As has been hashed out ad-infinitum, both here and at ZumoForum.com, there are some security shortcomings in almost all mounting systems for the Zumo motorcycle GPS mount. Here's my take on the situation, and a solution that I came up with.
The Zumo MC mount has an ingenious quick disconnect system that allows you to (relatively) quickly remove the GPS and carry it in your pocket, or lock in a saddle bag for safe keeping. After shelling out ~600 bucks or more for a trinket like the Zumo, it leaves one with an uneasy feeling that when your back is turned, the bad guys are gonna grab it and run. Unfortunately, the same quick disconnect makes it easy for the bad guys to pop your GPS off. Additionally, the "over-center" lever affair that engages the quick disconnect at the top of the mount is subject to popping open on it's own if you travel over rough enough roadways.
Garmin's answer to that is what is known as the "security screw". It is a tiny little screw that will hold the lever from flipping open on it's own. It is also a non-standard screw, in that it requires a special little proprietary 2-pin, fork shaped screw driver to remove the screw. The obvious problems with the security screw are that any miscreant can get ahold of one of these screw drivers and go on a Zumo theft rampage, and having to fiddle with this tiny PITA screw negates the quick part of "quick release", especially for anyone the least bit myopic due to advancing age, perhaps? And what about trying to do this at night?
Garmin also supplies some ram ball mounting pieces and an articulating arm with the Zumos to give you a head start on mounting the MC cradle on the bike. I like the RAM stuff (for several reasons) and have decided to forgo my Tourtech Stem Stand from my previous GPS in favor of the RAM system mounted to a ball screwed into the headset nut. One thing I like about the RAM ball system is that you can remove the entire mount including the ZUMO MC cradle in seconds. This is handy for overnights when on the road, the mount cradle doesn't have to be left out in the weather. Of course this also provides another means for the bad guys to steal your Zumo, or even just the cradle, just by unscrewing the RAM arm's wingnut and take the whole thing.
Ram's answer to that is an (optional) locking knob as a replacement for the wingnut. It allows you to tighten up the RAM arm, then by turning the key lock the knob will freewheel and can't be loosened. The problem with that solution is that, while it may slow the bad guys down a little, all they need to do is unfasten the base ball either unscrew the stem nut ball or handle bar clamps (tools required) and can take the whole kit and kaboodle.
So, the objectives of my Zumo mount security solution was to replace the "security screw" while riding with something easier to operate, to keep the mount securely latched. I wanted to retain the ease of unlatching the mount's quick release so I can pocket the Zumo for quick stops, leaving the MC cradle behind in a secure state. And I wanted to be able to easily unscrew the RAM arm so I can remove the whole cradle and mount at night.
Here's what I came up with: I took a piece of steel bar that I had laying around and bent the end of it over to the same angle as the latch of the MC mount's quick release. I then selected some small shims (washers) to put between the MC mount and the provided Ram Ball plate. The steel bar now slips between the mount body and the ball plate and slides up and down with a bit of friction. In the first picture (below) you can see how the "security slide bar" fits and will allow the flip lever to operate when the bar is only partially inserted.
After installing the Zumo into the cradle, I just slide the security bar further down to physically restrain the latch from opening. The friction is enough to keep the bar from rattling around while riding and should actually also keep the bar from sliding up on its own.
Top view
Rear view
When in use, I will be inserting a small padlock through the bottom hole of the steel bar preventing the bar from being pushed up to release the cradle latch. I will also be looping a short length of vinyl coated steel wire cable around a fixed point on the headset to the padlock as a tether, to prevent someone from just loosening the Ram arm and swiping it all.
When the Zumo is in the mount the screw heads that fasten the ball plate to the cradle are covered, so the self locking nuts can't easily be removed from the mount. Since the whole thing is tethered it doesn't matter if they loosen the Ram arm or unscrew the lower mounting ball from the headset nut. They will have to cut the cable to get it, or otherwise somehow destroy the mount to release the GPS.
But I have no intention of leaving the Zumo in the mount unattended for any great length of time. That's the beauty of the locking slide bar over the "security screw". The GPS can be removed from the mount quickly (with out any fiddly tools). When the Zumo has been removed, I can still lock the cable to the empty mount, but in that state it would be possible to remove it with tools. Still, it will take a while to do that and they'll only be getting the $50 cradle.
