UKC

I have finally got around to obtaining a new bike.

My old one was so tatty that leaving it unlocked in city centres in the vague hope that someone would steal it didn't work.  As such I never really needed more than a token D lock for the times when I needed something to hold it upright.

I fear that those days are behind me so I need something a bit more effective.  Are there any locks out there that actually work or is it a matter of parking next to something more expensive and hoping for the best?

A gold rated lock and insurance as no lock is thief proof.

An ugly alternative is to uglify the bike.

If it's a good bike, don't leave it unattended.

If you have to leave it, buy as good a lock as you can afford. 

You can't stop someone with a cordless angle-grinder from stealing your bike, so you have to make it either tricky, time-consuming or easier to steal a different bike.

The best way to do that is a thick D-lock and a heavy chain and padlock, both off the ground.  An angle-grinder is better for cutting the D-lock but bolt croppers better for the chain.  That makes it a PITA for your average competent thief and a non-starter for an amateur.

On the down-side, you really don't want to have to ride around with that lot weighing you down.

Still waiting for the bike mine to be produced (i think there was a screaming whistle version too)  youtube.com/watch?v=cBq0MA30xhY&

It already has an ugly rider so I suppose it should be made to fit

In reply to nniff:

Thanks.  I suspected nothing was really secure but making people carry extra tools makes sense.  Are there any particular lock brands to look at or avoid?

This thread:

https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/144109/

is a gold mine of information on the best and best value locks out there.

I use two u-locks from different brands (abus and kryptonite).  This makes pickling slightly more complicated and means even if they are carrying an angle grinder another bike with only one lock remains more tempting.  I also try to fill the lock with as much bike as possible and position the cylinders facing down.

The guy in my shop told me the other day that if you fill out the warranty on krytonite locks then they guarantee their efficacy. That is, they will reimburse you for your bike should it be nicked while secured with their lock. 

Obviously you’d rather stop it from happening but it would be nice to know you’d be sorted should the worst happen. 

+1 for uglify your bike. I used black electrical tape around the top bar and black gaffa to hide the branding on my black bike.

I lost the key to my gold rated abus D lock  a few years ago. It took finding a man with a disc cutter, a lot of sparks and noise and about 5 minutes to cut it off... Make of that what you will! (It would take a brazen and organised thief, I reckon!)

Brazen you say?

I got knocked off a bike a few years back.  Someone helpfully locked it to some railings for me but the keys got lost at some point while I was being wheeled around the local hospital.

A few weeks later my brother and I pulled up next to it in an estate car, chopped the lock with a petrol angle grinder, threw the bike in the car and drove off.

On a busy shopping street on a Saturday morning.  Nobody said anything.  I think we were invisible.

Kryptonite D locks are generally well thought of

OnGuard Beast chain and padlock similarly.  The latter are in a sale at Tredz at the moment