How Do I Lock My Trailer Wheels? (Wheel Lock For Trailer)
88% of all RVs are towable. If you have, for example, 1,000,000 RVs on the road today, 880,000 are towables. What that means is that there is a large population vulnerable to having their trailer stolen
The way to lock your trailer wheels so that it does not become a victim of theft is to use a top-quality wheel lock. Some people use Brahma and others prefer to use Trimax wheel locks. Both are very good at keeping your trailer nice and safe when in storage, etc.
To learn more about this topic, just continue to read our article. It explores the issue so you have the best information possible on keeping your trailer safe from theft. It doesn’t cost a lot to provide a little extra security to your trailer.
Locking Trailer Wheels
How do I Lock My Trailer Wheels?
For newbie trailer owners, this may be a tough question to answer. They are not aware of all the fine products on the market today that will help lock their trailer wheels. There are a variety of trailer wheel locks you can choose from.
That is the best way to protect your trailer. Many people use a tongue or hitch lock but those are not very secure. While they will delay a thief for a little bit, about 3 seconds, they are too weak to hold up to a sledge hammer and cold chisel.
You need more protection than what a tongue or hitch lock provides. This means you need to look at trailer wheel locks. These are very tough devices that withstand a lot of beating, delaying the thief’s purpose by more than just 3 seconds.
These locks work on all trailers, not just those towables used for camping, extended stays in one section of the country, and so on. You can use these locks on those toy trailers that haul your ATM and other toys to your campsite.
When you go looking, you will need to know what to look for before you buy. We can get to that later in the article
How Does a Wheel Lock Work?
This depends on the type of design the manufacturing company gave it. Some like the Trimax and the Brahma, slip over your tire and then has another part to conceal your lug nuts. They are tightened in place by one movable and removable arm.
This arm makes sure the fit is tight and the thief is unable to get it off through conventional means. Other lock styles include clamps. These just clamp onto your tire and won’t let go. They have an adjustable design to them so they can fit different-sized tires with no problem.
Next, you can find some designs like wheel chocks. These wheel locks prevent the tire from moving through their heavy metal teeth that dig into the ground.
Finally, there is a brace style lock. This goes between the dual tires on the rear of your trailer and locks those tires together. It looks like an X and is not that tough to put on your duallies.
The design will dictate how they are placed on your wheels with some locks better than others. Some people have a preference preferring the boot type lock over the clamp and so on.
A lot of their choice will depend on ease of use. Not every trailer owner is as pliant as they used to be so putting on wheel locks can be a hard chore for them. They will pick the easiest one to use and be satisfied with that.
How Much do Wheel Locks Cost?
The prices are going to vary depending on the manufacturer, design, and materials used to construct the lock. For example, one set of clamp locks will set you back $50 but you get 2 of them for that price.
However, a nice wheel lock that covers your wheel’s lug nuts can be as low as $89. At Amazon, we saw two different prices for the same type of lock, and the second one was $98
A Trimax wheel lock can cost you around $181 and all prices are taken from Amazon. Different vendors will have different prices on their products so use these as a starting point.
You can try those wheel locks, also a brand name, that looks like lug nuts and go on your tire’s stems like a lug nut. You get a special key but there is nothing saying a thief does not have the same key.
Those range in price and average somewhere around $50 depending on the seller at Amazon and other locations. Then an entry-level wheel lock may cost you between $20 and $50 with a good set costing roughly $30.
How much you pay will all depend on what type of wheel lock you want. Just keep in mind that wheel locks only delay some thieves, and stop a few more but the really determined and seasoned thief, will know of a way to circumvent those wheel locks. Nothing is going to be 100% thief proof.
Is It Worth Getting a Wheel Lock?
Yes, they are worth getting especially if you paid a lot of money for your trailer. But the difference in wheel locks does not always protect your trailer or tow vehicle.
For example, those lug nut wheel locks only prevent your tire from being stolen. They will not prevent your tow vehicle or trailer from being taken by thieves.
To prevent your trailer and tow vehicle from being stolen, you would need the Trimax, the clamp, the boot, and the other wheel locks we already mentioned above. The question is, are those heavy, bulky wheel locks worth the hassle?
Some are very easy to put on and others are not so easy. What makes them harder than others is that they are heavier, bulkier, and harder to handle. Those same characteristics apply to storing them as well.
You may not have the body strength to handle one of those bigger wheel locks. But once they are on your trailer, they are a good theft deterrent. Some, like the clamp style, can take up to and over 3 minutes to cut off with a proper metal power saw.
Thieves do not have that kind of time nor do they want to make a lot of noise. So yes, adding wheel locks to your trailer when it is in storage or when you will be absent for a few days is a smart idea.
Do Wheel Clamps Stop Thieves?
Yes and no. It will stop many inexperienced and would-be thieves from stealing your trailer. It may also stop those thieves in training who are learning the ropes from more experienced thieves.
Plus, it should stop those ‘friends’ who want to play a practical joke on you. These wheel locks are very hard to get off and one cannot pull a trailer when one wheel won’t cooperate.
But if there are experienced and very determined thieves who really want your trailer, then the wheel lock is merely a small challenge to them. They know of good ways to get those locks off.
