@@bigdavedayday1581 Yea, but I hate cleaning up that mess it leaves behind. A Louisville Slugger is great because you really get the satisfaction of hearing them make those blood curdling screams as you beat their legs sticking out from under the car. Plus, they can't run away afterward so you really get to beat on them for awhile until the police show up. The bruises that they are wearing while being arraigned the next day are like a Picasso work of art. 😁👍
This is a good idea and a good execution. Anything that these criminals see that is going to slow them down will make them move to an easier target. Thanks for the video.
Yeah, the only time this will fail is when cat theft prevention becomes the norm and it becomes difficult to find non tampered cats to steal. Then they will start to go with more difficult to steal cats but that is when it becomes a mess for them with people doing all kinds of different anti-theft tactics that makes the theft method inconsistent and will probably require a variety of tools and increased risk to the thief.
OK WELL They tried to STEAL my CAT! Had my van parked on a side street for about a week. They didn't get the CAT off because of the cables and barb wire, BUT they did completely sawzall Cut my exhaust piping on both inlet and outlet pipe ends of my cat..... Now I have to get the piping welded back together. There are some slight marks on the upper frame member, so looks like they tried to cut the cable but the cables and barb wire show no signs of damage. Most of the cables run up up above the cat to the frame member. Seems they just couldn't get their tool up there. After repair, I will also look at adding some expanded steel-mesh to wrap around the cat so hopefully they won't cut anything next time and so add another layer of protection. Also looking at adding wraps of exhaust fabric-tape-sold for headers in the common cut areas. It is said by some that the fabric tape really gums up a cutting tool, making it more difficult to cut your pipes. Hopefully next year I will install an alarm system for my van. Currently I have a steering wheel locking club I use. With the alarm, I will look for ways to add some wire by/on the cat that if it gets moved it will either ground or break a ground, triggering the alarm. PS my cable system is similar to the Catclamp, yet the cat clamp looks more robust, yet the front of my cat has a wide mouth dual pipe the catclamp would not fit over.. Take care Take care
@@lourias The whole point is that they see it's a PITA. They just want to get into 2(or 3 if sensor) quick cuts and get the cat out in less than 1 minute. If they see this mess, they are not going to figure out how to get it removed and move on to something else. It's only when "moving on to something else" becomes useless because everyone is doing this, that they will go through the effort of figuring out how to steal a come complicated cat.
I had both left and right catalytic converters along with 2 oxygen sensors recently stolen on my Toyota Tundra, and due to the unavailability of replacement catalytic converters, it took 4 months to finally get it repaired. The total cost of repair including welding was $4,682. I'm so scared to park my car outside now as my Tundra cannot fit in the garage due to its length. I will definitely try the suggested theft deterrent methods. Thank you for the information!
@@robytar Yes, parked on the street because it doesn't fit in the garage. During that time, I had so many spider webs all around and underneath the car. My battery died and the gas had gone stale, too. It was such a depressing time just waiting for the back ordered catalytic converters to come in. Another car in the repair shop was still waiting after 6 months for the replacement catalytic converters. My insurance said they can only provide rental car for 3 days, just for the days it takes to repair and not during the waiting period. It was the most painful car repair experience!
Mine was stolen last yr. I had 4 cats on the truck. Had to sell the truck after getting an aftermarket that wouldn't pass emission and numerous O2 sensors. Now, on my upgrade I got super sensitive alarms, dashcam that are both online connected to my phone and don't go on long trips to where I stay in a hotel with the truck.
Thank you Jim. A friend of mine just had his stolen (F250 truck) during church services. Pure evil. I too am going to figure something out for my truck. I might just buy the cable and weld it on the cat and exhaust pipe then use clamps after wrapping the frame.
Your welcome Ollie. Sorry to hear, it is a true shame and travesty. Interesting you say church and evil, because some wisely say church is pure evil. For instance, constantly telling us that we are collectively Not god, so keeping our world godless. Wouldn't it'd be nice if he could get some kind of refund from the collection-protection money he has been giving his church over the many years, that obviously didn't help, to pay for his repairs. Of course first they praey on our minds and they praey on our wallets? A sham is a shame as well that's for sure. There sure are similarities, us people hiding in churches, getting high on our songs and us people getting high on drugs and stealing cats. Our science has known we can be trained and become addicted to drugs our body releases internally. Was it first our poor Cats... or was it actually first the Dogs that started it all? I mean after all isn't God spelled backwards, doG, what we become when we believe that we are not? I like fun and interesting chats and seeing connections is very interesting to me, you seem to as well. Take care.
It is infuriating beyond belief and I hate that they get away with it. They just stole one off of one of my cars. I'm going to do something like this soon. I'm also going to add a tilt sensor so if they jack it up it'll go off. Would be nice to catch them.
@@JimTMcDaniels1 really people leading themselves, doing whatever they desire to do...being their own 'god'...is why we have to do things like secure catalytic converters. Protecting ourselves from those people who think they are god and just do whatever they desire. If they were disciples of Jesus, taught to follow God, they wouldn't be stealing.
Am even considering using Fireplace insert that holds logs as thick steel. Cable is nice idea- tac welds is nice addition- just make it a total pain to get in and out-. Nice Video BTW
What about the mechanics who might work on your vehicle (like for an oil change or any other reason to put it on a lift) ? Or if child's ball rolls underneath and kid reaches in to retrieve the ball?
I'm thinking of taking barbed wire, zip tie to 3 foot sections of steel rod, store in PVC pipe to keep it from getting snagged while in the vehicle, throw them out on the ground under the vehicle while parking overnight.. This should inflict pain to the would be thief once they quickly drop under the vehicle.. Hopefully pop up and smash their head on the under side as a pain reflex kicks in.
Thanks for the video. I've been going to bed nervous for the last week since someone tried stealing my cats. The dummy started his first cut in line with an o2 sensor and either gave up or got spooked but it still ran me $590.00 to get it fixed. Found out I have 4 converters on my 06 E250 and it would be near $5000 Canadian if they made off with all 4. Also, I'm thinking I might add chicken wire or a chain link wrap around the convenient cut spots.
