Interesting timing for this post, two days ago I spent a bit over $100 USD for a new lock, bought it on sale, list price was about $130.

I would be quite angry if I lost another bike. I have only had one stolen, I bought it as a teenager with my savings from the income of about a year of newspaper deliveries on my paper route. It was a cheap bike, but it cost me a year of income so it was probably my biggest ever loss by theft when measured in time value.

I am at a point in life where if my most expensive bike was stolen, I would be extremely angry but I could easily afford the loss without financial hardship. So, I do not let the value of my bikes dictate what I take and where I take it. Thus, I tour on the bike that would be best for the conditions that I am riding in.

From your other post, it sounds like you are going to France. If I was going there, I would likely bring my Rohloff bike because it is my only S&S bike so it would simplify transport issues for me. Thus, I would be bringing one of my most valuable bikes. And I would bring good locks. And I would be extremely careful about where I put it. And I might be tempted to throw some mud on it to try to make it look less desirable. But I would not let the value of it stop me from bringing that on a trip like that.

I built up a new Titanium touring bike last spring and have been considering a new lock for it. That is why I bought the new lock two days ago. Almost all of the components I put on that bike were technology that was at least a decade old, and I even put a 20+ year old rear derailleur on it. So, you can't say it is a higher end bike. But, you can't hide a Titanium frame, that bike will look desirable to all potential thieves. I would take that bike anywhere that I would take any other bike, but my level of care in where I put it and how I lock it would be much higher than for some of my other bikes.

Although my S&S and Rohloff bike is probably about the same value as my Titanium bike, I am much more careful with my Titanium bike than I am with my Rohloff bike for one simple reason. I have never seen another Rohloff in my community, I have a neighbor that works as a bike mechanic and he has commented that my Rohloff is the only one he has ever seen. Thus, almost nobody in my community knows that the rear hub is worth more than most complete bikes are worth. That lack of knowledge about value I think helps make that bike a little less likely to be stolen.

Most of the bikes that were stolen from friends of mine in the past decade were opportunistic thefts, low end inexpensive bikes that were not locked up. The best prevention is knowing your risk level and taking appropriate steps to counter that.