stolen gas tank

swampy · June 01, 2006, 08:06:17 AM

I was going to do the moth ball trick and still might. ;D ;D ;D

smiley_heh_heh smiley_heh_heh

GF · June 01, 2006, 08:11:32 AM

Think I would have a backup fuel tank that I would swap it out with each night, put half gas and another mixture such as sulphuric acid in it and set it up there for them to take. Just make sure the can you have is plastic.

thedeeredude · June 01, 2006, 10:30:13 AM

They'd probably try and get a lwasuit against you for wrecking their car. :

scsmith42 · June 01, 2006, 03:05:11 PM

Swampy, if you really want to have some fun, attach a flash-bang (military practice grenade) to the bottom of the fake gas tank so that it's string is pulled when the tank is heisted.

It shouldn't hurt 'em permanent, but I betcha that you wouldn't get ripped off again... <evil grin>

twoodward15 · June 01, 2006, 03:09:45 PM

Well, I actually used to put mothballs in my gas. Raises the octane (or so I was told) I drove it around for a few years before I sold it. It was a 74 duster with a 340 in it (not original obviously). It was fast. Never caused any problems in that.

VA-Sawyer · June 01, 2006, 03:38:53 PM

I would put out a 50/50 mix of diesel and gas for them. It will smell like gas if they sniff it, and it will ruin just about any gas engine they put it in.
Be careful with setting booby traps that go bang or might cause bodily harm. The bad guys seem to do pretty good in such lawsuits. It is a shame how our legal system works today.
VA-Sawyer

Flurida_BlackCreek · June 01, 2006, 09:17:41 PM

three to five gallons of muraic acid oughta make their day. I'd like to be the one to tear the engine down ;D .

WH_Conley · June 01, 2006, 09:24:53 PM

Gas theft is getting bad around here too. I live 1/4 mile off the road with a driveway that you can't turn in. With the mill and trucks I always have gas. Had company the other night, bout midnight, dog said we did anyhow, he said they were up the drive. Two rounds of shot from the 870 30" full up the drive, dog said they left. I took his word for it and went to bed. No gas missing since ;D.

Don_Papenburg · June 01, 2006, 10:47:27 PM

Funny how a few crakling "words" make people rethink their actions.
You can't booby trap >:( ,but that old troule light with the copper showing through the electical tape in spots could be forgotten where it contacts the metal of your machine . Make sure you unplug it in the morning. ;D

Rockn H · June 01, 2006, 11:42:20 PM

swampy, I hate to hear that. People with no respect for others property really get me worked up. I hope you find out who it was. If the tank was "modified" maybe you'll spot it somewhere.
That myth busters episode is one I missed, but a friend was just telling me about it today. I'm with Deadhead. They must have done something wrong because sugar will definately mess up some valves. ;)

Don, I like the bare wire idea, although I keep thinking about the thief that fell through the sky light and landed on a kitchen knife and sued the little old lady he was trying to rob. >:(
A long time ago a used car dealer here had a battery problem. Somebody kept stealing them. So he waited with #8 one night and peppered an old boy carrying off a battery. On the way home he took off his long sleeve shirt and rubber gloves, no powder residue, and threw the old gun in the ditch where he could find it. The police came by and questioned him about a man at the hospital gettin a lot of shot picked out of his back side. Since the man was obviously up to something and the owner had no sign of shooting any firearms recently the police only stayed about ten minutes and nothing else was said.
(The preceeding story was just an archetype remembrance and in no way does the writer condone such actions) ;D :

Now about the surveilence cameras, if anyone has a cheap source, I would love to know about it. About 2 months ago we had some pranksters up at the trailer. It's way off the road and these guys tore up my hood latch so they could take my battery out and put it in the bed of the truck. My wife had just bought the battery that day. >:( They put all the bolts back in the holddowns and the connectors on the battery. They also started to pull the radiator hose off the thermostat. >:( Like I said they didn't take anything they just caused a lot of aggrevation, because my wife couldn't open the hood even after she found the battery and realized why the truck wouldn't crank. >:( >:(
Now the neighbors, well people in the area, are having gas theives visit them.
I want pics of people coming in and going out of my property. Nowadays taking care of problems youself seem to be frowned on by law enforcement when they are called in by the problem makers. So I want a photo to prove they were there and they did it. Something like "see there's my 4-wheeler in the back of your truck driving down my driveway" one neighbor would love to have a pic of whoever stole his last month. ;) Even if the photo does no good legaly at least I'll know. ;)

Bill · June 02, 2006, 12:56:06 AM

Pain in the #$%. I hate to see people taking/destroying what's not theirs. In PA I believe the law says that the property owner or business owner can shoot first and the intruder has to prove they were entitled to be there - not likely if you own the place. However the ( liberal ) media doesn't take to kindly to people using self defense and rarely if ever reports it. So I don't even know if its been tested in the courts let alone whether you'd pull it off. Before trying anything like this I'd talk to your local police and district attorney since this is could be considered over reacting. On the other side I hear they used to pretty much string up horse thieves without to much in the way of a trial.

I think the diesel fuel mix or maybe putting in a bunch of water mixed in with the gas - either coulda been just bad luck and you'd likely find the culprit when the motor shut down. ;D

Hope you find them . . .

