Criminal case: Help me guard my car from all angles please!

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Gibcast

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Dear forum,

I found you guys today while googling Lukas duo dash cams, and I've been reading several different threads about which dash cams to buy already...

Ok. I'll make a veeeery long and complicated story short: My ex neighbor (from hell) started keying my car as well as my gfs car, my parents car and a bunch of other peoples cars for reasons I don't even wanna get into here, about 3 years ago - and this insane person just doesn't stop coming back here to key cars over and over again - people in the neighborhood get their cars keyed on a regular basis throughout the year and nobody ever seem to be able to catch the person doing this. I am (more than) furious about all of this mess and NEED to catch this person once and for all to get peace in my soul.

I now also have a brand new car without any scratches in its paint as well as an DOD LS430 that I'm very happy with. I bought the dash cam the same day as I bought the new car. However, even with my car parked in a shared garage where I live, I don't feel safe. What if this crazy person gets ahold of a key and goes down into the garage or even talks some of my other neighbors who are friends with this maniac into keying my car as well as other innocent peoples cars down there? SOMETHING needs to be done! And fast!!!

I do feel that the DOD is protecting my car to a certain extent every night with its great night vision recording and its 32 GB micro sdhc card. However this solution only lets the camera record continuously (forget shock recording or motion detection recording, I don't trust these crappy functions in ANY camera) for about 7-8 hours with 480P mode activated. I don't mind the "lower" 480P resolution, cause the lense in this dash cam is great anyway, and gives a superb picture even in the dark.

My issues with the single DOD dash cam are as following, and this is also why I need a new dash cam solution ASAP;

1.) I need a solution that films out of my car covering "all angles". I figure one cam in the front, one in the back, and one on each side will do just fine. It doesn't have to be _every_ single angle. But most angles...! Today I only cover the front of my car. It's better than nothing, but what if this maniac comes sneaking up on my car from behind???
2.) I need a solution that doesn't drain nor ruin my 12V car battery over time. A recent test made by the auto shop showed my Varta Silver (best battery ever) as 50% ruined permanently due to constant drainage from my DOD dash cam. I also need more power with a longer capacity.
3.) This new solution has to feature (battery and) storage big enough to be able to record for at least 24 hours continuously but optimally as long as 7 days continuously (!!!). I imagine going away on a vacation and letting my car stay safely at home with this new solution. But if I stay at home, a good 24 hours will do cause I check and drive my car every day. I'll be able to see if anyone has keyed it every morning. Gonna need the video evidence for the police if this happens again!
4.) The new camera solution ahould be as hidden as possible. My DOD is visible... But I don't want the preventive effect. I want to trick this insane person into keying my car again, and get caught doing so by being video recorded on small/hidden dash cameras!

I believe that's about it?

I almost bought another DOD for the back of my car as I'm very happy with the quality of mine. However, I'm not happy with the max limit of 32 GB leaving me with a maximum of 7-8 hours of continous recording with this cam. Adding a second DOD dash cam would also ruin and drain my already damaged car battery faster.

I know this is THE place to be for these kind of things. I see that some of you guys have insane amounts of knowledge about dash cams on here.. I respect that a lot and hope you'll be able to help me out in this horrible criminal case. The police adviced me to video record the person keying my car... So here I am! Let's get that f***** thrown into jail! :)
 
jokiin said:
The best results came from having cameras (externally) looking at your car rather than cameras in your car
Click to expand...

Obviously. But that's not possible when the car is parked elsewhere than down in the garage. Down there it would be possible to hide a camera somewhere. It would be a problem to get power to the camera... But it would be possible. However I need a solution that will help me guard my car wherever I am as the crazy ex neighbor is mobile.
 
Not an easy thing to deal with, you have one camera that has near killed your new battery and now you want four, that's a stretch

Ideally you need cameras running all the time as motion detect isn't reliable enough in low light, that also means cameras that will support large memory cards

Not an easy task
 
jokiin said:
Not an easy thing to deal with, you have one camera that has near killed your new battery and now you want four, that's a stretch

Ideally you need cameras running all the time as motion detect isn't reliable enough in low light, that also means cameras that will support large memory cards

Not an easy task
Click to expand...

