So when's the youtube link to the security camera?

Nothing is indestructable. U locks are good against totally unprepared, undetermined thieves. That's about it. If somebody is interested in stealing your bike with a u lock, it can be done quickly and easily.
And you think people on the street are going to say something to the thief? Wrong! and if they do, his response will be " I lost my key"

Your comments betray a lack of familiarity with the most basic bike theft statistics. But feel free to continue to misrepresent the facts-- it is the internet, after all, where not everybody has critical thinking faculties.

I have the video, but its in Intellex Proprietary format, which doesn't allow to export as AVI or anything which is very frustrating. Does anyone have experience with this CCTV format? The security guys in our building were incredibly helpful but only knew how to burn the disc in this format!

If anyone has any hosting space I have an 11mb .iso file of the CD which includes the software to play it back.

I haven't been back to this thread since yesterday afternoon as it was my birthday and I was out having drinks last night. I'll read and reply to some of the posts.

Cheers

Jon

Wow, Happy Birthday, I hope the thief didn't ruin it too much.

Sorry to hear I have that same lock...

Correct. I cut down a bunch of heavy steel pipes that were supports for an awning over my patio a few years back. I used a handheld saw. It was noisy and messy but each cut only took about 10 seconds tops, and that was about double the circ of a ulock.

Some people recommend using two different types of locks to secure your bike-- for example, a u-lock and a chain. That way, a thief equipped with tools to break one or the other will still be unable to steal your bike. Is this a situation where a heavy duty chain like the New York Fahgettaboudit, in tandem with the New York u-lock, would have prevented the theft? Or would the sawzall have cut through both with equal ease?

Not sure I appreciate the insinuation that this is some sort of hoax! I can assure you that the lock was attached to my bike and to a sturdy metal bike rack. The lock was removed from the bike frame, but could not be removed from the bike rack as the rack was a much larger diameter than any of the bike - that said, if the thief had wanted the lock too, it took <2 mins from walk up to ride away, a second cut would not have been an issue for this guy - he also cut through the kryptonite cable that was looped through frame and wheels. I retrieved the lock by unlocking it, I did put it back together for the photos to illustrate the cut.

In relation to the rust, the bike was stolen at 0950 in Chicago, the lock was left on the ground pretty much as you see in the photo - then at around 1600 it rained HEAVILY for about an hour, I picked up the lock off the ground at around 1800 that night (8 hours later) the photos were taken around 1900 that night.

I am in contact with Kryptonite and my home owners insurance, see how it goes.... I will be buying another Cronus though! I will also be looking for a $100 commuter or something.

I have posted about the video - if I can I will put it online.

Jon

Nope sorry. That just doesn't do it for me. Only stories of violent revenge against bike thieves will make me feel all fuzzy inside.

I've just spent the last 5 minutes fantasizing about smashing a bike thief's face into the pavement over and over and over again until it becomes a bloody mangled mess and his screams for mercy just become jumbled whimpers.

I really hope I never catch a bike thief in the act.

With the right blades, a good sawzall with chop through just about anything easily. Except a stranded cable or a chain. While a simple bolt cutter will pop a stranded cable with ease, a sawzall has a reciprocating blade which tends to snag on the individual strands. The NYC chain would be a tough cut with the sawzall, too. Anything that isn't easy to stabilize the entire length of what you're cutting, really. Sawzall is great for things like sheet metal, steel rods, box beams, slab metal, etc. All fairly solid items. I can think of a few ways to "stretch" a chain and try to hold tension on it, but it's not gonna keep it still enough for a sawzall.

Cheers! I did plenty I was pi$$ed (off) on Tuesday, depressed a little yesterday, but today I am just keen to get on with the rebuilding of my cycling plans.

I am really liking the balance of users on the forum, it has been very useful and I will continue to contribute as much as possible.

Jon

Yeah I figured that after I did it - I still keep an eye out on there as I'm looking for a cheap commuter bike.

