Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - someone locked their bike to mine to a pole

its been two days. I u locked my bike to a pole. they u locked their bike to the pole and to my head tube. I've called philly's department of streets but i doubt they will do anything.

maybe they will never come back? I'm freaking out, and everyday is costing me money since I now have to take public trans everywhere I go. what can I do? what would you do?

its been two days. I u locked my bike to a pole. they u locked their bike to the pole and to my head tube. I've called philly's department of streets but i doubt they will do anything.

maybe they will never come back? I'm freaking out, and everyday is costing me money since I know what to take public trans everywhere I go. what can I do? what would you do?

I would get some proof together that the bike is yours and call the cops.

cut the lock. a portable angle grinder with a steel cutoff wheel would probably do the trick.

i'd clip/force/saw their lock off, take your bike and theirs inside, and leave a sturdy note letting them know that their bike is safe.

i'd clip/force/saw their lock off, take your bike and theirs inside, and leave a sturdy note letting them know that their bike is safe.

+1 - this sounds like a winner. They might try to get a new u-lock out of you though.

If nothing else, that's outstandingly rude of them. A few years ago theives used this in my neck of the woods, they would lock a beater/semi-beater onto a good bike and onto something, so as to come to fetch the bike they had spotted when it was conveniant for them. So if he's a real person, cutting off his lock will teach him manners real fast. But I think we're dealing with a theif, so I'd get it off ASAP.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhStU8V9xaE&mode=related&search=

:(

Take a picture of their lock attached to yours. Cut it off. Buy a $5 cable from Target to lock their bike back up. Put a good note on it that you had to cut off their lock to get yours to call your cell phone. Not your house phone because they can do an address lookup. Meet them outside to unlock and give their bike back. Give them the $5 cable for a clear conscience. That last step is completely optional. But then again, what will you do with a cheapo $5 cable?

That video is incredible. Also, i'd clip that lock and run. Someone had intentions when they locked your bike up; that just doesn't seem like a mistake to me.

But then again, what will you do with a cheapo $5 cable?

Apparently you didn't watch the video...

i say cut the lock and explain your situation if anyone comes and gives you trouble, but yeah leave a note too, thats just messed up.

i would cut the lock, then i would kick the **** out of the other bikes wheels and then break anything else i could..

Am I paranoid? I think this was done on purpose. Alert the police, tell them you might have a potential bike-theft coming up, and set up a trap. Of some kind.

Is that other bike any good?

Can we see pics?

Cut the lock, put on a crappy lock, let them deal with it.

Am I paranoid? I think this was done on purpose. Alert the police, tell them you might have a potential bike-theft coming up, and set up a trap. Of some kind.

It sound like it was on purpose, how can you do that accidentally?

I like this option... undercover time.... get night vision goggles, lawn chair, and coffee...oh, and a club.

and wait.... of course it might take forever.

http://www.fotosearch.com/comp/ARP/ARP113/Beartrap.jpg

As far as I'm concerned someone else putting a lock on your bike is tantamount to bike theft. they are taking possession of it by preventing you from getting it.

Call the police, have them cut the lock, and let the police deal with the other bike. It's not your responsibility to look out for the idiot, *******, or whatever it was that locked their bike to yours.

so much for free speech.

2 days? cut and run. take both bikes, leave a note.

Cut the lock, take the bike and drop it off @ your local PD, leave a note telling them it's there. I bet they don't come back for it anyway.

As far as I'm concerned someone else putting a lock on your bike is tantamount to bike theft. they are taking possession of it by preventing you from getting it.
Call the police, have them cut the lock, and let the police deal with the other bike. It's not your responsibility to look out for the idiot, *******, or whatever it was that locked their bike to yours.



Cut the lock, take the bike and drop it off @ your local PD, leave a note telling them it's there. I bet they don't come back for it anyway.


I like these two solutions the most. They're the cleanest and most elegant. Perhaps the first one is the best, because the police is going to recup their cost of going out and cutting the lock, from the owner of the second bike.

The worst decision you can make, in any case, is to do nothing. That's already costing you your bike. I sure as hello wouldn't wait two days to get my bike. If I couldn't cut the lock, I'd cut the bike, but I would liberate my bike one way or the other. And after reading this thread, I'd probably opt for Mattface's idea.

Buy 15 of those 99cent locks, cut their lock, lock their bike with all of them, take the keys, throw em in a river/dam/lake/whatever the hell you have near you.

Congratulations! You just won a free bike! Unlock your bike, toss the two of of them into a truck of car or the back of a truck, and enjoy! eBay is your friend. Dumbass gets what he deserves, which is an empty space where his bike used to be.

Screw the cops. It's locked to your bike, so it's yours. Law of salvage!

Congratulations! You just won a free bike! Unlock your bike, toss the two of of them into a truck of car or the back of a truck, and enjoy! eBay is your friend. Dumbass gets what he deserves, which is an empty space where his bike used to be.

Screw the cops. It's locked to your bike, so it's yours. Law of salvage!

READ the op. His is still locked, around the headtube, to a pole and to the other bike.