Jim M., thanks for doing this video. I'm going to do this. Please pay no attention to the negative comments. I was looking for a DIY way and I think your way is the best. You are correct, a sawsall will have a hard time with the cables. Thanks Again.
That's what I'm thinking. I plan to do this soon since I've had one stolen. It doesn't need to be impossible to get off. Unprotected they can take it in about 2 minutes. If they see that they have to actually think, and take more time, they will probably move on.
It would seem to me that simply wrapping your CC in some sort of cable like this and clamping it in would almost completely eliminate any chance of theft because a thief will see this and know it's going to take more time. They're looking for situations where they can get in and get out within 2 minutes or less. Seems like a very simple and cheap way to prevent this kind of theft.
Thanks Joel I agree Since I can’t add a metal shield plate like they have kits for some vehicles. I’ve since added some simple wraps of medium duty 16 gauge 4 point Barb wire from eBay and just added it to the cable clamps hood downs. I feel it’s the sweet spot for my vehicle and situation and cost and labor and comfort content level. If they move their hand quickly around that Barb wire, it’s gonna cut snag them. Rough play with the cat is gonna scratch! Lol
Sorry, but I tried so-called high temp Engine Paint on my E-350 van, and it didn't work so well; it was even rated up to 4-500 degrees F. The first 20 minutes of driving it on the road burned it all off. Now I'm looking to get the VHT 1300-2000 degree F paint. Hope that'll stay on better!
Looks good Jim. The sawsall blade will just move the cable back and forth instead of cutting through it. I'm thinking about doing this soon. I like the dog tag idea too.
@@robertlewis8464 There is no method that allows to you tog up the cat unless it's in an inconspicuous area and the thief doesn't notice. For these obvious spots, the only purpose it servers is getting his cat back if a thief is caught in a short span of time where he didn't get a change to work on the cat and get rid of the markings. Thieves need to steal a large quantity of cats and get rid of them quickly so they will not want that 1 cat that will incriminate their whole pile. Edit: It would be a case of literally caught "red handed", lol.
Yes, we do need more legislation, but that takes time. This is something that can be accomplished relatively cheaply, that would slow down or prevent some thief from stealing your cat.
Think if you just had the dogtags and the paint, the cat may still be vulnerable, since they could cut the heat shield off later after stealing it. With the cables too, I think you are safe. You made it too much of a PIA for them to deal with your's and will go on to the next vehicle. Best DIY theft prevention I've seen so far.
@@cy6610 Actually I don't know why local police departments or insurance companies have workshops to do this for the public. The insurance company lose thousands of dollars due to cat theft. (and we lose too since we still have to pay our deductibles not to mention the pain of having it replaced.)
I’ve added a piece of expanded steel - diamond like mesh, wrapping around the cat, caging it in. No one has bothered it since and I live on the west side where the methers are! So far so good! I used Key rings to simply attach it to the cables
2:40 You could have "glued' the small clamps with some high temp JB Weld. But what good does the clamp do? (It does make the cable a little bigger at the clamp point.)
Hi Jim, excellent job, it’s better than nothing, very impressive, very possible just may work, why deal with this issue just move on to an easier target, best of luck buddy,
Someone in the comments mentioned wrapping it all in barbed wire. Actually an interesting idea. Imagine seeing that before cutting and realizing that you will have a very hard time even pulling it out from under the vehicle.
Oh ic ic Many people can’t because of their state’s emissions program plus it pollutes our planet’s air. Plus I’ve read that modern cats don’t have the back pressure the early models did so there is not much benefit and can trip trouble codes and such. Yet doesn’t seem right that we can’t legally buy used cats from salvage yards when needed would make replacement much more affordable..
You don't have to spend money reinforcing. In California; if you don't give consent , they cant legally steal your catalytic converter . With all the laws and regulations it protects us. Same thing with covid, cant legally enter your body if you don't give consent.
Everyone, 2 things you can do for FREE to combat this trend that I've done: A. Every month, go to FB marketplace and search for any catalytic converter buyer ads that do Not state that they will not buy stolen Cats and also the suspicious ads which are found in the sell section yet hint they actually will buy cats. Message the person telling them to quit buying stolen cats or change their ads to specifically say they will not buy stolen cats and report to FB in the link as "suspicious stolen" category. If we stop the buyer's who are funding the drug addict thieves, we can change things. B. E-mail our elected officials to change the Federal law to Allow the public to buy used catalytic converters from salvage yard vehicles, like we use to be able to, so we can affordably replace our stolen cats and this will also reduce the value of stealing them in the first place and after market replacements! ALSO to change the law to allow muffler shops to Reattach a catalytic converter that has been completely cut off your vehicle! Yes that's right, by law they can't reattach your catalytic converter if it's been completely cut off or after the police recover it! The law only allows them to repair it if it's still partially attached. So Muffler shops are forced to sell you a new Expensive catalytic converter even though they can see the cut marks match your original and your is often better quality and longevity than after market replacements. Take care
Yeah and they could take the van if they wanted to dumbass the idea of things like this is just to make it a little bit harder to do so that the common thief moves on. They're looking for an easy mark not a challenge, if it looks like it will take an extra minute to deal with they'll shuffle on and find one that doesn't.
That paint will wash right off with solvent. A grinder will make short work of the rivets. All one needs to complete the theft is a metals buyer who is not "fussy" about what comes in.
I was about to go 1/4th cable but I think I’ll go 3/16 like you did and wrap my cat up a number of times and gives these jerks a headache just by looking at it !
You know how to stop catalytic thieves? Put a cheap motion sensor light underneath your car or truck. That shit will light up like a christmas tree at night cause that's when they steal your shit and no theif wants to be light up at night trying to rob you
Sorry, but if they can cut off the converter they can cut through these too. However, it will take twice as long and that's probably enough deterrent to get them to avoid your vehicle.
Not sure that a cable is going to stop people who are cutting pipes in seconds. Engrave the vin directly on the cat so it can't be removed like a tag. Painting is said to be a good deferent.
