Because folks are curious about how the European locks compare with the Kryptonite New York locks, I'm listing the "cut times" for the best locks in the "Cycling Plus" test. Each of the "best" locks survived a full five minute attack with manual "prying" and "leverage" type tools...and if a leverage attack fails after five minutes, it is likely to also fail after an hour...pry proof is pry proof. However, no lock lasts forever against a "pocket sized" battery operated cutting tool used by crooks in some cities.


The longest "cut" times in the "Cycling Plus" test are:

1. The Kryptonite New York 3000 lock. 1757 grams. Lasted more than ten minutes. Sold at your LBS. (The Kryptonite Fahgettaboudit Chain lock lasted eight minutes against power tools in a prior CP test.)

2. The Squire Paramount Plus. 2047 grams. Lasted nine minutes. A leading UK brand.

3. The Axa-Basta SecuCity Plus. 1604 grams. Lasted eight minutes. A UK and European brand.


After the Axa-Basta, there was a huge drop-off in the resistance to power tools. The next group of locks all lasted less than three minutes against portable power tools. Among the "medium time" group was a "low priced" lock:

The Magnum UL1 ("bargain priced" brother of the OnGuard Brute) 2,335 grams. Lasted two 1/2 minutes.

(The "Magnum" brand is the lower priced line sold by OnGuard locks. Available in the UK and I THINK I have seen some at bike shops in Houston.)


Also in the "medium times" group was a lock from Germany's BEST name in locks:

The Abus Varedo. 1132 grams. Lasted 1 minutes and 13 seconds. The highly regarded German-designed Abus Granit-X-Plus was not tested by Cycling Plus this time, but the Granit-X-Plus has done very well in all prior published tests, and in tests by "Sold Secure" and the ART Foundation. The Abus Varedo shows that even a company as outstanding as Abus can sell some mediocre products that should NOT be compared with their best products.


MINI LOCKS: Most folks don't want to take an eight pound lock on a short ride or when grabbing a cup of coffee. So, "Mini" locks are popular for everyday use. The only tested "Mini" lock that protected as well as the Kryptonite New York 3000 lock against manual attacks was the OnGuard Bulldog Mini lock:

The OnGuard Bulldog Mini. Under two pounds. Lasted 1 minutes and 16 seconds against power tools.

The 2005 model OnGuard Pitbull Mini has a similar design, and should do as well (the Pitbull costs about $35 compared with $24 for the Bulldog - they are essentially the same lock).

Please consider "hunting down" and buying a copy of the April "Cycling Plus" at Borders Books or Barnes and Noble Books or a larger size magazine store. "Cycling Plus" is well worth its expensive $9 price. CP usually includes at least five times the "content" of America's leading cycling magazine. If this "lock test" issue sells well, the editors of "Cycling Plus" will be encouraged to continue their very expensive and time consuming lock testing program.