Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Preventing saddle theft

I'm seeing too many posts on craigslist here in the Austin area saying their saddles are being stolen.

Are there any saddle locks or anything like that out there to prevent a quick allen-wrench theft?

Super glue ball bearings in the heads of your allen screws. When you need access to that particular bolt, a little acetone will melt the glue and you can remove the ball bearing.

Pitlock makes a seatpost binder bolt plus a seatpost loop, but you need to have a QR seatpost with flat surfaces on both sides of the clamp.

I never quite followed the ball bearing logic. Why wouldn't a thief be able to use the same method to remove the ball bearing?

They could, but it's better than having no prevention at all.

how many thiefs carry acetone around? If someone wants anything bad enough they will get it, the whole idea behind prevention is to make the job more difficult and time intensive so they don't take the risk. The longer it takes the less likely they will do it.

A cable lock works well, and doesn't prohibit you from changing seat height.

how many thiefs carry acetone around?

a thief that has seen your seat post before and has planned a way to get it. Thieves carry whatever it is they need to steal what they want, and if it's a seat post with ball bearings in it, they might have the tools to get the job done.

I agree with you that they will get it if they want it and that all we can do is slow them down, but I have simply not been convinced that the bearings are a good enough idea to go out and do it.

its just about making a little harder. there are other saddles that require no effort and they will get those first.

old chain?

Get a crappier saddle. Put on the saddle from an old Huffy that you rode as a kid and still have in your garage for some reason. Only use your good saddle when you're not planning on locking your bike up somewhere sketchy.

its just about making a little harder.


this

a thief that has seen your seat post before and has planned a way to get it. Thieves carry whatever it is they need to steal what they want, and if it's a seat post with ball bearings in it, they might have the tools to get the job done.

Yeah, but they could just use a cutting disk to lop the seatpost off if they really wanted the saddle. 90% of bikes have QR binder bolts, and those are the ones that get stolen most, I'll bet.

I see a lot of seats with old chains locking them to the frames. It's about as likely a thief would have a chainbreak on him as acetone, though.

Yeah, I use a cable lock too. Just weave it through the rails. If your cable is long enough you'll be able to get the back tire too. (there a thread in commuting about this).

Other people use a bike chain PLUS plastic tape (ace hardware has all sorts of colors). Now I know that an idiot could get it off but if you put like 3-4 layers of that stuff on it'll take them all day to remove it. And then if you catch them in the act you can Jean Claude VanDamme their face!

a thief that has seen your seat post before and has planned a way to get it. Thieves carry whatever it is they need to steal what they want, and if it's a seat post with ball bearings in it, they might have the tools to get the job done.

I agree with you that they will get it if they want it and that all we can do is slow them down, but I have simply not been convinced that the bearings are a good enough idea to go out and do it.

have you tried removing superglue + bb's before? it takes about 30 mins per bolt.

that's as good as any security measure as you're going to get when locking up on the street.

I actually have never tried. I guess I know what i'm doing tomorrow lol

^^^
That was probably a fun hour spent just to adjust your seat and stem haha
If it really takes that long seems like a decent idea. You could also get one of those ghetto gel seat covers and put that over it to make it look like a piece of crap

Old chain w/o master link + old tube = seat protector.

Made one for my beater, since it has a Fizik saddle.
Thats the only part worth stealing on the frame.

Since the chain went through the tube, the only way to really take the seat would be to...

1) Loosen the seat post clamp
2) Lower the seat post, to give slack to the chain, to turn it around to expose the chainlinks.
3) Break chain.

a bolt cutter would easily cut through an old chain, and I'm sure plenty of bike thiefs are aware of those

I've been told candle wax dripped into the hole of a hex nut can be used, as well.

a bolt cutter would easily cut through an old chain, and I'm sure plenty of bike thiefs are aware of those

And if the thief had a bolt cutter, they would go for more than just a seat anyways.

Point of the chain method, is a deterrent.

If a bike thief wants something, theyll get it, and have the tools to take it.

Not ALL thiefs carry around heavy duty tools.

Those who take seats simply carry an allen wrench set.

I've been told candle wax dripped into the hole of a hex nut can be used, as well.

Good thing crackheads don't carry lighters!

:p

I've used wax on my allen heads and then used a silver paint marker to paint over it. It just looks like a solid round bolt head filled in with solder.

I never quite followed the ball bearing logic. Why wouldn't a thief be able to use the same method to remove the ball bearing?

any deterrent is not 100% full prove...the most u can do is buy urself time....

making a theif go through a process which may take another 3-4 minutes MAY be enough for him to not want ur **** that badly

all the bike locks u see on the street EVEN with chains CAN be cut....but obviously there is a difference between walmart chains and the heavy duty kryptonite ones u see....

One thing you COULD do, is find hardware that uses an odd sized tool...


kind of like wheel locks on car wheels

And if the thief had a bolt cutter, they would go for more than just a seat anyways.

Point of the chain method, is a deterrent.

If a bike thief wants something, theyll get it, and have the tools to take it.