Yeah that's what I wrote up there.

I'm thinking maybe I should just buy another DOD dash cam and out it in the read window.
It won't be a hidden camera... But it's better than nothing I guess. I guess the LS330 will be more than good enough. The 430 or 460 are overkill as gps built in is totally unnecessary.

It will, however, put twice the strain on my ready tired car battery. Are there any solutions to the car battery issue?

My car has got three 12V outputs; two in between the front seats and one in the back of the car. Pretty awesome as they all work even when the car is not ignited. So dash cams can work well in my car when it's parked.

I also talk to DOD tech support on email. They say their cameras can take larger memory cards than the advertised 32 GB max, as long as they are formatted gain FAT32.
 
Ok. So I just ordered the DOD LS460W to make it my main dash camera in front of the car. I was soldon the amazing picture quality especially in the night time. The LS430 which I have is already an amazing night cam. The 460 is even better. It is truly the best dash cam in the world (460). However the max 64GB memory limit bothers me.... Oh well!
I will then put my old LS430W in the back of my car. I don't need The gps functions of these two cams but what the hell. As long as I can use larger memory cards than 32GB I'll be happy. DOD say their dash cams now can take up to 64GB memory cards. To me that isn't enough. And this was the main reason why the Lukas solution was so appealing;up to 512GB recording space! But I guess a 128GB memory card will do. It'll give me 24 hours of recording time. I wonder if a DOD cam can take 128GB cards??? Awaiting email reply from DOD about this. I almost got the Likas 9750 solution, but after reading about all the issues with is on this site of ogives I coild rather go for two separate DOD cams; one in the front and one in the back. It won't give me what I was describing in my first post.....but it will give me something. I just need to figure a way these two cams won't destroy my car battery even if they do record all the time. Anyone?
 
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The first thing that came to my mind was the cameras that hunters use to find what game is available in an area. They use motion detection so they battery lasts longer and some even have infared lights so they take good pictures at night. Place a few around where you park your car and see what you catch. A lot of them look like tree bark so they blend in and are less noticeable to the "deer" you are looking for.
 
This is general 24/7 surveillance question.

Regarding the memory card: the largest memory card you can buy is 128/256GB, which depending on the resolution will allow you to record at least 24h video footage. If you need more, then you probably have to use raspberry pi with external storage.

Regarding the power: you probably need to install separate deep cycle battery which is connected to main battery only when ignition is ON (to charge it while alternator is running and to prevent discharge of main vehicle battery when alternator is off).
 
Where does he key the cars? Down the sides? Perhaps you need a more bespoke solution, if its just the sides of the car then perhaps wing mirror mounted cameras, give you almost both sides of the car covered
 
Record from another car, and use your lovely new car as bait :D. Sooner or later, the fish will come to you.
 
Use external battery pack.
Couple of 20,000 mah ones should be enough.
 
Gibcast said:
Yeah that's what I wrote up there.

I'm thinking maybe I should just buy another DOD dash cam and out it in the read window.
It won't be a hidden camera... But it's better than nothing I guess. I guess the LS330 will be more than good enough. The 430 or 460 are overkill as gps built in is totally unnecessary.

It will, however, put twice the strain on my ready tired car battery. Are there any solutions to the car battery issue?

My car has got three 12V outputs; two in between the front seats and one in the back of the car. Pretty awesome as they all work even when the car is not ignited. So dash cams can work well in my car when it's parked.

I also talk to DOD tech support on email. They say their cameras can take larger memory cards than the advertised 32 GB max, as long as they are formatted gain FAT32.
Click to expand...

You can power each camera using an external power pack such as the TeckNet Power Bank 12000mAh external battery power bank, though there are smaller and cheaper battery options available, I purchased mine from Amazon.co.uk which cost just under £17 GBP including delivery. I fitted a Mobius Action Cam to my car and used this power pack which lasts for two days in work hours before needing to be recharged. I also installed a Sandisk class 10 128GB micro SD card which records for days before overwriting the oldest video footage depending upon how long the Mobius is powered up for.

The beauty of the Mobius is that it is so small, so compact, (smaller than a packet of cigarettes) and it's so reliable. You can even buy direct from the manufacturer on Ebay, and they do have a good reputation for after-sales service which is quite outstanding.
 
