Kevlar coated cable locks?
 

I saw an interesting gimmick today at Wally-World. Bell has inexpensive cable locks that have a kevlar coating over the cable. Over that is the plastic.

Would this slow a pair of sharp bolt cutters at all? (I figure it can still be cut)

here's a better question: which cable lock gets the nod these days? mine is mid-grade.

Basically, a worthless marketing gimmick. I doubt it would slow a thief with strong tools down at all. Bottom line is that all cable locks should be considered low security, and only to keep honest people honest. Strong, heavy chains or U-locks are much better, but any lock can be defeated with the right tools. Location probably matters as much or more.

If the kevlar could stop a cutting tool (which it can't) then what would be the point of the steel cable beneath it?

Like mnemia said, it's a marketing gimmick.

Gimmick as far as I can tell. I have a couple of cable locks with the Kevlar in them, but they came with bikes that I flipped. For me they have enough protection so far for the bikes I ride for the time I leave them alone. If I was worried I would ride my crappier bike that day and/or add a u-lock to the locking equation.

Gimmick unless the common thieves switched to use guns to shoot through cabling :P

I'd love to see that btw.

Kevlar does nothing against cutting tools. I'm shocked really, to see it has any effect on puncture resistance for tires (Kevlar doesn't stop knives either, but somehow it works on road garbage).

The Kevlar filaments do nothing to prevent cutting equipment from eating the cable alive. I know this from experience having cut such a lock off of a bike that I found in the trash. Unless you live in a nice, quiet suburb where the only thieves are opportunist punks, then I would not settle for anything less than a reputable u-lock such as the Kryptonite Evo Mini or Fahghettaboudit or a similarly reputable chain lock from Kryptonite. For other specific models, a simple search can be done on this forum to find the one that is best suited to your needs. Good luck!

Cheers
lverhagen