Not ALL thiefs carry around heavy duty tools.

Those who take seats simply carry an allen wrench set.

a chaintool isnt exactly heavy duty or cumbersome to carry. anyone can break a chain in about 10 seconds. using a chain might stop the casual thief of opportunity, but if you lock up in the same place regularly or just happen to be unlucky enough to have your bike noticed by someone that is prepared, your saddle will be gone quick.

the best solution against theft is buying time not relying on whether or not the thief has a tool or not. a chain will only last 10 seconds. superglue + bb will last at least 20 minutes per bolt and most people have two or three bolts in their saddle setup.

superglue + bb will last at least 20 minutes per bolt and most people have two or three bolts in their saddle setup.

wtf?

i'm pretty sure 1 bolt holds on most seatposts.............?
i see what you're saying, but you only need to remove 1 bolt to steal a saddle/ seatpost combo.

http://brycefastener.com/?gclid=COf6oMX-qZgCFQpuGgodkDTGmA

wtf?

i'm pretty sure 1 bolt holds on most seatposts.............?
i see what you're saying, but you only need to remove 1 bolt to steal a saddle/ seatpost combo.

One bolt on the seatpost and another one or two on the saddle clamp.

wtf?

i'm pretty sure 1 bolt holds on most seatposts.............?
i see what you're saying, but you only need to remove 1 bolt to steal a saddle/ seatpost combo.

that is correct.

I use all the bolts.

sometimes the superglue + bb might be more difficult to remove in one than the others, so it's best to use them all. so, if the thief has trouble with the main seatpost clamp bolt, he would have to move onto the other bolt (or two). and if he's lucky to be able to remove the full saddle setup with one bolt, that's still 20-30 minutes of really frustrating work. most u-locks and chains can be snapped with a leverage bar or car jack or cut in less amount of time.

Most people seem to be missing the point of the whole chain/BB thing. If your saddle is difficult to steal, chances are the thief is going to steal the saddle of the bike next to it.

Assuming the bike next to yours has a decent saddle on it. I think an extra 3-4 minutes it would take to get the bearings out of the bolts and break the piece of chain holding the saddle in place (theoretically) on my bike to walk away with a Thomson seatpost and Fizik saddle vs. the bike next to mine with an OEM saddle and post is going to be a no-brainer to most thieves.

I don't know how much you make per hour, but for most, $50 per minute (give or take) is a pretty big incentive.

a chaintool isnt exactly heavy duty or cumbersome to carry. anyone can break a chain in about 10 seconds. using a chain might stop the casual thief of opportunity, but if you lock up in the same place regularly or just happen to be unlucky enough to have your bike noticed by someone that is prepared, your saddle will be gone quick.

the best solution against theft is buying time not relying on whether or not the thief has a tool or not. a chain will only last 10 seconds. superglue + bb will last at least 20 minutes per bolt and most people have two or three bolts in their saddle setup.

Right, but thats why you have the chain going through a tube, so they cant directly get to the chainlinks. Also having it taught, makes it hardly/impossible to turn the tube to the exposed links.


Again, its only a deterrent.

The Zefal anti-theft quick release skewers for wheels and seatpost look interesting. If you usually take your seat post with you when parking for a long time and therefore prefer a quick release, this would be a good one to use so that you could leave it on for short trips away from the bike (shopping, for example).

http://www.zefal.com/zefal/produit.php?key=497001

Glossy off-white paint can be splattered onto your saddle to simulate fresh bird sht. A thief will not want to handle the saddle or put it into their bag.

a bolt cutter would easily cut through an old chain, and I'm sure plenty of bike thiefs are aware of those

Yeah, true, but then there going to get your back tire too. I mean come on how many of use use a cable lock for the back tire and haven't had any problems. Anything is possible to get your bike...so 1) lock it up on a very public bike rack where tons of other bikes are...Thiefs get scarred too. 2) if it's at night bring it inside your house (don't even leave it on an outside balcony) , 3) if you're bar hopping take your beater (or build a beater), and 4) if you ever see someone taking someone else's bike SPEAK UP. If we can create a community of noisy nancies then we can decrease bike theft (sort of like those community watch programs) so watch your local hood.

B

Also, make your saddle look crappy with a plastic bag, duct tape saddle cover. You do this, then you'll be able to keep it (don't buy the brooks brand saddle cover dead give-away). have the bag go past the post if your post isn't generic. Put some Obama stickers on it so they know deep down you are a good person (just a little political humor) and they'll be less likely to take your saddle. My problem is I'm forgetful and I'll forget to take the saddle with the quick release and then that thing's gone. I have a brooks and people tell me others don't steal brooks, but given their trendiness I can totally see it happening. So deterent plus Phil Hartman idea of a luxury ride that looks like crap (google it, it's an SNL commercial).

I dunno about Madison, but Toronto has seen quite a rash of Brooks thefts over the last year or so. I think at least 2-3 people in the Toronto thread have reported their saddles being stolen, and I don't think there are even 20 of us who post here regularly...

i wonder if a thief would read this thread...