Mobius is darn near tiny compares to most other cams- I read the specs but I was still pleasantly shocked when I saw mine come out of the box. And the lens is easily remotable for even better concealment. Still, the best solution is to see the car from the outside instead. You can do this at home where the likelihood of it happening is higher. And you might be able to rig a trail-cam for places like work if you can park in the same spot.

Should you catch this guy and they get convicted, you have a claim for damages. Make that hurt. You have a brand new car painted at the factory so accept no less a repair- demand that your car be sent back to the factory for a new factory paint job and that you be supplied with an equal rental until it comes back good as new. That will bring the cost to many tens of thousands of dollars and ruin the fool who thinks keying cars is fun. The courts there may deny the claim but it's worth trying for.

Phil
 
roadbug said:
The first thing that came to my mind was the cameras that hunters use to find what game is available in an area. They use motion detection so they battery lasts longer and some even have infared lights so they take good pictures at night. Place a few around where you park your car and see what you catch. A lot of them look like tree bark so they blend in and are less noticeable to the "deer" you are looking for.
Click to expand...

Hi and thanks for your advice. I have been thinking about this solution for a few years actually. The thing is, I do have a garage. But I have a second car as well. Well, after it got totally keyed up while standing on the street, I had to move it to a different location far away from my home, cause I only have space for one of my cars in the garage. Anyway.. This might be a good solution for cars standing outdoors with nearby bushes or trees. I could give one of these babies a try and use the new car as bait while standing outdoor.
 
Lielap said:
This is general 24/7 surveillance question.

Regarding the memory card: the largest memory card you can buy is 128/256GB, which depending on the resolution will allow you to record at least 24h video footage. If you need more, then you probably have to use raspberry pi with external storage.

Regarding the power: you probably need to install separate deep cycle battery which is connected to main battery only when ignition is ON (to charge it while alternator is running and to prevent discharge of main vehicle battery when alternator is off).
Click to expand...

How do I install this kind of battery in the car? I don't have a lot of knowledge about cars nor electronics, but I am handy so.. :)
I think the biggest micro sdhc card is 200GB. I plan on buying a 128GB card for my new DOD LS460 dash cam. On the lowest resolution setting, I could get a good 24+ hours out of the camera then. if Im not mistaken.
 
Dee_82 said:
Where does he key the cars? Down the sides? Perhaps you need a more bespoke solution, if its just the sides of the car then perhaps wing mirror mounted cameras, give you almost both sides of the car covered
Click to expand...

The f***** is sneaky. Every time **** has gone down again, a new part of the car is damaged to cause more and more expenses for the owner of the car. Back, front, sides.. Anywhere, really. Hmmm. Cameras mounted on the outside of the car? Wont they get detected then stolen by this person?
 
Mandami said:
Record from another car, and use your lovely new car as bait :D. Sooner or later, the fish will come to you.
Click to expand...

That was the first thing I tried while the car was standing outdoor. The problem was that the camera wasn't stealthy enough and nothing happened while I tried this. Using stealth solutions though.. Could work. My goal isn't just to protect my car, but to actually catch this criminal red handed!!! Ill have to keep working on this. To make this work, I have to remove my DOD camera(s) and use 2, 3 or possible 4 stealth cameras inside the car as well as 1-2 cameras outside of the car.
 
Sunny said:
Use external battery pack.
Couple of 20,000 mah ones should be enough.
Click to expand...

Yeah I hear people talk about this! But then I have to charge this pack externally? Or can I wire it to the car so the car charges it when I drive? There are no simple solutions.. This is a lot of work! So many choices to make.
 
If low resolution is fine for you, then there are 4ch x D1 resolution car DVR systems out there with 500Gb hard-drive. There are plenty very good D1 discrete low Lux cameras out there and D1 will do job in parking especially recording close "walking objects". Second car battery connected via Dual battery isolator solenoid to main battery for charging, all this will be your complete set-up for needs you described. You probably need to ask specialist to install all this. I guess all together will cost you 1-2 K $ depending what quality dvr and lens / cameras you buy and who will be installing it.
 
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