How to defend a bike seat?
 

found any good solutions for deterring thieves of bike seats?

I lock mine along with the rear wheel through the frame with a chain lock through the rails.

way too much.

I'm trying to figure out some sort of light cable lock or maybe like a modified cable.

after buying the seat I'm noticing that it kind of stands out compared to most bikes.

Lose the quick-release.

The majority of thieves are opportunists--meaning they're lazy. If something is easy to take, they will. If not, they'll leave it. Depending on your local thieves, something as simple as a bolt-on seatpost collar--less than $10--may be all you need.

I've gone the next step with a Pitlock through my bolt-on seatpost collars.

This, however, does not secure the saddle to the seatpost. But they also sell a seatpost lanyard that will.

The traditional method of accomplishing that is to use a section of bike chain threaded through the saddle rails and the seatstays. Don't use a master link, but insert a new pin using your chain tool. Most folks will run the chain through a length of old inner tube to protect the paint and keep the noise down. It won't deter the chain tool-equipped thief, but as discussed above, most thieves are opportunists.

And it may stand out in a way that is not attractive to thieves. Around here, most thieves want MTBs or cruisers. I ride roadies with ass-hatchet saddles. Comments I get from the local riff-raff are usually of the "Dude, how can you ride that thing?" variety.

it's a nice looking leather saddle.

Yeah, lack of quick-release is good, since, really, most people don't walk around with hex tools.

I have heard that Brooks are pretty attractive to higher-end thieves. Don't know if a standard seat lanyard would really do anything, we have one on my daughter's bike.

The one saddle ( and seat post ) of mine that's ever been stolen wasn't a quick release. But I thought I was clever parking it out of sight ... where a thief could work on it without pesky passers by. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

I already carry the spare chain so I can lock both wheels anyway. My Arione was around $160 bucks, my Swallow was over $200, plus more importantly, I don't want to break in another one... it's not too much IMO.

fwiw, the chain is an abus 685 http://www.amazon.com/Abus-Steel---C...1423569&sr=1-2 It's slightly less than 2lbs. Not too bad for the extra security it provides.

All my bikes have Brooks. I find that they tend to be much less attractive when covered with a grocery bag in order to repel rain. Leave it on whenever parked, don't use QRs; good to go (or stay, actually).

Ride in a thong. Nobody will touch it.

Paste pieces of duck tapes on the seat.

#1, Loose the quick release binder! #2, glue ball bearing into hex hole of the binder, after perfecting post placement. and #3, Camouflage the seat- I use a Serfas Waterproof cover over my Brooks Champion Flyer (got it from REI); another friend ties oneof those hideous Bell "Gel- seatcovers" over his saddle when he locks it up.

You can purchase a thin cable designed for this purpose. It fastens to the seat by screwing an end under the clamp that holds the seat to the post. The rest of the cable is wrapped around the frame. If someone releases the quick-release and pulls out the seat, it still is attached to the frame by the cable.

The advantage is, you can adjust the seat height as needed, and you don't have to fuss with locking up the seat when you lock the bike. The disadvantage is, if a thief has a hex wrench or a good wire cutter, he still could take the seat without a lot of effort. This is a solution that deters the crime of opportunity or casual malice. I use it because my "theater of operations" is a low-crime area and my office parking site is by a police station.

Rather than a lanyard or chain through the saddle rails, couldn't one replace the bolt(s) at the top of the post with tamper-resistant ones?

Apologies if this is a dumb question- I'm Googling for tamper-resistant bolts/screws, but I don't know the size and thread of the bolts in my seatposts.

You defend it with the most powerful force in the universe:

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u...e/Se/chuck.jpg

A length of old bicycle chain can be effective. Loop the saddle rails and drape the chain around the seat stays. Adjust the chain to fit.

Admittedly not the most attractive route, but an extra line of defense none-the-less.

Take it with you.

Pitlock makes a locking clamp.

http://www.pitlock.com/

I went with a bicycle chain inserted in a tube so it wouldn't scratch my frame. Doesn't look the best but the bike is a a commuter.

I put a D-lock through my rear wheel and frame and then use a steel cable looped through the front wheel and locked to the D-lock. Then a simple padlock secures the saddle rail to the cable.

If someone really wanted to they could cut the rail and remove the saddle but it would be useless. They could remove the saddle and steal the seatpost. But by that stage it's much easier to just steal the saddle off the next bike along.

Make it ugly.

Glue in the relevant allen key holes. When it comes time to make adjustments or remove a seat or post, it's usually easy to remove the glue with a burr in your Dremel tool. Choose your glue wisely, and don't use Shoo Goo, because it works a little too well and is hard to remove because it's so stretchy. Most glues even epoxy don't stick too well to chrome, which is in the vast majority of bolt heads, except the rusty ones, heh.

I use my u-lock and have a thin cable I run through my wheels and my saddle. It's fine for lower-crime areas. I would want a heavier cable than I've got for downtown Denver.

My locking wheel skewer set came with a locking seat post clamp bolt. However, I never used it, because I use a hex bolt and I don't think my seat is desirable enough for a thief to bring the tools to unbolt it.