Bike Security - do expensive locks really work??

KonaKurt

Let me mention something I saw earlier on a rural ride today, that raised an eyebrow or two..!! One was a yellow Kryptonite New Yorker, and the other a heavy shackle Abus lock. Cut clean.

Outside a village pub I stopped at today, I saw not one but TWO high quality shakle locks that appear to have been grinder cut free from the iron parking posts they were once locked too.

Assuming that at some point, a nice bike was locked to each of them, which I also assume have been nicked (my sympathies to the owners), this left me wondering:

Are expensive/high quality locks really worth their money?? There are scum lurking out there, who travel with mini grinders and cut them, no doubt. But in that case, is there any point in trusting high quality locks?

Anyone had their quality locks cut??

KK.

The Northern Monkey

Are expensive/high quality locks really worth their money??

no.

D-Cyph3r

At the end of the day, if there are determined thieving asshats running around with powertools no lock or chain is going to stop them.


Now, if I can crack training wasps my idea of under seat mounted mini security hives will make me a millionaire....

ilovedirt

Bike thieves should have their testicles removed on the spot, no questions asked. They're scum.

KonaKurt

Haha! TRained wasps huh? That is an interesting idea!

Mind you, the second best thing would be a bike burgler alarm, warning you that someone is powertooling your lock! And the best one I can think of, is man's best friend - a DOG!

Not very convinient to keep one in your bag I must admit though...

KK.

jay12

i have an awesome idea. make the lock and bike like an elctric fence. use a remote to stop flow of electricity, but if you forget to stop the flow then you'll be toast

bails87

KonaKurt wrote:

And the best one I can think of, is man's best friend - a DOG!

Not very convinient to keep one in your bag I must admit though...

KK.

Northwind

There's no defence against a grinder, but it's pretty uncommon for thieves to use grinders because they're so noisy and obvious... Thieves tend to use croppers as they're silent and fast (and as most bike locks are so poor, you don't need very good tools to make off with even very expensive bikes).

There's always a chance that the locks were cut by the owner of the property or bike- I had to grind off a lock for my brother years back after he lost his keys, and you see abandoned bikes getting removed from railings etc from time to time. Or of course they could be nicked but if I was a bike thief, I'd get a set of good croppers and a set of good cable cutters and I'd just target bikes that were that easy to steal (ie, most)

cee

I think decent locks are worth the money.

Not that they are going to stop a determined thief....but I can then say with hand on heart to the insurance company...I got the most secure lock money can buy....and the thieves angle ground it...

For me...security is only about slowing them down long enough for it not to be worth their while, or so that the insurance claim has fewer questions.

Beardface

http://www.ghostbikes.com/products/1348 ... alarm.html

A friend of mine has something similar to that.. 110db, disc lock, but I'm pretty sure it's a bicycle one, rather than motorbike (as we use thinner rotors) Can't find the right link at the moment though.

Very sensitive, he set his off by accident by putting his gloves on his saddle.. lol, if I were a bike thief, that would deter me!

toab

I saw a bike the other day (cheap Giant MTB) with an Abus D lock which still had a pair of bolt cutters stuck in the lock! I guess the theives got part way through and then the cutters seized or somthing.

Really bizarre (and irritating) thing is that everyone ignored it, no one seemed to notice at all, and this was at a bust cycle wrack in the middle of Reading

Anonymous

If determined enough they can get past any lock, even if it means taking the thing it's locked too (shed, wall, etc).

The more important thing I feel is having an approved lock when it comes to insurance. It may help with cheaper insurance and/or claiming. Some of the more expensive locks also claim to provide an insurance where they'll pay up if it's proven their lock has been defeated. In practice I don't know if they ever do.

Personally I'd say pay what you feel comfortable with but go with something good, solid and sturdy, perhaps with an approved mark on it, but that is practical. No point having something way too heavy to carry, except maybe at home (which is where the more determined thieve may turn up, especially if they've followed you back from a trail, which does happen).

belugabob

ilovedirt wrote:

Bike thieves should have their testicles removed on the spot, no questions asked. They're scum.

Preferably, using their own grinder.

supersonic

Lots of bikes are nicked by scrotes with not much toolware - so a good lock can at least help stop these.

But as above, if they have the kit, the bike will go.

Just as important is where you leave it.

nicklouse

supersonic wrote:

Lots of bikes are nicked by scrotes with not much toolware - so a good lock can at least help stop these.

But as above, if they have the kit, the bike will go.

Just as important is where you leave it.

just to reiterate this.

