Cat Hit April 08, 2022, 04:31:14 pm Well, they finally got around to us. Just got a call from the storage yard where we have kept the rig for 15 years. It’s fenced, gated, and has an on-site caretaker. He managed to catch the thieves in the act last night around 9pm, but not until they already had cut off the cat. The jackasses fled without taking the cat, which the yard is holding for me. Hopefully I can find a mobile welding service to get it back on. The irony is that I had planned to bring it home yesterday for a wash and some work and to keep it here for the night. Augh! No need to repost all the tips for securing the cat. I’ve read them! 😖— Jon
Re: Cat Hit Reply #1 – April 08, 2022, 06:27:36 pm Sorry to hear that, Jon - how maddening! I hope you’re able to secure a qualified welder soon. Your and the many other Cat Attack experiences have made me reconsider my idea of moving our rig home for storage (we recently widened our driveway with this in mind). As it stands, I think that we’ll continue to pay for indoor storage. The reduced sun related wear and tear, along with enhanced security seem worthy of the $325/month rent. W 1 Likes
Re: Cat Hit Reply #2 – April 08, 2022, 07:13:13 pm I too pay for indoor climate controlled storage year round as I am unable to park it at the condo. I am so glad I do. Now the worry is when it is at the garage for service.
Re: Cat Hit Reply #3 – April 08, 2022, 07:21:59 pm Jon Sorry to hear this, glad they didn't take the catalytic converter, they are not readily available for our older rigs.Finding an acceptable replacement can involve going to State Emission Inspector and referee. Instead of a mobile welder, see if there is a muffler shop nearby and drive your rig there. It's doubtful you would get stopped for too much noise and if you did, you have a great excuse.The loud exhaust noise will make you feel 16 again...for a moment.Larry 2 Likes
Re: Cat Hit Reply #4 – April 08, 2022, 08:20:40 pm Quote from: Larry W - April 08, 2022, 07:21:59 pmInstead of a mobile welder, see if there is a muffler shop nearby and drive your rig there.And have them install a cat strap or some other theft deterrent while at it. (I’m assuming there wasn’t one previously). Sorry to hear they got to you but at least they didn’t get the cat. Kudos to your storage manager! 1 Likes
Re: Cat Hit Reply #5 – April 09, 2022, 10:30:24 am Jon & Loni,I’m sorry to hear about your cat being cut off. Hopefully it won’t be too difficult to get someone to weld it back on. I was lucky that there was a qualified repair shop next door to the storage yard when mine was stolen. Adding a CatStrap or other deterrent is a good idea and it’s what I’m planning to do. Best of luck to you.- John 1 Likes
Re: Cat Hit Reply #6 – April 09, 2022, 05:21:42 pm Cat restored! After wading through many websites, I found a place about two miles from my storage yard that claimed a full range of services PLUS they claimed to work on RVs. Scarcer than hens’ teeth on the west side of Los Angeles. Yesterday I went there (in the car) armed with photos of the damage. I was not overly confident upon arrival. One of five auto repair places crammed cheek to jowl in a mini-mall setup. Lot jammed with crunched or otherwise inoperable vehicles. Still, my options were limited. The acting assistant manager (!) said he thought they could do it and disappeared to find the guy who does their welding. I think he was from one of the adjacent shops, but I dunno. The consensus was, from the photos, that he thought he could do it, but would reserve judgement until he saw the rig and the converter. We got a price of $200 for labor. This morning, we got up early to go bail the rig out of storage in order to get it to their shop by 7:30. When I fired it up it was just like sitting stripside at the Winternationals in Pomona. God, what a racket. Those were two of the longest stop-and-go miles of my life, but didn’t encounter any police along the way. Once there we had to wait streetside while they maneuvered about a dozen cars in various configurations so they could work on some in their bays while addressing the rig on the apron. I rechecked the Ford manual for the proper front jacking point, and good thing, too. The guy doing the work couldn’t believe that the relatively small peg that Ford designates in the diagram (for the E-450) would hold the weight, and was amazed it did. Always be ready to educate your techs on jacking points, wheel covers, and the infamous driveline parking brake reservoir!The reinstall took a lot longer than expected as the thief did a sloppy cut job and sliced into a bracket that could not be reused and for which a replacement had to be fabricated. The whole deal ended up taking close to four hours. I had to pay for the new part. All together, I paid $300, which I think was a relative bargain. Time will tell as to whether the welds hold up, but for now all is good. The ride back to storage was oh so sweet! Below (I hope) are some pics showing the two open holes where the cat was carved out, the cat itself(with one end just a tiny stub), the cat reinstalled, and a security camera shot of the 🤬 thief. Now, for a beer! — Jon 7 Likes
Re: Cat Hit Reply #7 – April 10, 2022, 09:51:13 am In September, a new Texas law took effect. It requires recycling facilities to mark catalytic converters and take a thumbprint from the seller. The seller must provide documentation showing ownership of the vehicle the part came from. The new law also bumps up penalties from a misdemeanor to a felony.Nov 22, 2021This has reduce Cat thief in Texas according to local police. 5 Likes
Re: Cat Hit Reply #8 – April 10, 2022, 12:09:17 pm Aw, common sense from state lawmakers . . . how refreshing!
Re: Cat Hit Reply #9 – April 10, 2022, 01:16:23 pm Jon, The Cat Theft Club is not as honourable as we’d like, although it’s roles are seemingly growing by the day here on the forum. The direction you take to prevent a reoccurrence will be interesting. I think everyone here knows which direction I took. As Joan says “YMMV”.Cat Straps are very popular. So popular and successful that there can often be a delay in product delivery. Like LD, their product is hand made and the demand is high. Be prepared if this is the direction you take.On the road again. That’s a good thing.Kent
Re: Cat Hit Reply #10 – April 10, 2022, 07:12:29 pm Quote from: Ross and Beverly Taylor - April 10, 2022, 09:51:13 amIn September, a new Texas law took effect. It requires recycling facilities to mark catalytic converters and take a thumbprint from the seller. The seller must provide documentation showing ownership of the vehicle the part came from. The new law also bumps up penalties from a misdemeanor to a felony.Nov 22, 2021This has reduce Cat thief in Texas according to local police.Unfortunately, I suspect the “recyclers” couldn’t care less for documentation. The thieves are selling their booty to larger criminals one step up the food chain. I was told of a bust in Riverside County here in SoCal at an extraction facility that was processing thousands of stolen cats for their rare metals. They knew exactly what they were working with. — Jon
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