Jon

So, the advice to mix it up with your locks appears to be sound. If the thief had encountered a bike locked with both a Fahgettaboudit u-lock AND a Fahgettaboudit chain, he'd have moved on, unless he was equipped for both. In the end, keeping the same routine day in and day out may allow a pro thief to scout out both your security AND your routine, and come back prepared.

I guess I'll be adding a chain to the mix. Good thing my bike is light...

I think I will go down the New York Fahgettaboudit route, add another u-lock and find a better spot for the bike - all of this is ok, but I don't think I will ride the (new) fisher to work anymore unless I can park it by my desk!

Here's a screen cap of the 'tea leaf' (attached)

Jon

Well, there has been a lot of controversy on these boards lately about bike locks. Some company whose been hawking their chains and posting videos of how easy they could defeat the competitors products. And then you post pictures showing a cut New York Fahgettaboudit U-lock, which is supposed to be the biggest badest ulock available. And you've only been a member of the board for about a month. So I'll admit I've been suspicious as well. It's quite common for people to shill on internet forums so it pays to be wary.

I'll shoot you a PM, I may be able to host that file.

Make that a month longer than you......

Yeah I'm new to the forum, I see why it might look iffy. I've been riding since I was a kid with a paper round, but I didn't bring my bike across from the UK and never got round to buying one last year.

I have managed to reduce the file to about 3mb and I found a link to a free player from Intellix. I might be able to host that. I'll check when I get back from my birthday trip to vegas

Jon

It was just the timing of when your lock was cut, right after a controversial thread about that sort of thing. Welcome to Bikeforums!

In other news, eBay bike thief gets busted!

Man, big cities suck.

I lived in NYC in the 90s and I once saw a delivery driver stealing a complete POS delivery bike that was locked with a u-lock. I'm sure it was a basic u-lock. Anyhow, in the middle of the day on a busy street, he was hammering the heck out of the straight part (shackle?). Eventually, after about 20 or 30 blows, the shackle broke clean from the U. Later.

All this while many people, including me, walked by without so much as a, "what are you doing?".

Unfortunately (well, not really), nobody is willing to risk their life to protect someone else's property. You never know what these POS MOFO thieves are capable of, aside from stealing bikes.

I ride nice bikes to work and certainly take a risk every day. But I doubt that kind of stuff happens in my world.

Why would anyone be suspicious? Well, this is exactly the SECOND thread you have ever been part of. Secondly, you use some of the EXACT British slang and phrases that appeared in recent posts by ***** (and his three alter egos) in a thread attacking Kryptonite locks.

There may be a lot of cyclists in Chicago who use British slang, but you are the first I can recall posting here at Bike Forums. So, maybe you DID move to Chicago from the UK...or maybe ***** has a new scam going.

Next, according to the editors of Cycling Plus, opening your model of Kryptonite lock would require cutting both sides of the "U", as the lock as dual locking bolts, IF the interior of the "U" is filled by the rear wheel and a beefy locking post.

In a workbench, it might be possible to cut one leg of the "U", and then pivot the shackle to create a large gap. But, if the lock is properly used (with the rear wheel and a beefy locking post filling the interior of the "U", it would not be possible to pivot the shackle enough to create a gap large enough to remove the bike.

You opened this thread just HOURS after the lengthy ***** thread was removed from the Forums. You and ***** are the only people who have ever posted in Bike Forums claiming to have made a video showing that it is "easy" to open a top Kryptonite lock...so, why would anyone be suspicious?

But, there is no doubt the best portable power tools can open a Kryptonite lock (although tests by experts have indicated opening both sides of the "U" with power tools would take far, far longer than the "two minutes" you say it took to open your lock). That means that a good lock can only be one tool in fighting crooks.

If a bike is going to be out of the owner's sight for more than ten minutes or so, the owner must also use his brain:

- don't leave a bike unattended that LOOKS valuable (and shiny new $500 bikes look valuable). It is possible to modify a high quality older model bike to appear to be worth $20 with a can of spray paint and by riding it through some mud and letting the mud bake onto the bike. I modified a 1983 Trek that was a premium quality road bike so that it appeared to be worth LESS than $20...and it still rode like a $1,000 bike.