Welding rebar or steel cable onto exhaust system method I'm seeing some on the internet: Rebar or steel cable is hard to cut through with a reciprocating blade and dulls blades fast. It seems another fairly effective deterrent would be to buy some rebar from your local home improvement store, of a thickness that can be bent using hand and tool methods. Then bend so that the rebar or cable can be placed and welded-attach the bar along the exhaust system and also over onto the cat. Of course you have to have a welder and you'll need to read how to bend rebar and how to safely weld onto your car without damaging electronics.
Rebar is very brittle mig welding doesn't hold up on rebar under any pressure more likely to fall of your car and injure someone driving down the road.
With the light duty Barb wire I added since the video, I’m content with my situation. Especially since I haven’t been targeted .. yet… hopefully never... "Now I'll be driving an electric car way before they steal my cat LOL". it’s worked so far as in no one has tried to steal it. I do live on the west side where cats might get stolen and I do see in the news some of that happening around here. There has been no evidence that anyone has tried… I feel comfortable with what I’ve done and where I live and the difficult and expense of doing more than I did for my particular cat vehicle design that I don’t see a shield kit offered or easily done for my van. I don’t live in higher theft rate places like California. If I lived there then I might go to more extremes and steps and see what professionals recommend. I really feel the Barb wire put it over the top where someone is going to curse and move on….I hope...but not the helplessness in hope, because I did what I reasonably could. Take care of yourself.
Hey Jim, great affordable idea for diys/weekend warriors to do. Quick question, with the way the wires are wrapped around the CAT/shield, did you notice any rattling noise or vibration/hitting sound from metal to metal contact from underneath the exhaust system when the engine was on or while driving? Thanks for the great video, keep up the good work.
Nope, no noise from it. Good question. The ONLY downside is the fact that down the road I might have to take the cable apart for some related repair or I might be the one who is cut on the barb wire if I'm not careful around it. But I would just have to reverse what I did to take it apart.
Take a pair of vise grips and put it on the end of the stud where the nuts go for the cable clamps. Smash those threads! You won't be able to get the nuts back off.
Hmm good pint but More than likely, the installer is the one who will need to take those nuts off later for some maintenance reason. The thieves probably won't have small wrenches to fit the nuts. Adding a lock tight would prevent them from removing without first applying heat and allow the installer to remove is needed later.
I was told u do not want to put the vin on there, think they need the vin sometimes to be able to sell the car itself at certian places..just a thought..it makes sense to have ID on it, and especially the ted paint..but wouldnt that vin ID help the thief when they take it in to sell? P
If you want to stop a criminal you have to think like one, I respect your effort and share to the community but that dont going to stop a theft, security is a illusion if a theft want something he going to get it so the whole point is make it difficult to steal, they dont care any vin or license plate number on it or color, who buy this things knows are stolen, they buy it for recycle internal metals they dont sale it as a catalyst, your dog tag is hold in place for two aluminum rivets and criminals make it pop with a grinder touch same with those cables in no extra time. Thefts dont like a long labor or noise, so the point is make it difficult, in my opinion cover some how or encase the convertor with a metal sheet this means a lot of work and noise for a theft, become risky, loud and time consuming so they will move on to next target.
Engine Paint does not withstand those higher temps on the catalytic converter. Yes, you need Ultra High Temp paint, in the range of 1300-2000 degrees F!
You got to think like a thief ,how and where to cut ? I did my this week but still i see ,i still got a lot a holes to cover, need extra steel fish net to cover under the car, thats my next plan. My past cat cost me $3,500
the really neat part is all of the work he did slows them down immensely, to the point of going somewhere else to score,the paint part is a dead giveaway to cops that the parts is stolen,just having one of these orange parts is questionable,having the tools for extaction and the parts painted,bingo,the thief gets charged with every theft in the neighborhood
Bolt cutters will cut that cable eazy.. when they get the converter home they can cut the tags off...they are mostly after imports they bring in the big money
This is not to prevent anyone, it's just to deter from stealing *this* converter . It takes less than a couple of minutes to steal a cat (videos on UA-cam) but if there's a car with deterrent and one without, they'd definitely go for the easier one.
They are just going to cut the heat shield to take the cat. If a thief wants bad enough they will take it reguardless. Don’t work. The recycle center just takes the inside metal. It gets cut open to get it.
I recently also bought 10’ on eBay of some 18gauge 4 point Barb wire and carefully with eye protection, wrapped it around the cat, adding it into with some of the cable clamps. So something else they have to cut through and will cut them up if they move nervously fast like a tweezer criminal would. Now I’m done done with what I thought reasonable for how far I want to go cheaply diy protecting my cat.
THANK YOU FOR THE IDEAS!! THEJUDGE GETS THEM A FREE LAWYER THEN 3 HOT AND COT!!!!!! LETS THEM OUT EARLY SO THEY CAN PLAY THE POLICE GAME!! CATCH AND RELERSE!! CATCH THEM AGAIN RELEASE THEM AGAIN. WE FOOT THE BILL FOR ALL!!!!!!!! PAY FOR THE JUDGE THE LAWYER AND THE PD. AMERICA WHAT A COUNTRY!!!!!!!!
All still very easy for a thief to steal. They cut the cable with bolt cutters your paint and serialized dog tags re on your heat shielding which you can cut right off with a grinder and any overspray red paint can be scored right off with a Brillo pad. It’s a good effort. But theives are scum of the earth and relentless. My moms car got hit about a year ago so I welded a steel cage around it that I made out of heat treated rebar. They will burn through about 10 of the $40 carbide tipped sawzall blades before they can even access the cat. That gives me plenty of time to get out there and drop the car on their head
@bill Klein welders vary widely in pricing. You can get a cheap one from harbor freight for about $100 just a basic wire feed no shielding has needed but they range all the way from about $100 to several several thousand. I have a multi process Miller machine that was about 4 grand.
Aircraft cable clamps/ wire rope clamps. They are often sold near the cable and by the size of the cable. e.g. 3/8" cable clamp. Home Depot has both the cable and clamps.
