What appears to be the same crystal from the toasters (same freq, package) is available on Digikey for $0.40 (plus I think a $5 fee if your order is under $25). Just another option if you don't want to cannibalize a perfectly good toaster:

[search.digikey.com]

"If you try to take apart the toaster while it is still plugged in, you are a retard."

Classic. Just too good to be true.

Umm... modded vx7r (freeband mod) and a frequency counter. That's a mystery? By the way, the crystal they mention is also used for to make a red box from an old Radio Shack tone dialer. I still have one of these crystals, sitting in a box, with a tone dialer.

That dude looks ghoulish. He's never ever gonna get some.

Que the influx of Drive-Through terrorism videos on YouTube. Awesome hack.

phreakin amazing =)

LOL.. I want to do this.

I wanna do this... KFC will never be the same with "You said you want a 5 legged chicken sir? We only sell 3 legged chickens. Even then they're drumsticks and thighs."

Woz would LOVE this.

Does anyone at Gizmodo know that this is intentional interference on frequencies licensed for business use? And that intentional interference is a violation of federal law? And that it's very easy to triangulate the position of transmitters nowadays? Sheesh.

This hack calls for a light touch on abuse.

Allow them to say
"please pull up to the first window"
and then just slip in
"ASSHOLE!!!!"

sit back and watch...

Can someone please post a link to the video on youtube? Darn iPhones don't support flash yet.

Best unintentional band name of 2008 so far: Sacrificial Toaster. Kudos Sean.

I <3 RBCP

LOL! I got a 40CB and an old toaster. How can I have fun with thee....

This is HIGHLY ILLEGAL. ANd these fools post a video on the internet?

sorry Thomas Palmer, I can't seem to post the youtube link without it doing the above. the video is
cyLrus1yKvI if you want to type it in manually.

@G_Money:
So illegal, but so funny!

I've actually unintentionally done this with my CB back in the 90s. I wasn't on their freq, but I was close enough (couple cars behind) to overload the speaker completely and block out the headset inside the store.

If I am not mistaken, the headsets transmit to the speaker on the VHF 154.x freq, but the voice coming back to the headset is on a separate freq in the 35 MHz area. So the employees probably cannot even hear the RF perp. Maybe this has changed.

Now that I think about it, this is a great way for a drive through employee to take there frustrations out on customers. Say whatever you want, and blame it on someone else on the radio, lol

I am not able to see the video (for reasons I won't get into). However, I should point out a few things about this sort of mischief....

First, the legal disclaimer: In most cases, carrying out this prank is an act of radio piracy, and if you get busted, the penalties are quite high (typically 5 digit fines). There are exceptions, in the form of some channels which, like CB, are open to the public, but which, unlike CB, aren't necessarily well-known. What you do with this knowledge is up to you; if you get busted for being a dumbass, I'm not responsible; you have been warned.

(For the record, I have an FCC license that I wish to keep, hence I won't engage in piracy)

That said, you need to understand that different drive-throughs use different frequencies. Since the drive-through will have a license for those frequencies, you can look them up in the FCC's database; I'll leave that as an exercise for the reader, but I will tell you that it is a public record, and it is stored in a system called ULS. You may have to listen for a bit with a scanner to figure out which is the right frequency to use to mess with them.

FM-based two way radio systems often have a thing called CTCSS or DCS involved. If you've ever used an FRS, GMRS or hybrid radio (the little 14, 15 and 22 channel radios you can get most anywhere), these are called "privacy codes" (though they provide no privacy) or "squelch codes" or one of a handful of other names. Your mark may have one or more of these in use, and, if this is the case, you need to find them out by experimentation.

That said, a Wendy's in my area is using 154.57MHz as their drive-through frequency, one of the ones where it is legal, and I have gotten on there and messed with them. It's definitely fun, but try not to be too big of an asshat. It's a lot offun to drop a single stray comment in there when the employees are chatting amongst themselves and listen to their reactions.