I dunno about Madison, but Toronto has seen quite a rash of Brooks thefts over the last year or so. I think at least 2-3 people in the Toronto thread have reported their saddles being stolen, and I don't think there are even 20 of us who post here regularly...

I haven't heard anything either, but dudes in the commuter forum told me that who would steal a saddle that was formed to my ass! I have a huge ass so I'm guessing another huged assed individuals ;). Like I said I lock her up!

i wonder if a thief would read this thread... I don't know do we offer free crack for membership. Maybe a bumb of meth? if not we're probably ok.

Comfortable low end saddle and plain stem, problem solved.

No one is going to spend even 5 minutes to rip off a $40 setup.

And I hate to break it to you, but it's not just crack/methheads who steal bikes and bike parts. It's also other riders who don't have the money but still want a Thompson stem and a Brooks saddle. I've seen more than a few bike thieves busted on the USC campus and it's usually kids on fixies of their own.

Everyone's always talking about the sophistication of the bike thieves, imagining that they carry dremel tools, bolt cutters, nitro, and acetone. When in reality there are enough people who do a poor job of locking their bikes all you need to do is undo a quick release or carry a 15mm wrench. I lock up every day in downtown Los Angeles and use two Kryptonite U-Locks, no super glue, no wax in the bolt heads, and my bike is always exactly as I left it. And I don't worry about it either, because there are, on any given day a couple of way nicer bikes next to mine locked with tumbler locked cable locks. And these are the morons who then come on these forums and talk about the super-powered bike thief. They might as well just hang a "Free Bike" sign on them after they lock up. IMO the secret is just to make your bike the least desirable and most difficult target.

I've had cheap components stolen before. A friend of mine had is beater stolen recently - it was locked with a u-lock and the bicycle couldnt have been worth more than $50.

And the professional thief will have tools. The MO is basically driving around in a van with a carjack, 4' bolt cutters, or battery operated power tools and targeting bicycles locked up. 5-10 minutes of work and they throw the bicycle into the van.

I think some of this is good advice. You could also just take your seat in with you in your backpack (assuming you have one).

If a thief wants your bike or parts that badly, they will get them.
No Krypto chain or ulock will stop them.
A bikes lock is only as strong as the weakest link.

Think about DRM and all the **** software companies do to prevent pirating.
Yet the programs and software are still cracked within a week.

And thief's aren't just interested in bikes. Your $80 Krypto chain is valuble on the street too, they will take percausons to not cut the chain if they dont have to, so make sure the padlock/whatever is up to the task too.

I don't know do we offer free crack for membership. Maybe a bumb of meth? if not we're probably ok.

Most bike thieves I know of aren't druggies or bums, rather they know what they are after (high end stuff).

Druggies and bums are the people who will likely be deterred from stealing most things if you use some theft prevention devices.

The real thieves will just come prepared.

Fine, I can see people can't take a joke. We all get the point that if someone wants to steal your bike they will...And not all thieves are crackheads. Great. But why does everything on this forum turn into a debate? Look, if we can't say anything because there's always something someone can do to steal a bike, then this is a postmodern argument and no one wins with postmodernism--catch 22. We all agree that there are still things someone can do to steal your bike, chances are some thieves read this forum, but if they do they won't be thieves for long because you can view how much we love our bikes and if they're human they have a capacity for empathy. Look we all posted what we thought would work (I posted a poor joke that was again taken seriously). Let homes and future homes that read this site make up their own decisions about it. If your solution is to buy a crappy seat and post, then that's cool (even though I won't give up the style of my brooks), but I know people that "steal" crappy seats and posts off bike that no one's used in 3 years (I live on a college campus lots of rusted chains).

The point is we love our bike, we do what we can to protect them, and hopefully they don't get stolen. But even if they get stolen there's hope...Like this one time my buddy Jared saw my stolen bike, chained it up, hacksawed the other guy's lock off, the other guy came up to him and they got in an altercation, my friend won, and I got my bike back (and I gave my buddy a bike as a reward...).

For a community that shares a hobby and a "lifestyle" we bicker a whole f'in ton.

But why does everything on this forum turn into a debate?

For a community that shares a hobby and a "lifestyle" we bicker a whole f'in ton.

Welcome to the internets.

My opinion is that if you leave your bike alone there is a chance something will get stolen or damaged. The bb sounds like a pretty good idea because.... most bike thieves are opportunists. Sure they would come back with the right tools but for what? A 100 dollar saddle they could sell for maybe 1/2 it's value (if it's in new condition). That's assuming they know which is the 100 dollar saddle. I think they would just go find another target. Most people determined and smart enough to go through the motions you guys are talking about don't steal bikes. They steal things like motorcycles and laptops. If they are bike thieves and they are going to make sure they have the right tools.... They will take the whole bike (bolt cutters seem faster than key wrenches anyways).

Best way to not get your saddle stolen? Park it next to the 1000 dollar road bike with the cable lock.