[Big Dav]

I found these the other day on Ebay. I have seen this type of Gimbel lock in the catalogs before but never though much of them. Price i guess was what turned me off about them.
I contacted the seller with a best offer and got two of them shipped for $30. I think they will allow for a little more piece of mind with the price of electronics these days. I got them in today and tried them out, and they seem to work great. Turn the key and the know will turn and allow the unit to be tightened up and secured in place. Turn the key again and the know disengages from the threaded shaft and will not tighten or more importantly loosen.
Just like insurance, you never need it until you need it.
I think they are a very good accessory for your electronics. If you have a ram mount they also have locks that fit them.
I store my boats inside or I would always remove my electronics. I like the idea of these for the stops to fuel up (truck and myself), the time spent at the boat ramp, store, etc.
The last two pics are of them on my 997. Kinda look like Dumbo ears. oooh::big_smile:
Thanks
David

 

[willcat]

looks like they'll work to me---30$ for piece of mind aint bad at all!!!!

 

[bluejay]

Good info. Thanks.

 

[Big Dav]

i figured a lot of folks had used or at least seen them before. Many might would have been like myself and just not paid much attention to them. They seem to be quality but if you mounting bracket is plastic (like most are) I don't think they are going to help much. oooh:

Thanks
David

 

[Mickey]

David cheap insurance for sure. That lock will keep the honest man out. A crook/thief will do whatever it takes. This is sad but true. Nice boat and equip. you have. Enjoy it.

 

[olefin]

David I agree.

I used this one on my Lowrance. I usually never remove the unit from the boat and since it's at my dock it's continually exposed to thieves. Been using it almost 4 years.

 

[Bill in SC]

I guess it would just depend on your particular situation. I install my unit at the boat ramp before putting in, and remove it when I take the boat out. I can see where they would be fine for some of the above mentioned applications. My Gimbel bracket is plastic, so even with the locks, the unit could easily be broken off the mount if a thief wanted it bad enough. I see units for sale on eBay all the time with NO mounts or transducers. I'll bet ya 85% of them are stolen.
Bill in SC

 

[Big Dav]

All I would ever really hope these locks would do is slow the thief down long enough for me to get my hands on them. The longest my boat is out of my sight it for me to get gas, food& drinks, or my biggest concern is at the boat ramp when i am unload on loading. I fish a lot by myself and I have to leave the boat un attended to get or park the truck. I know the locks will serve the purpose for that. Being a center console, they would have to get in the boat, metal mount means that would have to work for the unit, and the locks stop them from just a few twist and gone. I have lost items at the ramp that I know other boaters had to have taken. Light post that were in use, anchors and ropes, etc. If it isn't attached to the boat it could easily be gone in just a few seconds.
It is a shame we have to lock and key every possession we have but that is the sad truth in todays world and it isn't looking any better.:angry:

Like I said earlier if you have a unit with a plastic mounting bracket these probably aren't going to help much.

Thanks
David

 

[Coyote1]

Brothers and Sisters;
I have to agree with the Brother whom said it's a SAD reflection on our society that we have to keep everything and anything under lock and key nowadays! :sad2::angry:The man is, unfortunately, RIGHT!:sad2::angry:
I can remember as a kid [back a century ago] when we left to go to the store or the movies we never bothered to lock the house!! Nobody ever took anything except the one time we left a full 5 gallon gas can on the front porch and someone needed the gas. The only way we knew that was there was a note on the can with a $5.00 bill from the person that borrowed it explaining that he had run out of gas and instead of walking the 8 to 10 miles to town he had taken what was in our can.
Heck, we would have given him the gas in that situation if we had been there!! At that time gas was less than 25 cents a gallon!! We were way overpaid!!
Thats just like back then during the summer if the sheriff came down the road and we did not have our .22's with us, he would stop and wonder what was wrong? Nowadays, they call out the SWAT team and National Guard!:sad2::angry:
We NEVER gave any thought to shooting everyone in our school!! NEVER!! That was NOT what the loaded guns were for! For us, it was a way of putting meat on the table or, in a couple of cases, going to bed with as many vegetables and bread you could eat!
If we had a "disagreement" with someone in school that was serious enough to solve with a fight, we went out back and solved it real fast because after a couple of punches each we figured out real quick that this hurt too much and agreed to quit!! We usually ended up good friends before the year was out too! Or at least we had more respect for the person for standing up for their beliefs! At least you knew where you stood in each others eyes on that particular subject even if you still didn't agree!
I just don't know anymore! We have some severe problems in our society and it's going to take "WE" the Society to resolve them too. I do know that there is NO Overnight Solution! :sad2: And everyone is going to have to be in on the solution too! That in itself is the most difficult first step!
I APOLOGIZE, I kind of got off track a bit there.:sad2:
Those security devices look nice in the pics. I think the will stop a "casual" thief but I don't think they will stop a seasoned Professional thief but then again, if someone really wants your GPS/Sonar unit there is probably a way to get it too!:sad2::angry:
I APOLOGIZE to ALL for getting off track. I hope those devices work as good as they looked in the pics.
Fraternally,
Coyote1
[[[[[End of Post]]]]]

 

[krowbar]

i use 2 myself on my lowrance they are great peace of mind

 

[olefin]

My bracket is metal. I realize that the lock doesn't make it thief proof but it would slow them down. Maybe by then the motion light will be on and I'll see them.

But I wouldn't bet on that... years ago a local marina stole our pontoon boat... they later said it was by mistake. It was in the daytime and we didn't see them. :smile2:

We've been fortunate for we've lived lake front for almost 14 years, only hit once from thieves and they came by boat. But they only stole 4 boat bumpers and couple life vest. I had the bumpers tied on with rope. I replaced them with plastic covered cable and clamps.

I've heard of several times where thieves in boats target house being built on the lake.