my ugly change machine project

Tue, 31 Aug 2021 16:23:05 GMT

go to see Welding Machine for my ugly change machine project

So I own a small laundromat with 2 change machines. One of them wasn't very secure and someone tried to break into it, trashing the coin tray part of it. I decided to make a new front for it, with maximum security. Made a frame out of 1/4" x 1.5" steel to mount the door to, then welded the frame to the existing cabinet. The 2 krypto locks each conceal a recessed, large allen-head screw that clamps the door shut. So even if you get the locks off, you need a big-*** allen wrench to open the door.Lock guards bent out of 3/16 thick stuff with the handy-dandy HF bender.Oh yeah, all stick welded with 7018. - John Attached Images
Reply:Good job, that will make them think twice, what would stop them from tapping the hinge rod out?If you don't want to stand behind our Troops, feel free to stand in front of them.
Reply:The hinge is a heavy-duty continuous hinge from mcmaster, and I don't think the rod would come out easily if at all. I suppose though now that you mention it I could weld the end(s) if they happen to land on the stationary part of the hinge. It was actually my cleaning lady's dead-beat son that tried to break into it. A real jerry-springer situation with him (married w/ 3 kids) running off with his step-brothers girlfriend and their 2 little kids, 8 months and 2 years old. That's a lot of baggage to run away with !- John
Reply:Nice work.  What gauge sheet steel.Just place tabs over the ends hinge.  Extend it from the frame.  I have installed a lot of honor boxes.  Usually the hinge is recessed in the frame.  The tab will do as well.
Reply:nice work ChuckASME Pressure Vessel welder
Replyooks like a good answer to the problem.DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:The door is 11 gauge, pretty sturdy.The coin tray is fabbed up from 1/4" stock. Can't take a close-up photo of it because some of the welds are too ugly to show The old door was lighter and had an angle-iron frame bolted around it that mated up with the cabinet and allowed the use of a padlock top and bottom. That got broken into (padlocks popped) a few months ago. - John
Reply:Originally Posted by runchmanThe hinge is a heavy-duty continuous hinge from mcmaster, and I don't think the rod would come out easily if at all. I suppose though now that you mention it I could weld the end(s) if they happen to land on the stationary part of the hinge. It was actually my cleaning lady's dead-beat son that tried to break into it. A real jerry-springer situation with him (married w/ 3 kids) running off with his step-brothers girlfriend and their 2 little kids, 8 months and 2 years old. That's a lot of baggage to run away with !- John
Reply:I would have to say thats one heavy duty unit right there!
Reply:Where did you get the idea for the puck locks? We had problems with our plug locks being drilled out, so I made about a dozen of those puck lock thingys about 2 years ago.If'n you really want to tick the thieves off, you can get custom bolts with a key made only for you from a place in Arizona. They usually have a few left in an odd run here and there, otherwise you need to order 2500 of them. They are about $10 apiece. The keys are about $20 apiece.Now, what I have is a puck lock on top of a plug lock with a keyed bolt behind that. You need to want to get in.My only advice is ditch those locks with brass guts. They can be drilled VERY easily. Medeco are good and have hardened stainless parts. They take a lot of drill bits to drill out. No lock is immune though with enough time.Last edited by rat4spd; 02-04-2008 at 09:16 PM.
Reply:I'd seen the puck locks on vans and what not, and realized it would be good to have the shackle completely hidden. When the machine was broken into the first time (just a padlock top and bottom), I welded a puck-lock hasp thingy onto the side of the machine. Kept the thief out the second time, I could see he tried to pry the guard away from it w/o success.I didn't realize medeco made a heavier duty puck, I may go that route. My other machine has medeco plug locks, where you pull the lock cylinder out to get access to the recessed bolt. That special fastener is a great idea. My 'mat is in a pretty safe area though, I really only need to deter the 'casual' thief. Thanks for all the ideas from everyone. Tonight I welded a tab on top to block the hinge pin access.- John
Reply:These are the keyed locks:http://www.brycefastener.com/keyedlok.htmI guess security is dictated by the needs. I do part time work maintaining car washes, and we had a lot of problems getting broken into.It's ironic that a good thief can drill out a Medeco plug lock in ten minutes, but it takes me about two hours and 75$ worth of drill bits....It's also a pain to get into the machines with triple security, but that's the price we had to pay to deter the thieves. Oh yeah, you can alarm the back of the puck lock also if you really want overkill.Here's a pic of my puck lock thingy before the pipe is welded on. You can see the hole for access to the plug locks. Attached Images
Reply:Very interesting. Those bolts in that link would be a wicked good idea.I can't visualize how your puck locks work with your brackets, maybe you could post another further-assembled pic?Thanks for the info, in a way it is fun getting around thieves - John
Reply:The sole purpose of that puck lock thingy is not to lock the door shut like yours. It merely prevents access to the plug locks underneath of them. Doesn't matter really, because if the puck lock is removed, a trip sets the alarm off, before they can drill out the plug lock.Then of course, they need to be able to unscrew the bolts.I do have a setup like yours for a a door I put over the access to some coin vaults. In that case, it works much like yours.This is before the hinge is put on, made of 1/2 inch pipe with 1/2 inch round bar welded at both ends. This door too is alarmed, in which case, you still need to get the plug lock out. Attached Images