Man...I'm going to go to a Subway or Cousins and get food for free. (sorry if I don't mention the other restraunts normally associated and shown, I hate their food)

I'm shocked that any of you, Gizmodo included, would think this is a funny prank. It costs the restaurants serious business and only hurts everyone involved.

Nah, just kidding, screwing with drive-thrus is hilarious!

@kc2idf

Not sure what made you think that 154.570MHz is public access but it most certainly is not, that is smack dab in the middle of the licensed business band, I own a license for one of my clients with a VHF repeater with transit on that frequency, so again, don't misinform people, doing this is illegal... (its also highly unlikely you'd ever got caught).

You got your asses kicked out of CES, now you may as well get perma-banned from Jack In the Box.

@The Brain: You say that like it's a bad thing.

@G_Money: You've obviously never heard of PLA or RBCP. I suggest you read some of the hilarity these guys, RBCP specifically, have caused. ROY!

@kc2idf: In regards to CTSS/DCS, the nice little vx7r they showed in the beginning (as well as many other HTs) will scan through them quite nicely. Isn't DCS only 23 possible subtones? Or is that CTSS? I always get them confused.

IT BREAKS MY HEART. i cant see the video

@G_Money:
1st- Despite its illegality, I'm sure no one is going to jail from putting the video out on the net alone. This in and of itself may even differ state to state.

2nd- I'm sure even if someone got caught red-handed doing this, large fines aside, I would think they still would have a tough time proving it in court, short of having the conversations taped (which is about as likely as getting a 100 calorie meal the establishment you're fucking with).

3rd- John Wayne thinks your a pussy.

@Earthslide:
Comment on How to Hijack a Fast Food Drive-Thru Frequency Timothy McVeigh anyone?

Why go to all this trouble, just get a mod'ed 2 meter Yeasu HT. We used to pull this stunt about 15 years ago. It is funny tho. As I recall, they use two diff frequencies, so you can talk to the car or drivethru dude without the other knowing.

How is it that no-one has worked out yet that the funniest possible use of this involves broadcasting All By Myself...

I'm calling hoax on two parts of this video...
-- First, their frequency is wrong - the Yaseu they show is in the 150MHz band; CB is about 27 MHz. The crystal fix is a ratio of 6.5536/1.73, so a modded CB would operate around 102 MHz - not 150. (that's assuming the filters, which weren't changed, would still operate at the new frequency).
-- Second, I'm not so sure digital toasters have that crystal. Definitely not hair dryers. It wouldn't be in a protection circuit - it's far more complicated & less reliable than a thermal fuse. If you look at the board, the crystal is marked "R4" -- not "X1" -- so they probably took out the resistor and put the crystal in before removing it again. Also, crystals are usually near IC's (for noise reasons) - not the case here. Finally, the leads on the crystal are too long - the manufacturer would have clipped them.

Mouser has these crystals as well:

[www.mouser.com]

Anyrate, anyone with teh internetz can get a 6.5536 MHz crystal, whether it allows you to do this or not, beats me.

This looks like a prank video about a prank.

Look carefully at the soldered-in crystal in the toaster, then stop frame the video as the crystal is removed from and replaced in the CB set. It looks to me like the same crystal had been taken out of shot and then put back in. Extracting a crystal from the toaster was merely some sort of decoy.

@faabshaam: Subway has drive thrus???

@ugar: They do in the ghetto...the Milwaukee Ghetto.

I also agree with Morcheeba. Apart from the things I've already mentioned, I had been looking at the crystal in the toaster and it looks wrong in so many ways. I couldn't make out the printing on the PCB board under it, but it didn't look at all right for a crystal label and those long leads left on the crystal would never be left on a manufactured device.

Regardless of whether or not this video is a fake, I highly encourage everyone to hack local drive-throughs to the point customers get mad enough to leave without their food...
...you'll be doing them a favor.