I love good thinking. Don't take this wrong. I like your mind. But isn't it easy to cut cable? Keep in mind, I RARELY cut with a sawzall metal of ANY kind, I always use cutting wheels or torch. OR is your thought, that it would be TOO MUCH extra cutting with the pipe, AND THEN, the cables they either wouldn't want to bother, AND when they see the red paint they would give up? or if they try, you might catch em becasue of the time. Curious. Damned thieves.
Don't waste you money on the catstrap I purchased one to deter theft ( Had it stolen once)had a leak on the exhaust pipe so needed it out of the way so he could spot weld the leak and my mechanic literally took 5 seconds to cut the metal tie downs that comes with the kit! Told him not to even bother putting it back on plus I had the smell of burning plastic / adhesive when the car was used for 15 min or so total waste and a POS!
obviously you don't live in a catalytic converter mandated state. Impossible to pass smog, therefore Impossible to renew registration without passing smog testing. On the horizon, All electric vehicles will completely eliminate this problem.
I'm going to paint my CAT blaze orange. Then take an "electric pencil" and etch SPD (Shelby police department) and the last for digits of the VIN on the CAT itself. This will make the metal recycling yard suspension and probably refuse to buy it!
i heard a .357 magnum works good too...
So does having an electric car 🚗
50 BMG works better
@@bigdavedayday1581
Yea, but I hate cleaning up that mess it leaves behind. A Louisville Slugger is great because you really get the satisfaction of hearing them make those blood curdling screams as you beat their legs sticking out from under the car. Plus, they can't run away afterward so you really get to beat on them for awhile until the police show up. The bruises that they are wearing while being arraigned the next day are like a Picasso work of art. 😁👍
Go hug a tree will yeah!
Go hug a tree will yeah!
This is a good idea and a good execution. Anything that these criminals see that is going to slow them down will make them move to an easier target. Thanks for the video.
Yeah, the only time this will fail is when cat theft prevention becomes the norm and it becomes difficult to find non tampered cats to steal. Then they will start to go with more difficult to steal cats but that is when it becomes a mess for them with people doing all kinds of different anti-theft tactics that makes the theft method inconsistent and will probably require a variety of tools and increased risk to the thief.
OK WELL They tried to STEAL my CAT! Had my van parked on a side street for about a week.
They didn't get the CAT off because of the cables and barb wire, BUT they did completely sawzall Cut my exhaust piping on both inlet and outlet pipe ends of my cat.....
Now I have to get the piping welded back together. There are some slight marks on the upper frame member, so looks like they tried to cut the cable but the cables and barb wire show no signs of damage. Most of the cables run up up above the cat to the frame member.
Seems they just couldn't get their tool up there. After repair, I will also look at adding some expanded steel-mesh to wrap around the cat so hopefully they won't cut anything next time and so add another layer of protection.
Also looking at adding wraps of exhaust fabric-tape-sold for headers in the common cut areas. It is said by some that the fabric tape really gums up a cutting tool, making it more difficult to cut your pipes.
Hopefully next year I will install an alarm system for my van. Currently I have a steering wheel locking club I use.
With the alarm, I will look for ways to add some wire by/on the cat that if it gets moved it will either ground or break a ground, triggering the alarm.
PS my cable system is similar to the Catclamp, yet the cat clamp looks more robust, yet the front of my cat has a wide mouth dual pipe the catclamp would not fit over..
Take care
Take care
We shouldn't be doing all these unnecessary modification if criminals get harsher punishment to deter crimes.
Gonna get a lot worse
You literally get out to death for killing someone . Penalties don’t matter
r u really that naieve? there will never be punishment that would be harsh enough. The solution is on the horizon, All electric vehicles.
@@justinmcmillin329 until the thieves start stealing the electric motors and batteries
@@justinmcmillin329
Agreed. Sentencing doesn't deter thieves. The harder the sentence, the harder they will run from the police.
30 dollars, maybe a few hours of your life, compared to 1200 to 2000 dollars and losing the car for a day to get repaired. Thanks for the great idea!
The folks who are stealing the converters will be able to cut through that wire cabling.
@@lourias but if use several pieces or stretches' -just adds to more time they need to spend. Deter not stop.
@@lourias The whole point is that they see it's a PITA. They just want to get into 2(or 3 if sensor) quick cuts and get the cat out in less than 1 minute. If they see this mess, they are not going to figure out how to get it removed and move on to something else. It's only when "moving on to something else" becomes useless because everyone is doing this, that they will go through the effort of figuring out how to steal a come complicated cat.
@@SI0AX Good thieves will carry steel cable cutters besides a Zawzall now that they probably watching the vids people post on youtube
yea cost me$1300 at midas on a van like this
I had both left and right catalytic converters along with 2 oxygen sensors recently stolen on my Toyota Tundra, and due to the unavailability of replacement catalytic converters, it took 4 months to finally get it repaired. The total cost of repair including welding was $4,682. I'm so scared to park my car outside now as my Tundra cannot fit in the garage due to its length. I will definitely try the suggested theft deterrent methods. Thank you for the information!
Four months!?! So the truck just sat idle for four months?
@@robytar Yes, parked on the street because it doesn't fit in the garage. During that time, I had so many spider webs all around and underneath the car. My battery died and the gas had gone stale, too. It was such a depressing time just waiting for the back ordered catalytic converters to come in. Another car in the repair shop was still waiting after 6 months for the replacement catalytic converters. My insurance said they can only provide rental car for 3 days, just for the days it takes to repair and not during the waiting period. It was the most painful car repair experience!
Mine was stolen last yr. I had 4 cats on the truck. Had to sell the truck after getting an aftermarket that wouldn't pass emission and numerous O2 sensors. Now, on my upgrade I got super sensitive alarms, dashcam that are both online connected to my phone and don't go on long trips to where I stay in a hotel with the truck.
Was it repaired at a Toyota dealer, or was that done at an independent shop?
Install battery operated motion alarms under your vehicle. So if anyone goes under it the alarm goes off.
And when a cat walks under, the whole neighborhood gets woken up.
Looks good! I see some videos where they use razor wire or barb wire instead of cable.
