Sick of thieves. Help me stop them

dun247

Hi All,

All most had my bike stolen last week. Bike next to mine was less fortunate. Thief made off with a brand new Spesh Allez and my cable lock was damaged. Looks like a cropper. They got through to the cable after a couple of tries but didnt manage the cable.

I got this idea which I need help with. I need someone who knows D locks and someone who knows electronics.
Some of you have probably guessed what I am thinking but I would like to see if it is plausible.

PM me if you would like to know more.

Cheers

KMC1993

if your planning on electrocuting them then I think you may have a few problems with the law. Highly tempting though.

bernithebiker

If it's a motion alarm sensor built into the D-Lock, then I think it's already been done.

Good idea though.

VTech

You would be liable to jail if anyone got hurt.
There was a story a long time ago about a fella with a heart complaint who leant against something that was an illegal power device and died of a heart attack, I cant remember the exact thing right now.

You wont stop a thief, whatever you do they will eventually overcome it.
The amount of internet security that is meant to be impenetrable yet takes less than an hour to hack is laughable, just like security for cars that doesnt work etc etc etc.

If leaving a bike, use a cr4pper, make it so that it isnt worth taking.

thistle_

VTech wrote:

If leaving a bike, use a cr4pper, make it so that it isnt worth taking.

Or, as you've already found out, leave it next to another bike that's easier to steal.

dun247

Thanks for the replies.
What I was thinking was a motion sensor siren D lock. I know Kabrus have made one but the U bar only fits between the frame and back wheel. I think it best cyclists use a d lock that goes through back wheel, frame and a post anchored to floor.
http://www.kabrus.co.uk/xl202.html
Something better designed and stronger than Kabrus.
Im not looking to build anything illegal and distribute. Just to get an idea if it is possible and if it is build a prototype to show lock companies.

thistle_

I've seen a few motion activated bike locks but they've usually been attached to cheap looking cables. That Kabrus one looks a bit more substantial.

What might be better is instead of a siren, have one that has a recorded message such as 'someone is trying to steal this bike'. How many people ignore car alarms or burglar alarms? The beeping or siren could be anything.

You'd also need some way of preventing false alarms. It's quite easy for someone to knock your bike innocently while they are unlocking theirs, which could lead to an embarrassing confrontation.

Another idea you could try (although a bit more complicated) is something that sends a text to your mobile if the lock is disturbed. If you're in a shop or close by, you can easily have a quick look to see what's going on and intervene if necessary. You're more likely to care about you bike getting nicked than a passer by.

sungod

xena xul...

http://www.xenasecurity.com/product/bul ... 102/page1/

i use one, 18mm shackle, choice of sizes, loud enough to attract attention

sloppyschleckonds

I came out of the pub and there was my bike, gone.

Lycra-Byka

How about a substitute saddle, with nails beneath the covering. And loosen the stem to the forks.
Most thieves ride the bike away.


Seriously you can't stop them,just be prepared for it.

giant_man

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

I came out of the pub and there was my bike, gone.

I came out of a bike shop and there was my bike, gone. True story.

ben@31

thistle (MBNW) wrote:

How many people ignore car alarms or burglar alarms?

There some good documentaries on Youtube that put this to the test. The journalist locked his bike up on a busy street in the centre of London. He then came back with a pair of bolt croppers, made what he was doing blatantly obvious, cut the lock off, ran off with the bike and not one passer by stopped to challenge him!

zoltansocrates

ben@31 wrote:

thistle (MBNW) wrote:

How many people ignore car alarms or burglar alarms?

There some good documentaries on Youtube that put this to the test. The journalist locked his bike up on a busy street in the centre of London. He then came back with a pair of bolt croppers, made what he was doing blatantly obvious, cut the lock off, ran off with the bike and not one passer by stopped to challenge him!

you can try and hack someones head off in london and no one will bat an eyelid

i think a lock with a loud this bike is being stolen' announcement would certainly help but as a lad said earlier, just commute on a crap bike, its not worth risking your P&J

lawrences

sungod wrote:

xena xul...

http://www.xenasecurity.com/product/bul ... 102/page1/

i use one, 18mm shackle, choice of sizes, loud enough to attract attention

"weight 1,960g" You mareswell just commute on a shit bike not worth stealing if the other option is 2kg of lock.

markhewitt1978

lawrences wrote:

sungod wrote:

xena xul...

http://www.xenasecurity.com/product/bul ... 102/page1/

i use one, 18mm shackle, choice of sizes, loud enough to attract attention

"weight 1,960g" You mareswell just commute on a shoot bike not worth stealing if the other option is 2kg of lock.

