Low tech perimeter alarm

I thought about a 12 gauge tripwire alarm but they are expensive and fairly large to pack around. Also having watched a few YouTube videos of non-blank shot shells fired in these devices pretty much rules out any anti-personnel potentials.

I was looking for some inexpensive, small, and lightweight alternatives and ran across this:


I just ordered a similar product from eBay that come cleaned up and painted a non-reflective forest green at a very reasonable price. I just need to drill out the hole to 1/4" to accommodate the shotgun primers and some spiderwire or commercial tripwire.4ea. READY TO USE, TRIP WIRE ALARMS, perimeter alarm, booby trap, prepper | eBay

They may require an additional hole to be nailed to a tree or post and I'll look into a threaded stake I could attach to the bottom threads. Maybe just a bent piece of metal and the proper nut would do the trick. There are several listings for similar decommissioned devices like these on eBay and Amazon. They might also be found at surplus stores.

 

If booby trapping was not illegal there are a lot of things that would be fun to do.

 

Old technology but works, during WW2 and into Vietnam soldiers would string C ration cans with empty brass from rifles. Ankle or knee high somebody gets near this and makes a lot of noise. Effective and cheap perimeter alarm.

 

That's super awesome! My only complaint would be the problem of limited ammo. No matter what you do, in a situation where survival matters, shotgun primers WILL be limited.

I wonder though, is there really any interest in good campground security? How far would you go to secure your camp? Trip wires seem the way to go for me, but what about drones? If they can be easily recharged with the sun or with fire, they might end up being the best security we can get in the age of smart phones.

Imagine a fleet of drones controlled from your Android, guarding your camp and hauling firewood...

Ok, I'm daydreaming.

 

Even if I did, I'd be screwed after the thousandth round!

 

Same goes for ammo and anything else you can't manufacture yourself, and why you stock up on critical things. The issue I found with these is not a possible primer shortage (a LOT of primers can fit in a very small space) but the force required to pull a cotter pin and release the striker. The striker springs are very strong and really pin (no pun intended) the cotter pin very tightly. I may try some triflow or other lubricant to see if it helps. Anybody moving slowly and methodically would be able to feel the tripwire without triggering the device. Even at a full run it would have to be anchored very solidly to trip without simply moving the device.

 

Low tech problems require low tech solutions. Trip wires can be made to work on pull or release. (keeping it very exciting for your target audience) A large spring comes in GI booby trap simulators.(Think sapling, falling weight) Lots of creative fun and games to be had here. If you need to be silent when installing your booby trap, the spring can be wrapped around trees to attach the device, but it's best used to actually pull the firing pin after some other sort of trigger is released. (Move a rock, open a door, push a branch aside, or ... "click" lift your foot from where you just stepped.)

"Party popper?" Not where I went to school. Better get a mop and a shovel.

 

I've been contemplating and researching camp security for a while now, and found there are relatively few options on the market. Most of them require a trip line, and among those are designs that require either a battery or some kind of percussion cap. And then there's infrared.

I really find that the battery option will probably be the most reliable for a few reasons. One, with advancing technology we now have several options for recharging batteries and power systems in the bush. And two, a simple battery operated siren alarm system can be constructed out of easily replaceable parts for maybe $20.

This system will remain charged until triggered, and only uses a small amount of electricity if reset quickly. That translates directly to longevity and reliability. Especially if you build it into a waterproof case.

The percussion style tripwire system is basically the same except for the sounding method. But with percussion you don't need to worry about dead batteries or electrical failures. They are pretty much sure-fire if set up correctly. But the biggest problem I have with this style is the limit that the requirement for ammo places on it's useability.

If I head out for a three night adventure, packing light and only carrying three caps, I immediately limit its useability. I could carry a thousand, but say an accident happens. I lose my container with two spare caps in a creek crossing gone wrong. Or I lose 999... And then the inevitable happens in the middle of the first night. A wind storm knocks a branch out of the tree and trips my perimeter security. Now I have two nights unprotected in bear country.

As for the infrared system, We had a similar security system installed in our home when I was a kid that triggered lights outside in our yard. I remember every time the wind blew and the trees started moving, those lights would come on. And they would sometimes flash on and off all night long like that.

I have not tried any new devices on the market, and the tech may be much improved over the past 30 years, but thinking about being in the woods with little critters roaming about everywhere, and wind being only natural when you're in the bush, I imagine not getting a wink of sleep with one of these things installed in my basecamp.

Sudden idea however... Anybody remember the firecracker balls? Probably not what they were called but they used to sell these toys that were like round stones, and if you smack them together they would make a very loud pop, much like a firecracker. They were reusable and required nothing but being smacked together.

If you can still find them for sale, I bet it would be easy enough to rig up a spring loaded system with a tripwire set to smack those balls together. Then you'd have a device that doesn't require batteries OR percussion caps. And it would be good for around a thousand uses with no need to recharge.

 

There are a lot of advantages to this option.

 

That's one of them fancy security devices that doubles as a dishwasher.

I like multi use!

 

And then there's always these fun little creations.



I ran across one of these several years ago. Quite the package!

 

Trip flares really take the tactical advantage away from somebody with NVG's. It's a momentary disadvantage, but it could be a game changer.

 

I’ve got a couple of the cheap harbor freight ( $ 10 ) driveway alarms. Battery powered, but last a pretty good while. You can get a pretty good distance with these and can be camo’d out. The sensor has a small red light on it that lights up when motion is detected, but I wrap a piece of electrical tape around it to hide the light and then it won’t give itself away. It is a little sensitive, limbs , birds , etc will set it off. The sensor is pretty loud, so you may want to tweak that a bit. Haven’t done it yet , but was going to disconnect the speaker and wire in a small light bulb, anyway, just a little different option.

 

Those harbor freight drive way sensors are really dependable. I put a tube over the face so the view was limited so only things 3' tall would trip it. radio range of about 400' . Plenty of time to meet approaching guests .