Originally Posted by
yama
When I was doing an image search on u-locks, i encountered some locks, which seemed to be stripped off of the original plastic or rubber parts, some bare, some with black tape. Is there any security gain involved, or is it just for fashion?
I can imagine that the screaming yellow or orange of some kryptonite locks could act like a "hello! here are some $$$".
Second question. Usually I carry two u-locks, one small and one big. Many times the remaining space of the small lock isn't sufficient for the bike-rack or stuff, but it would be sufficient to interlock it with another u-lock from the persons bike on the other side of the rack. Never done that, because I have this (irrational?) feeling of interfering with somebody elses property. On the other hand, this combination of locks could even improve security for both bikes...? What do you think? Would you find it embarrassing to find the unknown neighbours u-lock locked to yours?
My guess is that rubber or plastic fell off after repeated use and the tape is used to prevent the from scratching the bike. I doubt bike thieves care about the brand of u lock; if they have an angle grinder or bottle jack then the lock can be defeated.
As for combining locks, you don't get double the security; you get the security of the weakest lock. Only one lock needs to be removed for the bike to be stolen.