Quite. Which is why most cyclists (road cyclist especially) don't carry locks. You've just spend hundreds or thousands on a super light bike, in order to undo it all by carrying a lock.

sungod

lawrences wrote:

sungod wrote:

xena xul...

http://www.xenasecurity.com/product/bul ... 102/page1/

i use one, 18mm shackle, choice of sizes, loud enough to attract attention

"weight 1,960g" You mareswell just commute on a shoot bike not worth stealing if the other option is 2kg of lock.

secure usually means heavy, for commuting/shopping trips i don't care about the weight, the threat level in london is crazy, but for other rides yeah it's too heavy

for light, but no alarm, there's the tigr lock, but i've not seen any independent testing on it

cougie

<ake a big poster and attach it to the bike ? GPS tracking hidden inside ? Smartwater ID marked ?

(i have no idea if this would work - but I'd think again about nicking it ?)

VTech

The fix is dont take a bike where you have to leave it if you value it.
I wouldnt dream of parking my bike up on the street. I wont even leave it out of sight when on a sunday ride and have a cafe stop.
I couldnt cope with the fact someone has my bike and would need to get it back.

Headhuunter

sungod wrote:

xena xul...

http://www.xenasecurity.com/product/bul ... 102/page1/

i use one, 18mm shackle, choice of sizes, loud enough to attract attention

So the alarm goes off as soon as anyone moves the lock? Sounds like a bit of a nightmare in London, I usually end up locking my bike on 1 side of a Sheffield Stand and invariable someone has locked their bike on the other side and I'm sure half the time they knock my bike or the lock as they remove their own. Also I often move other people's bikes (carefully) so that I can fit my own on the stand and get my D locks in place... These alarms would constantly be going off.... Might be useful home security though if you lock your bike in a shed or garage...

will_85

I had my bike locked outside my place of work in the middle of Chelsea... I saw some guy give my bike the eye, then lock his bike up next to mine... Came out of work a few hours later & realised it had actually been locked to mine!!

Did'nt want to take any chances, so I went to his lock with a hack-saw & a hammer... Hammer did the trick & I left his bike in a way that it looked still locked to the rail. Didn't see I had an alternative? I've heard of thieves using this as a tactic until they see they time is right to unlock their bike and swipe yours.

If it was a genuine mistake, what could I have done? Didn't want to risk loosing my bike & if id have locked his bike to the rail with my own lock for example & left a note with my contact details, any tom dick or harry could have claimed it??

Worrying thing was, while trying to hack-saw / hammer his lock off, some people came to offer assistance! For all they knew, I could have been a thief? :?

What would you have done in this situation??

VTech

will_85 wrote:

I had my bike locked outside my place of work in the middle of Chelsea... I saw some guy give my bike the eye, then lock his bike up next to mine... Came out of work a few hours later & realised it had actually been locked to mine!!

Did'nt want to take any chances, so I went to his lock with a hack-saw & a hammer... Hammer did the trick & I left his bike in a way that it looked still locked to the rail. Didn't see I had an alternative? I've heard of thieves using this as a tactic until they see they time is right to unlock their bike and swipe yours.

If it was a genuine mistake, what could I have done? Didn't want to risk loosing my bike & if id have locked his bike to the rail with my own lock for example & left a note with my contact details, any tom dick or harry could have claimed it??

Worrying thing was, while trying to hack-saw / hammer his lock off, some people came to offer assistance! For all they knew, I could have been a thief? :?

What would you have done in this situation??

I think you did the right thing.

rich_e

Perhaps you didn't look so much like a bike thief?

While its not 100% the case, many bike thieves look like they types who would steal a bike. They may be brazen, but still have a shiftiness to their behaviour. We often used to get people stealing bikes from outside an office I worked in from the bike racks on the street. This was a busy place with lots of people around, the thieves looked like thieves, but nobody challenged them. Our Receptionists would ring the Police because they knew what they were doing, but thats as far as it goes.

Channel 4's recent new show Eye Spy looked at how leaving a bike unlocked on the street would fair. But they actually attached a hidden steel cable to it, which would prevent anyone from getting too far. Its worth a watch, especially for one of the more hilarious consequences for the thief:

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/eye-spy/4od#3540936

will_85

I'd like to think I don't look like a thief

Will have a watch of that late, should provide some giggles.

Bustacapp

will_85 wrote:

What would you have done in this situation??

I'd have took the hammer to his wheels after I'd freed my bike.

goonz

Always 2 locks and they stay moored up at work so dont need to cart them around. Heavy bas.tards both of them but worth it. There was a point I used to carry both! :shock: