Originally Posted by chasm54

Thieves who are equipped with power tools to defeat high quality u-locks know what they're stealing. They aren't going to be fooled by a bit of masking tape. So in my opinion the "make it ugly" strategy is a fail.

The vast majority of bike thefts aren't committed by professionals with power tools, they're opportunist and the thief has wire or bolt cutters at best. Making your bike less easy to steal than its neighbours is still the best option, and a good u-lock plus decent cable is the way to do that. Not a guarantee, but nothing is; and I haven't lost one yet...