Originally Posted by
lambo_vt
I understand that. Let's posit that I will be locking up a beater-ish bike on a low-risk college campus during the day for classes, and the bike will be stored in my apartment at night. I'm leaning towards buying one of the chains and calling it good to go... I guess my reasoning is I can lock the wheels and frame with a chain whereas a U lock would require a cable or something. What do you think?
Do you mean a chain with a combo lock built in to it? I haven't seen that. If they do make them, there is no way it is as secure as a U lock. If not, how will you lock the chain?
The poster above me makes some good sense.
Chain + U lock is the equivalent style of lockup, but way better than a cable.
If it truly is a low risk area, you could get away with a U lock through the seat tube and rear wheel (at the same time), and around a secure bike rack. Use a bolt on front wheel/allen head bolts or locking skewer and don't worry about it.