Originally Posted by
ColonelSanders
I'm not sure that you would be spared from a bike thief, just by going to a $100 cheaper bike, but you may be denying yourself a bike that suits you better.
If you get something like the top D-Locks/U-Locks from Abus or Kryptonite, a bike thief is going to need an angle grinder to be able to steal your bike, and will have to spend quite a while making one hell of a racket and fireworks show from sparks, to get it.
I suspect that literally all of the bikes stolen from Universities, have had mediocre to middling bike locks on them.
One of the big differences I see between the Escape 3 and 2 besides the fork, is that the 2 is a 8 speed while the 3 speed is a 7 speed. I know more speeds is optimal, but is the difference really significant? Does it depend on where you plan to ride?