Thank you Jim. A friend of mine just had his stolen (F250 truck) during church services. Pure evil. I too am going to figure something out for my truck. I might just buy the cable and weld it on the cat and exhaust pipe then use clamps after wrapping the frame.
Your welcome Ollie. Sorry to hear, it is a true shame and travesty.
Interesting you say church and evil, because some wisely say church is pure evil.
For instance, constantly telling us that we are collectively Not god, so keeping our world godless.
Wouldn't it'd be nice if he could get some kind of refund from the collection-protection money he has been giving his church over the many years, that obviously didn't help, to pay for his repairs. Of course first they praey on our minds and they praey on our wallets? A sham is a shame as well that's for sure.
There sure are similarities, us people hiding in churches, getting high on our songs and us people getting high on drugs and stealing cats. Our science has known we can be trained and become addicted to drugs our body releases internally.
Was it first our poor Cats... or was it actually first the Dogs that started it all? I mean after all isn't God spelled backwards, doG, what we become when we believe that we are not?
I like fun and interesting chats and seeing connections is very interesting to me, you seem to as well. Take care.
It is infuriating beyond belief and I hate that they get away with it. They just stole one off of one of my cars. I'm going to do something like this soon. I'm also going to add a tilt sensor so if they jack it up it'll go off. Would be nice to catch them.
@@JimTMcDaniels1 really people leading themselves, doing whatever they desire to do...being their own 'god'...is why we have to do things like secure catalytic converters. Protecting ourselves from those people who think they are god and just do whatever they desire. If they were disciples of Jesus, taught to follow God, they wouldn't be stealing.
I used 50 ft of 5/16 cable and put JB weld on the clamp threads.
In addition to painting it, why not wrap the entire converter with a few layers of barbed wire and tac weld it on or secure it with lots of clamps?
Best idea! 😂
Am even considering using Fireplace insert that holds logs as thick steel. Cable is nice idea- tac welds is nice addition- just make it a total pain to get in and out-. Nice Video BTW
What about the mechanics who might work on your vehicle (like for an oil change or any other reason to put it on a lift) ? Or if child's ball rolls underneath and kid reaches in to retrieve the ball?
I'm thinking of taking barbed wire, zip tie to 3 foot sections of steel rod, store in PVC pipe to keep it from getting snagged while in the vehicle, throw them out on the ground under the vehicle while parking overnight.. This should inflict pain to the would be thief once they quickly drop under the vehicle.. Hopefully pop up and smash their head on the under side as a pain reflex kicks in.
Thanks for the video. I've been going to bed nervous for the last week since someone tried stealing my cats. The dummy started his first cut in line with an o2 sensor and either gave up or got spooked but it still ran me $590.00 to get it fixed. Found out I have 4 converters on my 06 E250 and it would be near $5000 Canadian if they made off with all 4. Also, I'm thinking I might add chicken wire or a chain link wrap around the convenient cut spots.
Jim M., thanks for doing this video. I'm going to do this. Please pay no attention to the negative comments. I was looking for a DIY way and I think your way is the best. You are correct, a sawsall will have a hard time with the cables. Thanks Again.
That's what I'm thinking. I plan to do this soon since I've had one stolen. It doesn't need to be impossible to get off. Unprotected they can take it in about 2 minutes. If they see that they have to actually think, and take more time, they will probably move on.
It would seem to me that simply wrapping your CC in some sort of cable like this and clamping it in would almost completely eliminate any chance of theft because a thief will see this and know it's going to take more time. They're looking for situations where they can get in and get out within 2 minutes or less. Seems like a very simple and cheap way to prevent this kind of theft.
Thanks Joel I agree Since I can’t add a metal shield plate like they have kits for some vehicles.
I’ve since added some simple wraps of medium duty 16 gauge 4 point Barb wire from eBay and just added it to the cable clamps hood downs.
I feel it’s the sweet spot for my vehicle and situation and cost and labor and comfort content level.
If they move their hand quickly around that Barb wire, it’s gonna cut snag them.
Rough play with the cat is gonna scratch! Lol
@@JimTMcDaniels1 hi so many are ALSOLOOSING THEIR LIVES,WHEN JACK SLIPS ! Most seen have been in KALIFORNIA ! Stay well 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
@@flybyairplane3528 So sad about the jack slipping on them (snif)... 'scuze me.... I need a minute (snif) 😜
Cats are worth $500+ scrap these days. many thieves will take high risks such as spending time to cut shields and cables loose.
@@MrHurricaneFloyd But with 10's of 1000's of cars out there, w/o cable inclosures, they would most likely rather move on, which is the whole point.
Sorry, but I tried so-called high temp Engine Paint on my E-350 van, and it didn't work so well; it was even rated up to 4-500 degrees F. The first 20 minutes of driving it on the road burned it all off. Now I'm looking to get the VHT 1300-2000 degree F paint. Hope that'll stay on better!
Yes, thats what needs to happen. When horse thieves starting getting shot, it ended immediately
Horse thieves getting shot? Horse theft has thousands of years. The advent of a gun nor shooting them stopped thefts.
You forgot a GPS tracker on that Catalytic
Guess you 4got how hot a cat converter gets, will melt. Dumb idea!
Looks good Jim. The sawsall blade will just move the cable back and forth instead of cutting through it. I'm thinking about doing this soon. I like the dog tag idea too.
It wouldn't be hard to drill the pop rivets and remove the dog tags
@@robertlewis8464 There is no method that allows to you tog up the cat unless it's in an inconspicuous area and the thief doesn't notice. For these obvious spots, the only purpose it servers is getting his cat back if a thief is caught in a short span of time where he didn't get a change to work on the cat and get rid of the markings. Thieves need to steal a large quantity of cats and get rid of them quickly so they will not want that 1 cat that will incriminate their whole pile.
Edit: It would be a case of literally caught "red handed", lol.
Bolt cutters will cut that cable in no time.
These are wasting money. We need legislative to make more stiffer laws for the thefts and the buyers.
