In the first Bad Night post, I told y'all about my car being robbed of some expensive speakers and amplifier.
Bad Night Part 2, I bought some new gear and ranted a little about security measures.
This is Part 3. Yeah, I know I'm making a big deal out of something that is actually a common everyday occurrence. Let's put a positive spin on it this time and have a little fun.
Before I go into the actual Part 3, I thought I'd start a thread on something I enjoy.
How many here have stereo equipment in your cars that you installed yourself (or had installed) so you could have better sound quality? I'd like to hear from the rest of you what you have or have had in the past. Did you add any personal touches such as building your own speaker boxes or unique installations? Let's get a car audio thread going!
(also, I'd be interested in hearing of any security measures you used or if you prevented a theft of your gear)
Now, Part 3.
Current security measures: windows rolled up and doors locked, in-dash radio/cd-player concealed at night (actually looks like a hole in the console), speaker box covered with a dark cloth and a pile of laundry - tomorrow it will be secured to car's body with a strong chain and padlock but will still be covered over in the same manner at night.
Forget the razor wire and any other idea I've proposed. (for now at least, I may still add some rude countermeasures to the car anyway) Remember, they can't steal what isn't there in the first place. I'm having a new speaker box made. I just don't like those cheap carpeted particle-board boxes all the stores sell, especially the "carpeting". I want something custom. 3/4" MDF sealed enclosure with the optimum internal volume specified by Infinity for the speakers (1.25 cubic feet/speaker) When my dad gets done building the box and making the cutouts for speakers and terminals, I'm going to get busy making it look totally unique. I saw some pictures on this guy's website about his own enclosures and thought the idea was awesome. Sand the edges and corners round, fill in all the joints with wood-filler, and sand the whole box smooth. Then apply several coats of automotive filler-primer, several coats of paint, and several coats of clear-coat. The look I'm wanting is to make the finish look like polished aluminum. Once that's done, I'm putting the ultimate anti-theft measures in place.
Remember, they can't steal what isn't there in the first place.
I'll have to design and build an easily disconnected wiring harness to include speaker wires, power and ground leads, and RCA cables. Then I'll install a pair of sturdy handles on the box. Once finished, I'll be able to take the speaker box (with amplifier mounted on it) out of the car simply by disconnecting one simple wiring harness and take it inside for the night. I know what you're thinking. That's a lot of work every day, putting it in every morning before I go to work and removing it to take into the house before I go to bed in the evening. And you're right. But it also won't get stolen, because it won't be there to steal.
Anyways jump in with your own car audio posts, I'd love to read them.
(did you remember to lock your car up?)
Mike.