Whale tail locks are on every ute tray canopy. Not all canopies and locks are created equal so here's a few things you need to look for when selecting a secure canopy or trailer.

  1. What happens if the handle is attacked?

Most whale tail locking designs are a single barrel design, once the handle has been snapped off the rear locking mechanism falls away from the lock letting an intruder open the door.

  1. How many locking points on the Canopy or Trailer?

We use twin locks on all doors over 900mm wide this strengthens the system by having dual locks holding the door down with double the compression force as a single lock

  1. Are there full length locking rods?

Locking rods extend the length of the canopy door on the inside which lock into the sides of the canopy. This is a weaker design that makes it easier to pry the door open. Hence why we use 2 seperate locks on all doors over 900mm wide

  1. Can the lock be keyed Uniquely?

Locks fitted to our canopies and trailers can be uniquely keyed to a variety of options from unique codes, matching your house keys or even a Lockwood restricted key system.

  1. Can keys be controlled?

If you choose our locking system with a Lockwood Restricted key system you gain full access over the keys, Who has access to what and peace of mind knowing staff cannot just take their key to a locksmith to have a copy made.

  1. Can the canopy Detect a break in?

Frontline Trays and Canopies can be fitted with detection systems that work with your vehicle alarm system, sounding an alarm if someone gains unauthorised access.

  1. What is the door made of?

Our doors are made from 1.6mm Steel, Not Aluminium for better strength. The doors are braced both ways ensuring they are resistant to warping and buckling.

  1. Central Locking?

Our canopies are available with Central locking pairing up with the vehicle key fob for extra security.

| Security feature | Frontline approach | | ---------------------- | ----------------------------------- | | Lock | Selectloc V3 Midnight | | External-handle attack | Remains locked if handle is snapped | | Keying | Unique key code | | Personal key option | House-key compatible | | Fleet key control | Lockwood Restricted system | | Large doors | Dual roller compression locks | | Locking rods | No full-length rods | | Door construction | Braced steel | | Alarm integration | Available | | Door-open warning | Available |

The current landscape with tray canopy and trailer locks

Everyone offers whale tail locks with their canopies and tradie trailers. The problem with them is there a very limited amount of different key codes for them (Think CH08 Keycode or J201) and you end up finding your mate across the road could very well have the same key code on his canopy as well! Which isn't very secure. A lot of the locks themselves will fall apart if the handle is snapped off giving access to whoever broke the handle and access to everything you have inside your canopy.

The Frontline canopy and trailer

To create more secure canopies and tradie trailers you need to start with the canopy itself, how it is constructed and how the locks work. To keep our builds as secure as possible we never use locking pins that run across the length of canopy and trailer doors as this is a major weak point. If we have a door more than 900mm in width we run with dual roller locking compression locks on each door which anchor straight into the canopy when locked to ensure it is extremely difficult to pry open a door with a crowbar. The canopy doors are braced to resist twisting/buckling and made from steel not aluminium for maximum strength.

The Canopy Buzzer

Available as an additional add on that serves more than one purpose is the door buzzer system. This is typically wired up to alert the driver if a door is open after the vehicle is started. You would be amazed at the amount of people that leave a door up, drive off and smash the door into a tree or post. This system can also be wired into your car alarm system so if someone manages to get a canopy door open the car alarm will sound.

Trailer Security

We have an option to fit a wi-ti anti theft system to our trailers which offer the same break in siren that is available on your canopy. Additionally to this if your trailer is fitted with electric brakes (Which we recommend on all trailers) the system can detect if the trailer moves while "locked" and will apply brakes to the wheels stopping anyone from trying to tow it away in the middle of the night.

The high security lock step 1

Available across our range of canopies and trailers are our high security lock offering . Thee V3 Midnight locks from Selectloc are designed not fall apart when the handle is snapped off. We take it one step further offering unique barrels on the locks that are keyed with a unique key code for your build. Giving you peace of mind no one else down the street has a key for your canopy.

Highest security locks for Personal Users

If you want to go to an even more secure lock than the unique keyed locks we offer. Our locks can be keyed to match your house keys. The biggest benefit of this is having less keys on your key chain and knowing you can unlock your canopy with the same key you already have on your keychain. This option offers the same security as the our unique barrel offering.

Highest Security locks for Business

If you are a small business owner or a fleet manager you know you could have 100's of thousands of dollars worth of equipment in your vehicles and all it takes is one disgruntled ex employee with a key to your canopies and trailers to clear you out or just getting kept up at night thinking about everyone that actually has a key to your canopies we have the solution.

Our locks can be paired with a Lockwood Restricted key system which includes master key sets so you can have a key that gives you access to everything while each employee only gets access to their vehicle the other benefits of a restricted system is the inability for your staff to go to a locksmith to have a copy of the key cut. Additional keys can only be cut if it is requested by the authorised registered person in writing. The barrels themselves have been designed by Lockwood to be harder to pick than standard barrels.

The Lock itself

The lock itself is from Selectloc, Their V3 Midnight lock. These locks are designed to stay in the locked position after the handle has been snapped off for maximum security. The locks are the same format as Norweld's secure locks which are also made by Selectloc.

From here we take it one step further and offer even higher security key systems which are listed above.

In Conclusion

If you want to get serious about security on your canopy or trailer speak with us on how we can help make your assets the most secure on the market.