Yes, we do need more legislation, but that takes time. This is something that can be accomplished relatively cheaply, that would slow down or prevent some thief from stealing your cat.
They need to fine the buyers heavily ,like maybe a million dollars sounds good.
Think if you just had the dogtags and the paint, the cat may still be vulnerable, since they could cut the heat shield off later after stealing it. With the cables too, I think you are safe. You made it too much of a PIA for them to deal with your's and will go on to the next vehicle. Best DIY theft prevention I've seen so far.
When I do my cat this week I plan on engraving my VIN on the cat itself.
@@cy6610 Sounds good, if you can get to the cat. A lot of times the heat shield is in the way. Good luck.
@@cy6610 Actually I don't know why local police departments or insurance companies have workshops to do this for the public. The insurance company lose thousands of dollars due to cat theft. (and we lose too since we still have to pay our deductibles not to mention the pain of having it replaced.)
nice job all designed to get them to move on. IF they did steal it I imagine they would just take the heat Shield with your dog tags off no?
I’ve added a piece of expanded steel - diamond like mesh, wrapping around the cat, caging it in.
No one has bothered it since and I live on the west side where the methers are! So far so good!
I used Key rings to simply attach it to the cables
That red spray paint will really scare them. LoL 😂
The loose cable is a good thing , it’s really hard to cut with a saws-all
2:40 You could have "glued' the small clamps with some high temp JB Weld. But what good does the clamp do? (It does make the cable a little bigger at the clamp point.)
Hi Jim, excellent job, it’s better than nothing, very impressive, very possible just may work, why deal with this issue just move on to an easier target, best of luck buddy,
Exactly what I wanted to add to mine. I got the paint part and etching but wanted to cage mine up some way.
Imagine the thief look under there and see all that, he’ll be like oh hell no
A "THIS CAT CONVERTER PROTECTED BY SMITH & WESSON" Tag works well too..👍
So long as your S&W is awake at 3AM when they show up to steal it.
Good stuff. One little suggestion: Loctite on the clamps that would be accessible to the bad guys. Just another way to slow them down.
loctite?
@@karenl.1695 loctite is a thread locker for screwed or bolted in connectors. Comes in various strengths.
make them work for it. They won't like that. they don't like to work. good job.
Someone in the comments mentioned wrapping it all in barbed wire. Actually an interesting idea. Imagine seeing that before cutting and realizing that you will have a very hard time even pulling it out from under the vehicle.
Great world we have created.
We need electric shock system!!!
They are going to cut that cable with the same grinder they cut the bolts with.
Oh perhaps
What would you suggest to stop that?
Oh ic ic
Many people can’t because of their state’s emissions program plus it pollutes our planet’s air.
Plus I’ve read that modern cats don’t have the back pressure the early models did so there is not much benefit and can trip trouble codes and such.
Yet doesn’t seem right that we can’t legally buy used cats from salvage yards when needed would make replacement much more affordable..
You don't have to spend money reinforcing. In California; if you don't give consent , they cant legally steal your catalytic converter . With all the laws and regulations it protects us. Same thing with covid, cant legally enter your body if you don't give consent.
you are absolutely right
need big piece of metal and then bolt into frame from this side to the other side ,
@@JimTMcDaniels1 - need big piece of metal and then bolt into frame from this side to the other side ,
Everyone, 2 things you can do for FREE to combat this trend that I've done:
A.
Every month, go to FB marketplace and search for any catalytic converter buyer ads that do Not state that they will not buy stolen Cats and also the suspicious ads which are found in the sell section yet hint they actually will buy cats.
Message the person telling them to quit buying stolen cats or change their ads to specifically say they will not buy stolen cats and report to FB in the link as "suspicious stolen" category.
If we stop the buyer's who are funding the drug addict thieves, we can change things.
B.
E-mail our elected officials to change the Federal law to Allow the public to buy used catalytic converters from salvage yard vehicles, like we use to be able to, so we can affordably replace our stolen cats and this will also reduce the value of stealing them in the first place and after market replacements!
ALSO to change the law to allow muffler shops to Reattach a catalytic converter that has been completely cut off your vehicle! Yes that's right, by law they can't reattach your catalytic converter if it's been completely cut off or after the police recover it!
The law only allows them to repair it if it's still partially attached. So Muffler shops are forced to sell you a new Expensive catalytic converter even though they can see the cut marks match your original and your is often better quality and longevity than after market replacements.
Take care
The dog tag is very easy to remove, but it adds another deterrent so it's probably worth it.
In the middle of the night if these guys are caught with this converter the police can identify the owner faster.
no its not. Tags are a complete waste of time.
better hope they don't have bolt cutters along with the sawzall
Exactly, extra large bolt cutters or a battery power side grinder would only add about 20 - 30 seconds to the job
Like meth heads have all that! lol
@@justinmcmillin329 yes and that is all i need to load and put my shoes on
Good Job! Yes, keep cable loose. Many Thanks!
Nice theft deterrent tidy job you did also prolongs life of cat from water etc
they will cut the straps with the same grinder and then use paint stripper if they see that needed
Yeah and they could take the van if they wanted to dumbass the idea of things like this is just to make it a little bit harder to do so that the common thief moves on. They're looking for an easy mark not a challenge, if it looks like it will take an extra minute to deal with they'll shuffle on and find one that doesn't.
Dennis so far NONE HAS a grinder theyALL carried a SAWZALL, 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
That paint will wash right off with solvent. A grinder will make short work of the rivets. All one needs to complete the theft is a metals buyer who is not "fussy" about what comes in.
It's time to stop the scrap yards from buying them in the scrap yards that are buying them should be put out of business
220 lead from the dryer plug it in go to see if the turkeys cooked in the morning!
i am saving my hollow bullets for these guys to come around and steel my catalytic convertor.
But it's illegal to shoot thieves. So you're gonna need a shovel too, to bury the dead bastards.
How about flash bang security
Good thing i found this video, I was just about to install a Land Mine under my car LOL
I was about to go 1/4th cable but I think I’ll go 3/16 like you did and wrap my cat up a number of times and gives these jerks a headache just by looking at it !
