Catalytic converter anti theft with sliders (1 Viewer)

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Well I had been thinking of adding catalytic converter protection for a while, and since my rear heater lines started leaking I figured I may as well get it done. This is on a 97 with white knuckle off road sliders, with drop brackets, shorter length and the less aggressive angle. I had some perforated 1/4 inch aluminum laying around so that's what I used. I originally wanted steel so I could weld the sheets to the sliders but I'm much happier with the bolted aluminum. The sliders have two solid flat bars that I drilled and tapped 1/4 20 and used Allen button head bolts. I did not drill all the way through as I didn't want muck and moisture to get trapped. I will eventually buy sequrity button head bolts and use a split lock washer and anti seize for these bolts. In between the two flat bars there is a square tube, I did drill through one side of the tube and it was plenty thick to tap so I did not go all the way through. I also notched sections for the welds on the sliders. For the under section I cut and bent the same material drilled and tapped the same areas but also decided to use an existing tapped bolt hole under the chasis. That's pretty much it for the aluminum, please note if someone wanted to take the cats they still can. This is only half of the protection...more of a visual deterrent. Someone could still cut both ends and slide the cats out together. I will be finishing this off by wrapping the center of the two cats in 3/16 steel cable and attaching them to the slider with a threaded or through bolt. If people are interested I will update the thread with pictures after I finish. I figure once the cats are wrapped the worse someone could do is cut the cats and fail to remove them, a much cheaper fix.
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If you happen to do off-road and drive thru tall grass or vegetation, please regularly check to make sure your new addition isn't holding the grass and stuff up there to start a fire

When catalytic converters first started being added to pickups, there were many farmers that they burned to the ground because of grass, corn stalks, and weeds getting stuck on top of them. That's part of the reason Toyota made the Land Cruiser cats vertical so they don't get build up above them.
 
The places I frequent Don't usually have a whole lot of vegetation, but its solid info none the less.
 
I would think the sliders by themselves would be enough to deter any scumbag with a cordless saw? They look for easy/quick targets where they have less chance of getting caught or shot.

(I would be more afraid of someone stealing the whole truck.)
 
The sliders alone offer almost zero protection by themselves. They are stout and offer damage protection but once both ends of the cats have been cut they can easily be slipped of slid out.

Absolutely I worry about someone stealing the whole truck, this is more for the opportunist thief who doesn't posses the tools or knowledge on how to steal the whole truck.

With time tools and knowledge someone will defeat any sequrity system, heck if someone came with a tow truck there is not a whole lot I could do to keep my truck from being taken. I'm just sharing what I thought up on a Saturday afternoon " while I was in there" changing out my rear heater lines.
 
Just wrapped the cable, note 1/4 cable is overkill but again it's what I had laying around. I used 1 wire rope clip to secure the section around the cats, and a second clip to form a loop. The loop portion I attached to the uppermost screw on the slider closest to the front of the vehicle. I did replace the white knuckle supplied screw with a slightly longer bolt to account for the wire rope loop.
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I've been working on my rear tire carrier, as I weld a little here and there a spray with rattle can. Once I finish I will have it sand blasted and coated. With all the maintenance I just did it was time to rotate tires, as I pulled the spare off the carrier I noticed someone had been trying to pry the lock off presumably to steal the spare. This hasn't anything to do with the cat protection I'm just pointing out thieves logic, how in the heck did they think they would pry this puck lock off lol.
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I've been working on my rear tire carrier, as I weld a little here and there a spray with rattle can. Once I finish I will have it sand blasted and coated. With all the maintenance I just did it was time to rotate tires, as I pulled the spare off the carrier I noticed someone had been trying to pry the lock off presumably to steal the spare. This hasn't anything to do with the cat protection I'm just pointing out thieves logic, how in the heck did they think they would pry this puck lock off lol. View attachment 3074876View attachment 3074877
Where'd you get that hitch?
 
It's a regular Pintle hitch with a military surplus chain plate behind it. No modifications needed to run either, the chain plates are regularly for sale on eBay. Since I removed the 2 inch receiver I needed somewhere to attach trailer chains. Although this rig sees very little tow duty, this is a nice in case of set up. It's also where I permanently mounted my back up camera.

Just noticed someone stole the chain and hitch pin. Probably the same guy that tried to get the spare...
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Now that's a fancy spare lock and makes mine seem inadequate now, am running a cable through the wheel and swingout bracket with a combination padlock... Man, you have a serious meth head problem in your area!
 
Southern California... it seems more and more people just take because they know they can get away with it even if they get caught. I once had a reverse sensor ripped out of my work truck bumper while I shopped at home depot.
 
It's a regular Pintle hitch with a military surplus chain plate behind it. No modifications needed to run either, the chain plates are regularly for sale on eBay. Since I removed the 2 inch receiver I needed somewhere to attach trailer chains. Although this rig sees very little tow duty, this is a nice in case of set up. It's also where I permanently mounted my back up camera.

Just noticed someone stole the chain and hitch pin. Probably the same guy that tried to get the spare...View attachment 3075210View attachment 3075211
Gotcha! thanks for responding.
 
Well I was lucky enough to have my cat stolen while at the dealership Tuesday night waiting for a part to come in. What other options do we have to protect from theft? My rig is garaged at home but I am hella pissed this even happened, especially on the one off night it spent away from home. Now I have insurance involved and BS from the dealer.

This is becoming super common in my area with hundreds stolen this month alone. Just glad I live north of the city it was stolen in, homeless are a big problem down there and crime is way up.
 
What other options do we have to protect from theft?

The best I've seen is probably the Cat Clamp. The loose cables will bounce around when the meth heads try to cut them with a reciprocating saw. Prices look to be in the $200 - $400 range.

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is there a way to hook power to them so the guy get's shocked when trying to steal them?
 
Anything is better than nothing, but nothing is 100% thief proof. The idea is you hope they see whatever anti theft protection you have and move on but if they have the time and tools they will steal even things that are bolted down.
 

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