Originally Posted by
Edichek
I hear you and I agree with you. The only problem is that for me a bike is not just something for a Sunday afternoon ride, but now, that I'm retired, a mode of transportation. This means that I'm facing an increased risk of bike getting stolen. With an expensive bike I could never just tie it to a rack while shopping for groceries at a supermarket. I'd always worry about it. So there has to be a golden middle - a nice bike, but not so expensive that I would feel reluctant to leave it unattended.
Get a good locking system, practice good locking techniques and you should be OK. Don't be the easy target and don't leave a bike outside overnight or in areas that see little traffic or see a lot of random traffic often but never the same people for long periods (like outside of a subway station). A thief wants an easy target if you don't give them that they will likely move on unless they are really determined but outside of the grocery store or coffee shop...they are less likely to bring out the big cutting tools to steal it as it is an easy catch.
ABUS is an excellent choice as you can order a full keyed alike set with a
frame lock,
U Lock,
Folding Lock (though this specific one cannot be keyed to the other stuff but the 6405 is the same lock with a Plus Keyway) and
Chain Lock. You can also get
wheel locks from them. You can also add
Pitlock which can lock various components to the bike including wheels and can be keyed alike to itself.
Good to hear you say "mode of transportation" if only more people could think like that, bikes could be taken more seriously in this country. It is certainly getting better but a lot of people see bikes as toys still. Not saying that Sunday riding means you have a toy at all.