Add some barb wire if you got it like I did too
reminds me of the efforts my dad went through to keep the squirrels out of his bird feeder.
Except, in most places, as a last resort you can shoot squirrels.
You know how to stop catalytic thieves? Put a cheap motion sensor light underneath your car or truck. That shit will light up like a christmas tree at night cause that's when they steal your shit and no theif wants to be light up at night trying to rob you
I’ve got to dog you on what VIN stands for Vehicle Identification Number so you don’t have to put Number after the abbreviation of VIN
Cable such as that can act like a saw blade when vibration moves it. it can cut a hole in your converter
So this is a cat thief's aide...🤣
Sorry, but if they can cut off the converter they can cut through these too. However, it will take twice as long and that's probably enough deterrent to get them to avoid your vehicle.
Now it will take them 2 minutes to steal the cat instead of 1
Not sure that a cable is going to stop people who are cutting pipes in seconds. Engrave the vin directly on the cat so it can't be removed like a tag. Painting is said to be a good deferent.
My Cat is protected by a Mossberg 12ga and a farmer friend with a backhoe. Jk. He's just a friend.
The vin tags are attached to the cover , that can be removed by thiefs
Cool video! How have things been going with your setup?
SHOPS NEED TO ADVertise this ..for a service !!!!!!
Both of my vehicles are lowered one has air bags on it.
They jack them up with a little rolling jack.
@@brucespurier7535 lmao they have to get the rolling jack under my shit first.
But you put the tags on the shield?
Welding rebar or steel cable onto exhaust system method I'm seeing some on the internet:
Rebar or steel cable is hard to cut through with a reciprocating blade and dulls blades fast.
It seems another fairly effective deterrent would be to buy some rebar from your local home improvement store, of a thickness that can be bent using hand and tool methods.
Then bend so that the rebar or cable can be placed and welded-attach the bar along the exhaust system and also over onto the cat.
Of course you have to have a welder and you'll need to read how to bend rebar and how to safely weld onto your car without damaging electronics.
Rebar is very brittle mig welding doesn't hold up on rebar under any pressure more likely to fall of your car and injure someone driving down the road.
How did you put the tag on there? I may engrave mine after mine was stolen while my truck was parked in my work hospital parking lot. Fml :(
Catalytic converter theft is about to become a FELONY offense in Texas.
It is a felony already, Grand Thief more than $2k value in CA
Murder is a felony. They stop that yet? Dont get caught stealing then take the cats to Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, Colorado or even Kansas.
The same tool they use to cut it off will cut right through that cable with little work.
A cutoff wheel for sure, but most use a recip saw, and that doesn't work on loose cable. However, this particular setup you don't need to cut it.
Instead of a 5 minute job to steal a converter just turned into a 1 hour job needing more tools and requiring more tools making more noise.
With the light duty Barb wire I added since the video, I’m content with my situation.
Especially since I haven’t been targeted .. yet… hopefully never...
"Now I'll be driving an electric car way before they steal my cat LOL".
it’s worked so far as in no one has tried to steal it. I do live on the west side where cats might get stolen and I do see in the news some of that happening around here.
There has been no evidence that anyone has tried…
I feel comfortable with what I’ve done and where I live and the difficult and expense of doing more than I did for my particular cat vehicle design that I don’t see a shield kit offered or easily done for my van.
I don’t live in higher theft rate places like California.
If I lived there then I might go to more extremes and steps and see what professionals recommend.
I really feel the Barb wire put it over the top where someone is going to curse and move on….I hope...but not the helplessness in hope, because I did what I reasonably could.
Take care of yourself.
Thanks for the work and the vid. Barbed wire video would be great.
Just watched. Do you still have the same set-up? Any issues or theft attempts? Thanks for the tips.
I"m confused, are you working on a Ford van or a Cadillac?
I keep hearing "Cadillac converter". Did they use those on Ford vans?
So where are the thieves selling these? I don't get it. Are they melting down the platinum?
Hey Jim, great affordable idea for diys/weekend warriors to do. Quick question, with the way the wires are wrapped around the CAT/shield, did you notice any rattling noise or vibration/hitting sound from metal to metal contact from underneath the exhaust system when the engine was on or while driving? Thanks for the great video, keep up the good work.
Nope, no noise from it. Good question. The ONLY downside is the fact that down the road I might have to take the cable apart for some related repair or I might be the one who is cut on the barb wire if I'm not careful around it. But I would just have to reverse what I did to take it apart.
Take a pair of vise grips and put it on the end of the stud where the nuts go for the cable clamps. Smash those threads! You won't be able to get the nuts back off.
Hmm good pint but More than likely, the installer is the one who will need to take those nuts off later for some maintenance reason.
The thieves probably won't have small wrenches to fit the nuts.
Adding a lock tight would prevent them from removing without first applying heat and allow the installer to remove is needed later.
As an additional deterrent, I would apply a good blob of JB Weld over each of the clamp nuts. Anyway, good job!
what if my cat doesnt have heat shield
Mine doesn't I am wondering the same, I don't think it will be good to wire around the catalytic itself.
THE PAINT SAY 550 DEGREES BUT DOESN'T THE CAT GET UP TO 1,200 TO 1,500
OR MORE, DEGREES AND THE PAINT WILL BURN OFF OR CATCH FIRE?
You're correct. Need to use 1300-2000 degree paint. I already tried the Engine Paint, and it all burned off in about 20 minutes.
I was told u do not want to put the vin on there, think they need the vin sometimes to be able to sell the car itself at certian places..just a thought..it makes sense to have ID on it, and especially the ted paint..but wouldnt that vin ID help the thief when they take it in to sell? P
If you want to stop a criminal you have to think like one, I respect your effort and share to the community but that dont going to stop a theft, security is a illusion if a theft want something he going to get it so the whole point is make it difficult to steal, they dont care any vin or license plate number on it or color, who buy this things knows are stolen, they buy it for recycle internal metals they dont sale it as a catalyst, your dog tag is hold in place for two aluminum rivets and criminals make it pop with a grinder touch same with those cables in no extra time.
