Catalytic converter theft

[Skoontz]

I'll add a side twist for you all, but since Bill is from Ca, he can appreciate where his tax dollars go as I do....

Farming is still to this date, the largest industry California has to offer. So, they carry a significantly large lobby force. The department of Cal/Ag formed a division that litigates tree thiefs. To successfully track stolen trees, they place GPS chips in the root boxes at the nursery during propagation stages. The employ 6 lawyers whose job is to do plant litigation.....

Think about what that costs, in comparison to the 1400 Avocado trees (which cost $145 ea.) that they have recovered as far as 5 states over.....

Model T coils to the trunks I say!

[Kip69w]

Daaaaum

Jesus Criminey. . . . Just think ; When I was a young boy all I used to do was siphon gas from several of the neighbors cars. For my minibike! Amazing how theives have progressed, isnt it? -

[kws]

carpet bagger the alluminum prices are up also

[Bill Huson]

this is true . . .

carpet bagger the alluminum prices are up also

And AL is a lot easier to haul away - light. I know gold and silver is often melted down to remove any visual ID cues, but on many other items like A/C units & CATs I'm thinking they're worth more as a replacement part than raw metal.

[Kip69w]

Do Whah?

Hey Whats a carpet bagger? I know what a carpet muncher is.... and even know what a hosebag is.... But what is carpet bagger,.,.,.,

carpet bagger the alluminum prices are up also

[roperz111]

Copper

Bill,

I know you don't believe me, but thieves ARE stealing A/C units for the copper in them. Wiring, compressors, etc. Not only that, they have actually gone under people's houses when they are away (or at a newly built house before the occupants moved in) and ripped out whatever house wiring they could get for the copper. Around here, all the scrap metal places are now requiring and recording photo ID's of anyone who brings in scrap copper, etc. We've had several meetings with the police about it.

to kip8w: A 'carpetbagger' was a term from the post-Civil War days referrring to Northern businessmen who came to the south to take advantage of the business vacuum left from the war. They usually travelled with their belongings in a small tote-bag made with carpet material. Nowadays, the term loosely refers to someone from one state (usually northern) who moves to another state (usually southern).

CJ

[Bill Huson]

carpetbagger . . .

Chris J, being our expert in The War of Northern Agression, provided the historical definition of carpetbagger.

I aquired the nickname in a similar scene. After a rather disasterous start of my college career (tossed out of a community college twice, a record that still stands at that institution), I wound up in a small college in Western North Carolina. The Johnny Rebs gathered around the new guy (me) and ask, "Where you from, boy?" Tough question, I moved a lot. 6 schools in 3 states before graduating HS at the ripe young age of 16, and this was my third college in the third state. Rather confused, the Johnny Rebs screech, "Just tell us where you born!" Bayshore, Long Island, New York. "NEW YORK! He's a dang carpetbagger!" The nick stuck.

[sam]

Bill only the fins are aluminum, the tubing is actually copper.

There have been a few air conditioners made with aluminum tubing, but they are junk and mostly already gone. If someone stole one of them, they'd be doing the owner a favor

[Bill Huson]

this is true . . .

Bill only the fins are aluminum, the tubing is actually copper.

There have been a few air conditioners made with aluminum tubing, but they are junk and mostly already gone. If someone stole one of them, they'd be doing the owner a favor

Had a heat pump with an all aluminum heat exchanger. JUNK! In fact the inside coil on my VA heat pump was still AL. Worked when I sold the joint

[ricochet112]

Statues have been disappearing around here lately.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingn...en_from_f.html

[Richard K.C. Mo.]

scrap metal

Bill, ac units and anything else with copper, alum in it is always at the scrap yd. when i take cans in about once a mo. Some of the stuff in there looks like it just came from Lowes. Also vehicles 5 yrs. or older don't need title to scrap in Mo. a lot of cars left by the roadside out of fuel etc. are picked up and scapped by unscrupulus wrecker owners. News report on tv just said $10.000 worth of copper was stolen from contruction site and scrapped.
How much is gold now? oh well, oh well.
Richard

[Bill Huson]

Gold is $891 per troy ounce . . .

Next up in thief news! Computer theft! Rip that bad boy apart and melt the gold off the contacts! Oops, stole a cheap computer, eh? No prob, melt the silver off the contacts! Silver about $16/t-oz. Platnum about $1500/t-oz. Palladium about $365/t-oz.

[Richard K.C. Mo.]

reminds me!!!

Statues have been disappearing around here lately.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingn...en_from_f.html

On the news one day not so long ago someone took every brass vase and whatever else from a cemetary, don't know where it was but they pretty much took it all.
RichardKCMo

[modFE]

Saw this and had to post.. Here in SE Pennsylvania..scrap theif is becoming a big, big problem.. outdoor A/c units are disappearing right and left.. new/old.. running or not. Construction sites are hiring rent a cops to watch during off hours. PPL had a substation down around Philly cleaned out, while it was being rebuilt.. it's all about scrap.. and high metal prices.
Gold is not an easy target.. recovery of gold requires the use of Cynide/sulfate or a few other very dangerous chemicals...
Converters... hadn't heard that one... yet

[jeff55v]

Stupid scrap thief...

Alleged copper thief electrocuted in the act toronto.ctv.ca

Hundreds of residents in Pickering were without power for about five hours Saturday night after an alleged copper thief electrocuted himself.

George Armstrong, an employee with Veridian Electric, said about 600 people living in the Greenwood community were without power.

When officials with the company went to investigate, they found a man dead at the scene.

The man, whose name hasn't been released, was zapped by 44,000 volts of electricity. He was in a fenced off, secure area.

Armstrong said it's not uncommon for people to steal copper and aluminum wire because of the soaring price of scrap metal.

This latest incident comes just days after a propane explosion flattened three townhouses in Brampton.

In that case, fire officials suspected a man was trying to remove brass from a propane tank to sell afterwards.http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/loc...ub=TorontoHome

Also: last summer, someone stole the aluminum lid from my BBQ grill! Too bad he didn't get fried in the act!