Dan
Tank
- Joined
- May 28, 2003
- Messages
- 4,186
- Reaction score
- 3
Just got back from the store and the checkout girl forgot to take off the security tags of some clothing that was packaged. The tags were put on the clothing, and the clothing was put into boxes. Anyways, it didn't trip the security alarms for whatever reason, so I got home with two merino wool long johns that had stupid plastic security discs stuck to them. The store was a two hour drive, so no chance of going back.
Instead I decided to open them up myself. I've heard that some of these contain glass ink capsules, so I was extra careful. The device is really simple. On one side is a big flat plastic disc with a cone sticking out of it. On the other side was a small flat metal coin sized disc with a pin that stuck through the garment and into the big disc. Obviously the pin didn't want to come out easily.
All you have to do to take the thing apart is slice off the top of the cone with a knife. It's pretty soft plastic, so not too hard to do. There was a mechanism with a spring and some ball bearings inside. Basically the ball bearings act like a chinese finger trap and keep the pin from sliding out. The spring keeps pressure on the ball bearings. Once the spring is removed, you just push on the small coin-sized button while holding it all upside down and all of the ball bearings fall out and the thing separates easily. Normally a really strong magnet would compress the spring and take tension off of the ball bearings so that the pin could be released.
I have come to the conclusion that these security tags are pretty crap as any shoplifter with a pocket knife could defeat them in less then a minute.
Instead I decided to open them up myself. I've heard that some of these contain glass ink capsules, so I was extra careful. The device is really simple. On one side is a big flat plastic disc with a cone sticking out of it. On the other side was a small flat metal coin sized disc with a pin that stuck through the garment and into the big disc. Obviously the pin didn't want to come out easily.
All you have to do to take the thing apart is slice off the top of the cone with a knife. It's pretty soft plastic, so not too hard to do. There was a mechanism with a spring and some ball bearings inside. Basically the ball bearings act like a chinese finger trap and keep the pin from sliding out. The spring keeps pressure on the ball bearings. Once the spring is removed, you just push on the small coin-sized button while holding it all upside down and all of the ball bearings fall out and the thing separates easily. Normally a really strong magnet would compress the spring and take tension off of the ball bearings so that the pin could be released.
I have come to the conclusion that these security tags are pretty crap as any shoplifter with a pocket knife could defeat them in less then a minute.
