We have pondered a wheel lock for a few years now. Doing a little research, keeping an eye open in RV shops, but never really taking the plunge. I think the main factor that has spurred on this purchase is the current Alto wait time for delivery. On the Facebook group that we are members of, there are quite a few people who have ordered a new Alto, and from there we have learned of the long wait to take delivery.
It is now running almost 2 years before an Alto ordered is actually delivered. So it is not so much the cost of replacement, that's what insurance is for, it is the replacement time that we are trying to avoid. We cannot imagine not having our Alto, if something were to happen to it. Some things are somewhat out of our control, such as crossing paths with a moron behind the wheel, but an event such as having it stolen, well, we can play a part in making that more difficult.
We already have a hitch ball lock, but we have seen a rather interesting YouTube video, produced by a lock manufacturer, which shows a variety of popular hitch locks being rendered useless in a matter of seconds...our brand being one of them. Then there is another video that shows how thieves use the safety chains attached to the tongue, to pull your trailer away quite easily, hitch lock be damned.
There is the old adage that if someone really wants something, they will figure out how to take it. Countering that though, is the idea that even though they may want it, it does not hurt to make them really work for it, or force them to move on to easier pickins. We hope the Brahma will want them to move on past our little Alto.
We researched a number of locks, the yellow Trimarks, a line out of the UK called Milenco, which looked interesting but we could not find them distributed here, and a bunch of others. We then happened upon the Brahma. It looked to be an interesting design, covering the lug nuts, which I believe is critical, and it seemed very robust. We communicated with a distributer, Morrison Motorcycle Mounts, who have locations in Washington and British Columbia, and they spoke quite highly of the design and the company. One feature we liked is that the unit can fold flat for storage in your vehicle. We ordered the smaller version, 13-15" wheels, and waited for arrival.
This thing is solid...really solid. Heavy as well. Not crazy heavy, but enough to back up the solid feel it has. The metal body and pivoting arms are quite robust, the fit and finish is excellent. It comes with 4 keys, perhaps a statement that says, lose these 4 keys, and you deserve to have a hard time removing this lock.
Fitting is straight forward. Loosen the wingnuts, pivot the 2 arms 90 degrees to the body, tighten the wingnuts, then hang the lock on the wheel. Install the lug nut cover in place behind the lock body, then slide the remveable arm into the body. Snug the lock tight to the wheel, then depress the lock cylinder. It will seat itself into one of the lock holes drilled into the arm. That's it!
The lower arms hook around the wheel, and have plates welded to them to prevent the wheel from rotating. The upper arm is round, and is used to position and hang the lock on the wheel. Once I had it snuggly installed, I attempted to move it around to try to remove it. As it needs to fit a variety of tire sizes, even when installed correctly, there is a bit of play. It soon became apparent that the only way it is coming off, other than with a key, is to cut it off with a torch or grinder. Both of these activities would generate a fair amount of noise, and attention.
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| round lug nut cover prevents the wheel from being removed. this is the shallow version of the cover, an option, but required for the alloy wheels |
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| rubber pads help the fitting |
To help with the installation, I attached some rubber bumpers to the inside back face of each lower arm. This reduces the play, and custom fits it to our tire size. Yet another little mod to make things easier.
Overall we are pleased with this wheel lock. It is both a visual (being bright orange) deterrent, as well as a formidable physical deterrent. We do feel more secure knowing we have done a little something extra to keep our Alto where it belongs.