Lock your bike up and then see what you can remove with just a 5mm allen key.

then buy a rat bike.

supersonic

Yep, used to see dozens with seatposts, forks, bars, wheels etc missing, and just a frame left on the railing lol.

Anonymous

Hook the bike up to the mains and see how far they get then (hoping they're too daft to wear gloves that is).

bike-a-swan

didn't someone wire up a bike with bare bars? ah, I'll have a look for the link, why not?

here we go-

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-To-End-Bike-Theft-The-Honeybike-Project/

cavegiant

Big locks are worth the money, but most people miss what they are there for.

Twice the garage in my building has been broken into, thousands of punds of bikes stolen, not mine (though the censored took my back wheel last time).

My lock was tougher, thief can only take a couple of bikes, the others were easier to steal.


Only a gold rated MOTORBIKE lock is rated againt power tools.

One of those should last ten minutes against an angle grinder, most thiefs could not be bothered if there was an easier bike to steal.

So jumping back to the old joke of the two guys in the savana next to a pack of lions.
One guy puts on a pair of trainers, the other guy mocks him ' you can't outrun a lion with trainers' nope, but I can outrun you.

The thief/lion will always take the easiest prey.

Best security, lock your bike next to a specialised enduro locked with a cable lock.

Northwind

cavegiant wrote:

Only a gold rated MOTORBIKE lock is rated againt power tools.

One of those should last ten minutes against an angle grinder, most thiefs could not be bothered if there was an easier bike to steal.

Complete balls, the gold rating doesn't ensure anything like this protection but more importantly, doesn't test against large bolt croppers. Most gold-rated products give very little protection against the tools actually used by motorbike thieves, the whole Thatcham/Sold Secure lock accreditation is pretty much a confidence trick sadly. Sold Secure were still approving locks with the round keys even while most manufactuers were clearing them off the shelves. The annoying thing is you need to play the game for insurance.

Briggo

Agree with Northwind, the whole "gold" rating is a load of censored .

Theres a very interesting video on Youtube somewhere about how easily those motorbike locks are to cut into, its like a review and shows many of them being torn apart in seconds. Some last for a few minutes but at the end of the day, the thief only needs a couple of minutes.

Best security is to make sure you're always with the bike, I never leave ours on their own.

I always makes sure one of us sits with the bikes while the other goes in and gets the round from pub or cafe etc.

This obviously means no stopping during the winter months

Northwind

Yup, if you search youtube for almax or "captain cropper" you find some scary stuff. As ever, worth pointing out that though Zanx who did the videos isn't directly affiliated with Almax, he's quite possibly biased, and at least one of the vids is wrong as the lock cut isn't what they said it was (one of the Kryptonite ones is a different Krypto model). But still, it's a really effective demo.

Almax went to the london bike show one year with a set of bolt cutters and invited people to come and test their old chains. Brilliant display, I chopped a link off a £160 "sold secure gold" Oxford chain like it was made of toffee, and I'm not strong. The end result? They were banned from attending future shows and the lock companies kept on selling s**t. A few did take note though, Squire, Pragmasis, even English Chain Co who're a Motrax sub-brand and generally sell tat.

Where are my stabilisers?

Well they can all be broken with a bit of effort, but if the insurer requires a certain lock, then it's worth it to be covered. Also, it's less likely to be broken by opportunist thieves if there is a bike next to it with a cheapo lock. But the pro thieves who go out looking for expensive bikes will bring the tools and get your bike whatever! The little turds :evil:

delcol

like other say if it's a determined theif with the right tools then your bike/s are gone

your average bike theif though with handheld tools could be held at bay with a good decent lock.. bike specific locks tend to be censored ,, motorbike chaines are were its at..

here a link to some of the vids mentioned these vids can be found on youtube.

http://www.almax-security-chains.co.uk/index.asp?pg=19

supersonic

Nobody is breaking my lock:

delcol

lol and if they do you could always hit them with it...


ss how do you transport that lock and what do you chain your bike to... :roll:

supersonic

That is me transporting it ;-)

codyhowler

my bikes r locked with allsorts of stuff in my brick shed thats alarmed aswell but the best deterent is my 2 big american bulldogs,neva had any atempted break ins yet!

delcol

ss you seem to have put on a lot of weight since your pic in what mtb mag.. can i see a pic of you transporting the lock on your bike...

have you ever dropped it on your toe...

ride_whenever

I could cut that chain, less than a minute...


Thermate is wonderful stuff.

supersonic

Sssh lol. I was just watching videos of that on youtube!

Aluminium powder and plaster of paris homebrew!