Sharp eyed farklers may notice that my "Zumo security slide bar" has a strong resemblance to some of the steel mounting parts provided in the Audiovox CCS100 cruise control that we do not use when mount the CC on an FJR.
The Zumo MC mount has an ingenious quick disconnect system that allows you to (relatively) quickly remove the GPS and carry it in your pocket, or lock in a saddle bag for safe keeping. After shelling out ~600 bucks or more for a trinket like the Zumo, it leaves one with an uneasy feeling that when your back is turned, the bad guys are gonna grab it and run. Unfortunately, the same quick disconnect makes it easy for the bad guys to pop your GPS off. Additionally, the "over-center" lever affair that engages the quick disconnect at the top of the mount is subject to popping open on it's own if you travel over rough enough roadways.
Garmin's answer to that is what is known as the "security screw". It is a tiny little screw that will hold the lever from flipping open on it's own. It is also a non-standard screw, in that it requires a special little proprietary 2-pin, fork shaped screw driver to remove the screw. The obvious problems with the security screw are that any miscreant can get ahold of one of these screw drivers and go on a Zumo theft rampage, and having to fiddle with this tiny PITA screw negates the quick part of "quick release", especially for anyone the least bit myopic due to advancing age, perhaps? And what about trying to do this at night?
Garmin also supplies some ram ball mounting pieces and an articulating arm with the Zumos to give you a head start on mounting the MC cradle on the bike. I like the RAM stuff (for several reasons) and have decided to forgo my Tourtech Stem Stand from my previous GPS in favor of the RAM system mounted to a ball screwed into the headset nut. One thing I like about the RAM ball system is that you can remove the entire mount including the ZUMO MC cradle in seconds. This is handy for overnights when on the road, the mount cradle doesn't have to be left out in the weather. Of course this also provides another means for the bad guys to steal your Zumo, or even just the cradle, just by unscrewing the RAM arm's wingnut and take the whole thing.
Ram's answer to that is an (optional) locking knob as a replacement for the wingnut. It allows you to tighten up the RAM arm, then by turning the key lock the knob will freewheel and can't be loosened. The problem with that solution is that, while it may slow the bad guys down a little, all they need to do is unfasten the base ball either unscrew the stem nut ball or handle bar clamps (tools required) and can take the whole kit and kaboodle.
So, the objectives of my Zumo mount security solution was to replace the "security screw" while riding with something easier to operate, to keep the mount securely latched. I wanted to retain the ease of unlatching the mount's quick release so I can pocket the Zumo for quick stops, leaving the MC cradle behind in a secure state. And I wanted to be able to easily unscrew the RAM arm so I can remove the whole cradle and mount at night.
Here's what I came up with: I took a piece of steel bar that I had laying around and bent the end of it over to the same angle as the latch of the MC mount's quick release. I then selected some small shims (washers) to put between the MC mount and the provided Ram Ball plate. The steel bar now slips between the mount body and the ball plate and slides up and down with a bit of friction. In the first picture (below) you can see how the "security slide bar" fits and will allow the flip lever to operate when the bar is only partially inserted.
After installing the Zumo into the cradle, I just slide the security bar further down to physically restrain the latch from opening. The friction is enough to keep the bar from rattling around while riding and should actually also keep the bar from sliding up on its own.
Top view
Rear view
When in use, I will be inserting a small padlock through the bottom hole of the steel bar preventing the bar from being pushed up to release the cradle latch. I will also be looping a short length of vinyl coated steel wire cable around a fixed point on the headset to the padlock as a tether, to prevent someone from just loosening the Ram arm and swiping it all.
When the Zumo is in the mount the screw heads that fasten the ball plate to the cradle are covered, so the self locking nuts can't easily be removed from the mount. Since the whole thing is tethered it doesn't matter if they loosen the Ram arm or unscrew the lower mounting ball from the headset nut. They will have to cut the cable to get it, or otherwise somehow destroy the mount to release the GPS.
But I have no intention of leaving the Zumo in the mount unattended for any great length of time. That's the beauty of the locking slide bar over the "security screw". The GPS can be removed from the mount quickly (with out any fiddly tools). When the Zumo has been removed, I can still lock the cable to the empty mount, but in that state it would be possible to remove it with tools. Still, it will take a while to do that and they'll only be getting the $50 cradle.
Sharp eyed farklers may notice that my "Zumo security slide bar" has a strong resemblance to some of the steel mounting parts provided in the Audiovox CCS100 cruise control that we do not use when mount the CC on an FJR.
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