Thefts dont like a long labor or noise, so the point is make it difficult, in my opinion cover some how or encase the convertor with a metal sheet this means a lot of work and noise for a theft, become risky, loud and time consuming so they will move on to next target.
Why bother painting it? What does the paint do to stop thieves?
Now that it's installed are there any rattling issues?
NONE AT ALL
Won't paint burn off with catt high temp
Engine Paint does not withstand those higher temps on the catalytic converter. Yes, you need Ultra High Temp paint, in the range of 1300-2000 degrees F!
My cat has factory heat shielding welded to it which is what I painted. Most of the paint is still on for now.
You got to think like a thief ,how and where to cut ? I did my this week but still i see ,i still got a lot a holes to cover, need extra steel fish net to cover under the car, thats my next plan. My past cat cost me $3,500
the really neat part is all of the work he did slows them down immensely, to the point of going somewhere else to score,the paint part is a dead giveaway to cops that the parts is stolen,just having one of these orange parts is questionable,having the tools for extaction and the parts painted,bingo,the thief gets charged with every theft in the neighborhood
Exactly. The basics of crime prevention has always been to harden your target such that the crook moves on down the road to lower hanging fruit.
Yep. It'll slow em down long enough if they don't move on.
How did you install the dog tags
Bolt cutters will cut that cable eazy.. when they get the converter home they can cut the tags off...they are mostly after imports they bring in the big money
This is not to prevent anyone, it's just to deter from stealing *this* converter . It takes less than a couple of minutes to steal a cat (videos on UA-cam) but if there's a car with deterrent and one without, they'd definitely go for the easier one.
Alarm systems and a 1911a1 works great
2:49 is there a name for this type of clamp?
Cable clamps. Available any HD, Lowes, Ace, where the cable is.
I want to see it convert to a Cadillac.
They are just going to cut the heat shield to take the cat. If a thief wants bad enough they will take it reguardless. Don’t work. The recycle center just takes the inside metal. It gets cut open to get it.
Your dog tag dnt work they grind it off really?
Awesome idea thank you kindly
Awesome idea man thank u
I recently also bought 10’ on eBay of some 18gauge 4 point Barb wire and carefully with eye protection, wrapped it around the cat, adding it into with some of the cable clamps.
So something else they have to cut through and will cut them up if they move nervously fast like a tweezer criminal would.
Now I’m done done with what I thought reasonable for how far I want to go cheaply diy protecting my cat.
@@JimTMcDaniels1 you think its worth making a video for the barb wire thing wrap or no?
@@allanarango1047 no you are a thief !
THANK YOU FOR THE IDEAS!! THEJUDGE GETS THEM A FREE LAWYER THEN 3 HOT AND COT!!!!!! LETS THEM OUT EARLY SO THEY CAN PLAY THE POLICE GAME!!
CATCH AND RELERSE!! CATCH THEM AGAIN RELEASE THEM AGAIN. WE FOOT THE BILL FOR ALL!!!!!!!! PAY FOR THE JUDGE THE LAWYER AND THE PD. AMERICA WHAT A COUNTRY!!!!!!!!
Cable is easily cut too but it a good deterrent.
All still very easy for a thief to steal. They cut the cable with bolt cutters your paint and serialized dog tags re on your heat shielding which you can cut right off with a grinder and any overspray red paint can be scored right off with a Brillo pad. It’s a good effort. But theives are scum of the earth and relentless. My moms car got hit about a year ago so I welded a steel cage around it that I made out of heat treated rebar. They will burn through about 10 of the $40 carbide tipped sawzall blades before they can even access the cat. That gives me plenty of time to get out there and drop the car on their head
How much was the welder?
@bill Klein welders vary widely in pricing. You can get a cheap one from harbor freight for about $100 just a basic wire feed no shielding has needed but they range all the way from about $100 to several several thousand. I have a multi process Miller machine that was about 4 grand.
No shielding gas*
Thanks . . what are the clamps called ?
Aircraft cable clamps/ wire rope clamps. They are often sold near the cable and by the size of the cable. e.g. 3/8" cable clamp. Home Depot has both the cable and clamps.
I live in Everett WA. You can tell the cars where thieves had struck. They sound like machine guns as they drive by.
Foul the threads of the U clamos too..........
I love good thinking. Don't take this wrong. I like your mind. But isn't it easy to cut cable? Keep in mind, I RARELY cut with a sawzall metal of ANY kind, I always use cutting wheels or torch. OR is your thought, that it would be TOO MUCH extra cutting with the pipe, AND THEN, the cables they either wouldn't want to bother, AND when they see the red paint they would give up? or if they try, you might catch em becasue of the time. Curious. Damned thieves.
I just placed a picture of my mother in law under my truck and thieves get scared
you got creative 👍, if feel sorry for the ones who have a tundra that comes with 4 c.c. or the prius that comes with 3 c.c. 😬
Bro they jacked 2 cats off of my work truck a tundra damm when I went to go turn it on we were staying a hotel in Stockton dammm shit was loud af
Good video.. I found this website where they sell the catstrap.. looks promising.. hope it works
Don't waste you money on the catstrap I purchased one to deter theft ( Had it stolen once)had a leak on the exhaust pipe so needed it out of the way so he could spot weld the leak and my mechanic literally took 5 seconds to cut the metal tie downs that comes with the kit! Told him not to even bother putting it back on plus I had the smell of burning plastic / adhesive when the car was used for 15 min or so total waste and a POS!
Catstrap for my vehicle is nearly as much as a new converter - $640.
The real secret is to just delete it with a straight pipe 🤷♂️
obviously you don't live in a catalytic converter mandated state. Impossible to pass smog, therefore Impossible to renew registration without passing smog testing. On the horizon, All electric vehicles will completely eliminate this problem.
@@justinmcmillin329 run a gutted cat and use E85, That's what I did when I lived in Colorado lmao
I'm going to paint my CAT blaze orange. Then take an "electric pencil" and etch SPD (Shelby police department) and the last for digits of the VIN on the CAT itself. This will make the metal recycling yard suspension and probably refuse to buy it!