not threaten me with being sued for protecting my property. Prison needs to be a option for some for others maybe weekend work programs or something along those lines State and County work crews. The ones that can not be rehabed prison or mental institutions. From some one who worked in Fire Control for 30 years many of them with people under the care of the Dept of Corrections. Well it may not be all that simple but I think those are the main ingredients in this cake. :hello:
 
VernySanders said:
If you're not in an emissions state just get rid of them
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You have to have them in this state. Granted if you wish they can be high flow but all the basic emmisions have to be on or you fail the state inspection.

This state is bizarre because only a handful of the counties have emmisions. The rest of the counties do not have emmisions testing.

Sent from my SM-J337V using Tapatalk
 
Etching the cat skid plate of the cat probably isnt going to do anything. Painting it maybe.
I would image if they want to steal it they take the painted one too. :[

Sent from my SM-J337V using Tapatalk
 
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