- don't park at a location where your bike is the ONLY bike in sight, or is the best bike in sight

- don't park an attractive bike at the same precise location day after day (giving crooks time to see it, figure out your schedule, and obtain the necessary equipment appropriate for your lock)

- if you must leave a bike in a public place for six, eight, or ten hours, consider using multiple "serious" locks, such as a heavy u-lock plus a heavy chain lock.

- itemize your bike with your "home contents" of your renters insurance or your home owners insurance. Most of these policies will cover listed items even when the theft occurs far from home.

- don't assume that the insurance policy that came with your bike lock will help you. The typical policy has LOTS of requirements, including that you prove the bike was properly locked, prove that the lock failed, and prove that no power tools were used.

You probably missed this post:




While the circumstances seem suspicious, I'm inclined to believe that it's purely coincidental.

I can honestly say that I do not recall the thread you are referring to, did I post on it?? There are a few million British people around the world, not sure how many live in Chicago although I know a few. In my thread I have not knowingly attacked Kryptonite, all I did was post what happened to me to make others aware that no matter what protection you invest in, there are people out there bold, prepared and capable of bypassing what I considered to be a top notch lock, I researched my lock choice carefully before buying it. I do have the video footage, and while its not clear, the time code indicates that from walk up to ride away was almost 2 minutes exactly, and in that time my NY lock and cable were both cleanly severed, by what I can only assume was a portable power tool of some sort. I wish I could post the video as I did the photos, but so far I have not been able to extract the video from the proprietary format used by the building's CCTV system. I am not interested in being a forum troll - I am usually a reader not a poster, but I felt strongly about this when I posted it - not because I am trashing the lock manufacturer, or comparing to any other manufacturers, just that I was seriously taken aback at how easy it seemed to defeat the lock - and I add I don't think any lock would have stopped this guy from taking my bike, 1 cut or 2 it would have added seconds to event.

I did move from the UK to Chicago, I am not interested in making up stories to feed to paranoia of keyboard heroes!

I think my ill thought out locking strategy, combined with the frustrating dimensions of the Cronus Genesis frame and the bike rack itself may have made it easier, thus the single cut - but as I say, 1 cut of the u lock and the cable took <1 min, so either way the lock was going to be defeated by whatever was used. I haven't read the article myself, so I can't comment beyond my own experience.

See above, I think I answered this.

I didn't make the video, the building's CCTV caught the video, and it is not detailed enough to illustrate anything beyond what I know to have transpired, I am not trying to prove any points with my original post beyond the plain fact that I locked my bike in a manner that I thought sufficient, only to have someone walk up and ride off in under two minutes. I wouldn't say easy is the right word, I think my point was that a determined, well equipped thief made it easy, not the design or manufacture of the lock - this a point made several times by many posters, and you have not seen me 'rubbishing' the lock/manufacturer??


I can only tell you what I experienced - <2 minutes, 1x Kryptonite U lock and 1x kryptonite cable, so 1 cut or two, would not have made a big difference in my opinion, based on a logical assumption that if 1 cut took less than 2 minutes, then 2 cuts would have taken less than 4 - and 4 minutes is not a long time.


I think that's a little insulting, but I'll let it slide beyond the underlining.

I agree this is a reasonable approach, not one I wanted to follow - rightly or wrongly I wanted my bike to look nice, and I may well rethink this with the next one.

I am tempted to photograph the area where I park my bike, but it wouldn't be fair to those who do park there, so I will only say that mine may have been the nicest at the time it was taken, but many bikes park there daily and one I *think* that often parks there is a carbon fibre equipped road bike, so I had looked before I started parking there and (again maybe naively) thought I'd be ok too.

Fair point, my options are limited sadly and from where I parked my bike (not daily and not with any given pattern) you could probably see all the other viable options anyway.

