locks keep honest people honest.....or something like that
a thief will go for the easiest target or if they know they have time, the one with the best resale/pawn price
there has been advice on make your bike ugly and I have thought of that several times, but I like my stuff looking nice even if it is old. All of my bikes are old, but they look good and that can be a bad thing, as I often have people come up and say, wow nice bike, or nice expensive bike
when I prob have less invested then they do in their big box store stuff
all that said, a few weeks ago, my son had to get a new mid line parking brake cable made for a modified Toyota he has and at the store ( a farm store) he ha dthem cut a piece of braided ss cable and attach two crimp ends to his demenisions. I always kept that in the back of my mind.
Friday I went in to the same farm store and had them make me two cables. I don't remember size right now. One is probabally 1/8 inch and about 5 feet with a loop at each end. Another I had made up in a small 14 gauge ss cable about 4 feet long with loops. I wont carry these things all the time, but when I know I am going to have to leave the bike un attended for a long period, im gonna carry them. the longer thicker cable is going to route through my front wheel and back to the lock. the shorter thinner one is going to go through my pannier handles, up through my seat frame and back to the main lock.
my theory is , if it looks complicated for a thief, they will look for an easier target