Cut that **** off, drop it off at the police station.

What kind of bike anyways? LBS? Walmart? Salvation Army? Dumpster?

cut their lock, and put another one on there...... and slash their tires and grips, pop the chain and steal the pedals.

U-locked to you? A car jack will nicely rip that thing apart. I say free your bike and leave their bike. It'll be stolen in no time flat, at no fault of your's.

That's beyond rude. And if they're going to leave their bike for an extended period of time, it appears as if they don't care too much for it.

cut their lock, and put another one on there...... and slash their tires and grips, pop the chain and steal the pedals.
this thread is usless without pics.

but seriousally, what kind of bike is the other? your either about to get jacked, or someone needs to be taught a lesson. either way, try to cut the lock, take both bikes, and sell his if its worthy, or dump it. or lock it up 40 times if you want to be cruel/awesome.

...now that i think about it, if someone was going to jack you, they wouldnt bother locking their bike to yours, they would just lock yours to the rack/poll. either way keep us up to date!

what kind of bike is it anyways?

Cut their effing lock off and leave there Sh*t lying on the street to be stolen.
What a total ******bag thing to do--I'd adovacate fu**ing their **** up too but
then you sink to their level. Move on it and leave their bike conspicuously
in plain view to be taken--you have no other option than to cut their lock.
Just document that your bike is yours--save a copy of this thread that shows
that you have no intent to steal their bike but merely to recover your bike.

It'll be way too much trouble to cut the ulock! You have to find a portable angle grinder, or risk damaing your frame with the dodgy car jack method. **** it man, just get a hacksaw and cut their frame in two places. This will only take a minute and it'll be really easy. Cut the frame and ride away. It's the safest and quickest way for you to recover what's yours, and with no unnecessary or uncalled for destruction.

only problem with that is THEIR lock goes through their frame, HIS frame, and the pole...he woud be locked otthe pol by their lock still

cut down the pole^

haha he would still have a ****ing lock attached to his bike... the lock his got to be cut

It'll be way too much trouble to cut the ulock! You have to find a portable angle grinder, or risk damaing your frame with the dodgy car jack method. **** it man, just get a hacksaw and cut their frame in two places. This will only take a minute and it'll be really easy. Cut the frame and ride away. It's the safest and quickest way for you to recover what's yours, and with no unnecessary or uncalled for destruction.

can you really cut through a frame that quickly? what about a steel-ass chicago schwinn, can you hack that quickly?

just curious, btw

Cutting torch in the back of a truck

can you really cut through a frame that quickly? what about a steel-ass chicago schwinn, can you hack that quickly?

just curious, btw

Hells yes, no matter what those walls are really thin (2.5 mm max?) and the steel used is not that hard. A hacksaw would go through like butter. A good ulock is a totally different beast; the steel is much much harder and of course it's solid. Youd probably kill several carbide hacksaw blades getting through one (regular blades would be hopeless) and it'd be a huge amount of work.

Damn though, if the lock is locked to an object that's different. I'd say if the bikes not free yet, go rent a battery powered grinder tomorrow morning and giver.

big bolt cutters will work, but room to maneuver is key (same for the jack). angle grinder is the best bet.

hacksaw is about worthless on the hard alloys of u-locks.

Is someone conducting some kind of wierd social experiment on you?

OP BACK AGAIN!!!

So, the lock was an old krypto that has the type of lock sort of like the ones that go into house doors only shorter. Kinda like one's for a PO Box or something. after looking at this, I had a realization, about 5 years ago I got into lock picking and still had a kit lying around somewhere. After all this worrying about bolt cutter and angle grinders, I picked the lock in under 5 minutes, then took my bike into my house, locked their bike across the street and left a note.

some might say I am letting them go easy. I'm just glad my bike is back and now I have a new tool to add to my bike kit!

haha nice.
that's probably the smoothest solution,
and no one suggested it.
well done.

probably coulda just used a bic pen
but that is sweet anyways

nice one astrx

You rock. Perfect solution.

I like that you locked it back up across the street. That way the owner (who very well may just be a damned idiot) will get quite a shock without you having done anything to damage their bike.

So a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Are keyed Kryptonities that quickly picked?

I've seen locksmiths work relatively quickly picking locks, so I wonder how familiar they are with Kryptonites.

probably coulda just used a bic pen
but that is sweet anyways

Except that wouldn't have worked in this case.

Moving the bike across the street is a wonderfully, elegant jab at the offender. Nice work!

So a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Are keyed Kryptonities that quickly picked?

I've seen locksmiths work relatively quickly picking locks, so I wonder how familiar they are with Kryptonites.

I have an older flat keyed Krypto lock from 15 years ago. The key is just like a small house key where the pins are lined up in a row in the cylinder. Anyone who knew what they were doing could easily open this lock. The new style Kryptonite flat keys are a different design with two rows of pins. They are much more difficult, but not impossible to open with a pick.

Sweet...well done! ;)

I am asking myself if I would go back and crazy glue the keyhole :o

just empty the whole thing in there. :D

So, what kind of bike was it?