Again a fair point, and if you refer to one of my previous posts I can be quoted as saying that I was consider a Fahgettaboudit lock and chain in addition to another u lock - I would highlight this in my 'defence' of the charge you level of trying to rubbish the brand!

I did this, I think I may have mentioned this in my first post regarding insurance. My addition to this advice is to check your deductible, I didn't and wished I had - lesson learned, keen to know if anyone has any recommendations in this area?

I made no assumptions, and I have not leveled any direct criticism at the lock manufacturer either. I have emailed them to ask if they would like the lock for analysis, as that may assist them in the future development of their products - hardly the words of a commercial 'assasin'

I didn't mean to pad this out quite so much, but I felt it important that these 'accusations' were answered, and I hope I have managed to do so in a way that is considered within the boundaries of good forum etiquette and with a reasonable level of intelligence and usefulness.

PLEASE believe me when I say that this is:

- a true and un-doctored report on a real event that happened to me, my bike was stolen in the manner I describe, and I would not have believed it could be done so quickly had I not seen the CCTV footage, which I REALLY HOPE I can publish for anyone who is interested, I am working on it, but so far I have not managed to export it to any kind of usable format for youtube etc.

- I am not trying to make this an attack on any person, product or company and that was never my intention, nor is it now

- my aim from this thread was to highlight what happened to me so that the forum collective could learn from my experience with a view to reducing the repetition of any 'mistakes' I might have made. In sharing this information I hope to help at least 1 more person from having their bike (paid for with their own hard earned money) stolen by someone who does not have the decency to live an honest life like the rest of us.

- I hope this thread does not descend into random abuse and end up being deleted, that would not serve us well.

- I will re-read my initial posts, made very soon after the event, when I may well have been a little less level headed in the post theft emotion I was feeling. I felt horrible, and I am still very upset by the whole experience. If edits are needed, I'll make them.

Finally I will accept any and all CONSTRUCTIVE criticism so that I can learn from the wisdom and experience of others - that is the wonderful thing with forums such as these. What do not accept are unfounded suggestions of hoaxes, malicious motives or stupidity (naive sure, inexperienced sure, stupid no).

Please can we keep on topic, and when I get back from Vegas and I'm back at work on Monday I will at least post the .img file and a link to the CCTV playback software for those who wish to see the footage and make intelligent comment/critique.

Thanks

Jon

Jon,

You seem a bit "hurt" by my suspicions, but I can only say that the resemblance between portions of your original post, down to even bits of British "slang" are similar to language and slang in posts by the notorious *****, who is engaged in a slander and libel campaign against the Kryptonite company.

Your initial post came just hours after the ***** thread was deleted by the moderators of the Forum. Your questioning of the "intelligence" of someone who has questions about your report is IDENTICAL to the response ***** made to those who doubted his claims.

And, I have carefully read the reports of the editors of "Cycling Plus" of their "attacks" on the best Kryptonite locks, and your report that the lock was opened in less than two minutes is NOT consistent with the results of their tests.

The "Cycling Plus" tests are made with the locks "filled" by the rear wheel/and/or/seat tube PLUS a beefy locking post. Filling the inside of the "U" is essential, because it prevents inserting effective leverage and prying tools. That forces the crook to cut BOTH legs of the "U" to remove the bike from the locking post.

In the "Cycling Plus" tests, cutting both legs of the "U" requires FAR more time than you report, and the editors are using top quality power tools with brand new cutting blades.

For these reasons, the story you are reporting is inconsistent with the results "Cycling Plus" editors have seen, and the ability of the crook in your case to slip your bike frame or wheel through a 1/4th inch cut is mysterious indeed.

I look forward to seeing the video when you post it. By posting the video, it will be possible for Forum members in Chicago to see the face of the crook. Perhaps he is someone known to Chicago bike messengers or to Chicago bike shop employees.

And, the video may explain how an inch wide frame and a inch and half wide wheel can get slipped through a 1/4th inch cut in one leg of the shackle.

Hopefully, your insurance company will move quickly to reimburse you for your loss, and get you back on the road.