That is why you cannot think that wheel locks will prevent your trailer from being stolen. Nothing is 100% foolproof or even thief proof. But having a wheel lock may help you lower your insurance premiums as the agent sees you are taking the proper steps to protect your property when you are not around.
That is a small bonus and if your trailer gets stolen, it should be easier to get a settlement from the insurance company because you were using the anti-theft device. It is something to look into.
Are Wheel Locks a Good Idea?
We have discussed at length, how good these wheel locks are for RV trailers. There is another aspect that will help you realize that this product is a good idea. Many owners of ATMs and other power toys often disable their toys so that they won’t run if a thief gets them.
These same owners do not realize that all the thief has to do is back up a truck, hook up the trailer and take everything with them. That will give them time to re-enable your toys and sell them at a good profit.
Yes, wheel locks are a good idea when you are toying your toys to your campsite. Disabling the toys is not enough. You need to disable the trailer they are on as well. Good wheel locks will do that for you.
That way you can protect your toys by disabling them and the trailer at the same time. Don’t do one and not the other or you are just wasting your time. Then, wheel locks are a good idea if your trailers are going to be stored and not used for several months.
Or even a week to a month, disabling the trailer wheels is a good idea. You cannot be at the storage facility 24 hours every day and having a little protection will give you some peace of mind.
Just remember that even trailers with wheel locks can get stolen sometimes. Just not as often as those trailers that do not have wheel locks on them. Just pick the best of the bunch to make it even more difficult for thieves to steal.
Then consider getting two good wheel locks after practicing with the first one. You will get double the protection and make it twice as hard for thieves to steal your trailer.
Can Wheel Locks Be Broken?
It is possible as nothing is absolutely fool or thief proof. But these devices are made from some very heavy and strong metals. They would be very tough to break even with a cold chisel and sledge hammer.
The noise it would bring if a thief tried to break a wheel lock would draw a lot of people to where he was doing his illegal deed. It is hard to break a wheel lock. Plus, it would take too much time to do that even if it were possible.
About the only weakness, these tough wheel locks will have is the cutting or acetylene torch. Those may be able to cut through the thinner parts of the metal pieces and make breaking the lock quick, silent, and easy.
However, the thief would have to have a van to carry the torch and the sparks from their work could also draw unwanted attention. In other words, it would be impractical to try and break a wheel lock. It would also be very difficult to do so without getting caught.
What Can I Use If I Don't Have Wheel Locks?
There are very few alternatives to wheel locks that clamp, act like a wheel boot, are an X, and so on. Most people talk about the lug nut wheel locks and they are not always worth the expense if it is your car and not your tires the thief is after.
For tire wheel locks, you really do not have much of a choice in alternatives. In fact, every website we read has not mentioned any alternatives for this anti-theft feature.
You could remove the tires and store them inside your trailer. That will protect those tires from tire rot but does very little to stop thieves who may bring their own trailer tires with them
The only real alternatives we have come across are more clamp or boot-type wheel locks made by different companies. In other words, there is no DIY solution to the trailer theft problem.
Some technological alternatives would be to install an alarm on your trailer, get a hitch or tongue lock or hide a GPS tracking device somewhere on your trailer so the police can find it right away.
None of which will be 100% thief proof either. But they may slow the thieves down or scare them off.
What Wheel Lock Key do I Need?
There are some very good mechanical wheel locks on the market today. The most copied design is the clamp lock which may prevent the thieves from removing the tire’s lug nuts and pulling the tire off.
But the best we have seen are the ones that are modeled after the Brahma and Trimax styles. These wheel locks have a strong steel lug nut cover so thieves won’t even be able to think about removing those lug nuts.
Right now Brahma can only be purchased and used as the company has had supply chain problems and it is not sure if they are out of business for good or not. Trimax is still going strong and you should be able to find many of those new and ready for use.
Why Buy a Wheel Lock For Your Trailer?
There are three good reasons for doing this:
1. Added security- these wheel locks prevent your trailer from being stolen
2. Keeps your trailer from rolling- if the brakes fail, the wheel lock is there to stop it from rolling down a hill.
3. Protects your trailer while in storage- thieves should walk to the next trailer when they see your unoccupied one with a wheel lock on it
What To Look For in a Wheel Lock
First off, do not confuse tire wheel locks with lug nut wheel locks. The two products are different and one may not prevent your trailer from being stolen. Here is what to look for in tire wheel locks:
1. Construction material- you want the material to be strong or as strong as steel. There is no sense in buying a weak wheel lock as the thieves could break it in an instance
2. Dimensions- you want the wheel lock to be big enough to cover your tire's width. Some may be adjustable so you won’t have to worry about it too much but if you have 11-inch tire width, you want a wheel lock that can fit over that distance.
3. Color- it has been said that a brightly colored wheel lock will stop thieves from approaching your trailer. That may be so but the color won’t stop professional and determined thieves
4. Easy to use- you want one that is not going to be difficult to put on. You want to have it slide on quickly so you can get to other more important things to do.
5. Price- you want a good wheel lock at a fair price. You do not want to overpay for one of these nor do you want to underpay.
Some Final Words
Wheel locks for your trailer are a good idea. Especially when your trailer is going to sit in a storage yard over the winter months. It pays to add a little extra security to your trailer and these devices do not have a lifespan.
They shouldn’t wear out for a long time to come. Just make sure you have storage room for it.