VA-Sawyer · June 02, 2006, 10:32:38 AM

I prefer the 50/50 diesel mix over water mix. You can fix a 'water in the gas tank' problem with just a little labor. Diesel mix can cause EXPENSIVE damage to a gas engine. Something around 10 to 15 percent diesel in the tank is about the worst ( maybe I should say 'best' ) because the engine wil start and run long enough to beat itself to death. Too much diesel, and it runs so bad they will quickly know they have a problem ( and where it came from ) and shut it down before too much damage happens. Not enough, and it will take too long to get the results you want.
Ideally, I would like them to end up with an engine that is trashed so bad, it isn't really rebuildable. Even better if it leaves them broke down on the road, in the swamp, on a moonless night. ;) Hey, Swampy, they would be right down your alley then. Maybe you could introduce them to some of your Gator friends. ;D
" Gee, Officer, It looks like their car broke down and they tried to walk through the swamp in the dark. Not a very smart thing to do wouldn't you agree, sir ?" :D :D
VA-Sawyer

Ron Wenrich · June 02, 2006, 12:11:23 PM

The only problem with putting diesel in the gas is that you can smell the diesel. Several years ago, I bought some gas that had some diesel in it. The local station had a fill up, but the truck driver didn't clean out his tank and had several hundreds of gallons of diesel in the truck. Then, he filled with regular gas.

I could smell the diesel as soon as I filled up. I drove for awhile on the stuff. It started hard and idled rough, especially before it got warmed up. On the highway, no problem. I got a couple of free tanks of gas from the station for my troubles.

I also remember that back during the oil embargo there was a guy who was running his pickup on straight diesel. It smoked and ran rough. He said that at highway speed, it was OK. At that time, diesel was a lot cheaper than gas. He ran it for several months, but I don't know if it died or not.

scsmith42 · June 02, 2006, 07:05:09 PM

To my knowledge, diesel mixed into gasoline (up to 50%) will not cause long term damage to a gasoline motor.

I once tore down a motor that had run that way for thousands of miles - intentionally on the part of the owner (similar to Ron W's friend). It was the CLEANEST motor inside that I had ever seen - absolutely no carbon buildup on the valves, pistons, etc.

The cylinder walls had a little bit more wear - probably because the owner was not running a diesel grade of engine oil. I recall that the engine had about 170,000 miles on it, and this was back in the early 80's.

Now gasoline mixed into diesel - in a diesel motor - that's another story...

DanG · June 02, 2006, 09:57:17 PM

All these "additives" in the tank seem like great fun, but wouldn't it be easier to just put the tank in the shed at night? Changing the fuel in the tank twice a day seems like an awful pain. ??? :

Besides, it would be great fun to just give the guy a good old fashioned asskicking. ;D 8) 8)

Don_Papenburg · June 02, 2006, 10:30:15 PM

Rockin H , so you would refuse to use my trouble light? How about one of them old electric fencers . I mean old the kind that where around when DanG was a pup . The ones that never pulsed ,constant voltage continuously till the power went out or you unpluged it . Bulldozer is a brand my dad had .

Fla._Deadheader · June 03, 2006, 10:02:22 AM

Gheeze, nobody noticed my call for a Model T coil ??? Am I THAT old ??? :

:

beenthere · June 03, 2006, 10:27:37 AM

No FDH
You were just ~~active~~ busy at an early age. ;D 8)

twoodward15 · June 03, 2006, 02:06:18 PM

DanG, that was so funny I can't stop laughing. "Besides, it would be great fun to just give the guy a good old fashioned asskicking. "

Tim L · June 03, 2006, 07:10:34 PM

I had a boss years ago that had a welder stolen. So on his big welding trailer he installed a sure shock electric fence charger ! As far as I know nothing ever went missing after that. In my neck of the woods we carry guns, (all of us) the crime rate seems lower here than nearby Concord.

Don_Papenburg · June 03, 2006, 10:08:36 PM

Have you explained that to your politions yet? Seems most of them miss that point . Or maybe not as most of them are crooks ,and skeared of constituants with guns.

Tim L · June 04, 2006, 07:13:47 AM

It's not uncommon to hear gunfire as the neighbors target shoot or take care of a varmint. Sometimes we target shoot together. If outsiders hear the noise and it's a deterrent , all the better. Around my small lot (16 acres) or the neighbors several hundred we carry sidearms. You know the story, better to have and not need than need and not have ! As far as thieves I do believe it comes around I just hope you get to hear about it. I had a friend years ago who had a bunch of power tools stolen from his steel shop along with a monogrammed sweater (it was fall and cold) The police actually caught this clown with the sweater ! (guess he liked it ) and solved numerous burglaries from the contents of his garage .

Rockn H · June 04, 2006, 11:21:53 AM

Now Don, I said I liked the extension cord idea.

I just think I would like a picture or two of'em so that I could go with DanGs idea. I just like his better. :D

Don_Papenburg · June 04, 2006, 08:02:13 PM

;D ;D ;D ;D I like DanGs idea to but they don't stick around long enough to get an asskicken.

Don P · June 04, 2006, 10:12:38 PM

About every other year some kids take out the mailboxes. Well, the neighbor reported it after they got smashed recently. Word came back not to worry, they had some ideas. A new mailbox was sitting down at the mill the other day.
Small town, from another grapevine I know who did it ... thats 1 ;).

I went to check on a potential job at a house a few years ago. The missus was the only one home besides the pets. I was invited in and toured the place accompanied by a massive but friendly great dane. We got along fine till I took a motion towards the door. It seems he was trained in the hotel california style. You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave :D. We were fine again as long as she let me out, I liked that dog.