I'v canabalized hair blow driers, hair straighteners, and toasters. I have yet to find this crystal.. Back to looking.....

I also have 2 of the same model CB radio as the video. The crystal is in a different place, and it is marked 10.240 (32PF) But maybe that isnt the frequency?

this is great
and if those people drive off with out any food, you're helping them to diet!

@wireman121: That probably means 10.240 MHz and 32pF capacitance -- the two main characteristics of a crystal for that use.

Did you guys ran out of stuff to write. What the hell? This was out in like 1985. Old news is no news

Funny, but having worked in food service while I was in Highschool, I can tell you it's already the worst job in the world. They don't need some asshole in the parking lot messing with them.

Well i agree, but it isnt the same frequency they mention in the video....and i have the same model cb radio...so the crystal not in the right place, and a different frequency - what are the chances of the new crystal working as they state?

I did check out my local fast food joint, and i found the frequency they transmit on - but i could not find the return frequency (customer to employee)...does that use a wired speaker or maybe just somewhere close to the other frequency?

I'm so doing this.

Just pulled apart my toaster and low and behold, no crystal. Though I did find a sweet electro-magnet so all is not lost. Note: this is an old broken toaster but I purchased it in 2004 so its definitely made after the mid 1980's that the author mentioned. So sad, I live within two miles of 10 fast food restaurants.

@junk:

In regards to CTSS/DCS, the nice little vx7r they showed in the beginning (as well as many other HTs) will scan through them quite nicely. Isn't DCS only 23 possible subtones? Or is that CTSS? I always get them confused.

There are 50 total CTCSS tones (of which 38 are common) and, I believe, 121 DCS codes (don't hold me to it, though).

Yex, the VX7R will do this well, and so will the Icom T2H that I use :-)

This is obviously a hoax and i'm amazed at how few people are calling this out to be fake.

One, like morcheeba said, the frequencies are off, even if you managed to mod a CB radio with a crystal from a non-existent toaster, you wouldn't be near the proper frequency.

Two, you have to take in consideration PL/CTCS Security, your given standard digital CB Radio isn't able to handle these tones.

Aside from this, it wouldn't be necessary to even mod a Yaseu, with a bit of scanning or covert mole work, it would be as simple as taking a peak at the cashiers waist to see what their frequency is set at.

"A Safety Device" Come On Guys. -_-

This is, in fact, a prank of a prank. Sorry folks...this mod is not possible. Great video though..

So this can be done with any 40 channel handheld? like the Midland 75-785 Handheld?

I just want to say, that is the cleanest kitchen of any geek I have ever seen.

@lafond66: You're SO wasting your time.

Nobody has mentioned modulation type. If the author used the vx7 in his previous video, that would have been FM. The CB will do AM, and possibly SSB. The FM receiver at the drive-thru won't be able to hear/understand you.

i'm old enough to remember the local places using speakers in back, rather than headsets.

ask for a 'plopper' at mcdonalds, really loudly, or start cursing, and watch the kids inside laugh and the parents look horrified.

never did that myself, nosiree, but i read about it somewhere.

i wonder why they switched to headsets?

Has anyone seen the latest post on Brad Carter's Homepage?

It's called Sacrificial Toasters and begins, "Today I tricked some people into taking their toasters apart."

Way to go Brad, you killed thousands of toasters.

Teenagers all over the country taking apart toasters on Easter weekend is a much better prank than taking over a drive-thru speaker.

Cactus.

Failed attempt....

I purchased 3 different crystals from mouser and tried each of them in my handheld CB radio and had no luck with any of them.... I have no idea what im talking about when it comes to this stuff but from what i have read on other posts it does seem like this carrier frequency that is produced by the 6.5536 is not the frequency used (By McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts anyway)

Oh well.. It was worth the 3 bucks for the crystals to try it out :-P

[www.notla.com]
The guy is a fake, good job researching Giz...
Yet the internet proves all to well how valuable the information on it is.