Best Lock/Method for locking your bike up
 

Just got my bike and the primary use will be a drive to the gym in the early morning.

Next step is securing it. Outside of the gym, and a bit out of site, is a typical bike rack (the whole U shape rack).

I guess my options are to either lock it to the rack or lock it in some capacity in the locker room (which IS in my full site during my workout).

What locks do you all use? The dealer tonight was low and didn't have much left. Only other place I went to late tonight was Walmart and the most expensive lock they had was a Kryptonite Knockout for $18, but read some rather bad reviews on Amazon.

Personally I use a nice U lock from Kryptonite (the thicker ones) and a decent chain lock from Abus at the same time to thwart thieves. My second line of defense against bike theft is to park next to a bike that is easier to steal.

ALWAYS put it somewhere in your sight if possible. Any lock can be defeated .... and if you are not around and thieves can take their time ... and if the bike is always there, then they know what tools to bring ....

Not trying to scare you. Chances are you could park the bike there, unlocked, every day for years and always find it waiting when you got out.

However .... if that one day comes .....

In most cases, a good U-lock and a good chain for the front wheel/added security will be enough unless your bike is worth a lot.

Good point. It makes me a bit nervous that the bike rack is basically out of my sight 90% of the time I would be in the gym as it is to the side of the door to the gym and right next to the road (rather easy for a truck to pull up, kill the lock, throw in their truck bed, and be gone in a few minutes).

Bringing it inside the gym might be a bit tacky, but way less risky. You can't even get inside the gym without swiping your ID tag and they also have a camera by the front door.

Does the gym encourage people to bring in their bikes? I haven't been to many that would appreciate bikes in the locker room.

It is wholly dependent on your area. If it is relatively safe, get a good lock and leave it outside. If the area is too dangerous to leave a bike locked up outside, get less desirable bike or a gym in a more desirable area.

My LHT is locked to a sign pole outside my Philadelphia office building with a Kryptonite around the frame and front wheel and a thick cable securing the rear wheel. Cable is thread through the helmet. I fully expect them to be there when I head out for lunch and when I leave work at the end of the day.

I brought my bike into my gym and acted like I was supposed to and in three years I was only questioned once. I leave it in the near the door out of everybody's way ... and i drive when it is raining so I don't bring the bike in a leave puddles and mud.

Everyone's situation is different.

This form of locking up has always confused me. Isn't the rear wheel the more expensive wheel to replace (with drivetrain)? I always thought it was more logical to lock the rear wheel and frame with the u lock (better lock) and the front wheel with the cable. Is there a reason to do it the other way (curious)?

This a decent article on the security of various types of locks, not a big selection of locks, but it covers the major types. The best locks require 2 cuts with an angle grinder.

The Best Bike Locks - Cut Tests of U and Cable Models | OutdoorGearLab

I'm security paranoid - I lost a nice bicycle running an errand in 10mins on a busy city street corner with an Kryptonite U-lock (older one), and have had stuff stolen off a motorcycle, car windows broken into, etc. When concerned about security, I now use a folding bike and wheel it inside with me - works out well since I can fold it faster than I can properly lock a bicycle.

Another thing I'm testing for bike/bag security (within earshot, but out of sight), are small mechanical switch alarms - $10, 110-140 decibel personal security and door alarms that use pressure switches or pins you can tie off with fishing line.

Scare some fluids out of the potential thief ....

Putting the Kryptonite around the front wheel and the frame stabilizes the bike much better when it's locked to something like a sign post. Realistically, the odds of someone cutting through the cable, releasing the canti brakes and removing the rear wheel in broad daylight while scores of people (including, possibly, cops or maybe even the bike's owner) are walking by at any given moment are, IMO, are remote. Several years ago my ex lost the key to a lock that was securing a cable locking up a bike in my house. (We accidentally left the front door unlocked one night and someone stole one of my bikes, so for a while we licked them up in the house.) A mechanic from a LBS swung by the house after work with a pair of hand cutters to cut the cable. It took him maybe five minutes. The cable I am using is even tougher.


Been locking up bikes on the street this way for more than 30 years. Never had one stolen. Nor have I had a wheel stolen. A few years ago I accidentally left my seat bag on the bike and someone took that while I was at work. Many years ago I came out of a building to find the QR skewer for my seat post missing.


Lock it up outside over night is a different story. People will steal even bolted on rear wheels. I only lock up outside at night when touring, but never while spending the night in a big city. Sometimes I won't even bother locking my bike while touring, as was the case this past weekend when I camped in a nearly empty state forest campground with no easy access to main roads. The decision is based on situational awareness.

If you're parking it in the same place every day, just get a really thick/heavy hardened chain (not lifting chain) and correspondingly thick/heavy/shrouded padlock, and leave the chain/lock at the locking post.

If you want something lighter/more convenient to take with you, then I'd say some pitlocks for your wheels and headset, and a miniature U-lock to carry along.

Agreed.

"bosnianbill" is a channel on youtube that tests a lot of locks (including some bike locks)


Search through his channel for good locks/chains.

Anything can be cut with an angle grinder however.

Agreed.

"bosnianbill" is a channel on youtube that tests a lot of locks (including some bike locks)


This forum messes up links to channels not individual videos. Click where it says "click here."

Search through his channel for good locks/chains.

Anything can be cut with an angle grinder however.

Don't settle for second-best:

http://www.neatorama.com/wp-content/...ortlbipa01.jpg

Trying to find a u-lock that goes around the frame, back wheel and a fence. Is there such a large u-lock out there? Preferable a Kryptonite. Going to lock a CX with a Extrawheel outside shops when buying groceries. Going to run a Kryptonite KryptoFlex Bike Lock Cable thru the wheel of the Extrawheel , hopefully the cable is long enough for the front wheel too. It's the 2130mm version.

A health club would be a prime spot for a theft, because thieves would know that the bikes on the rack are probably not junk and maybe expensive. If you can't leave it indoors or within your sight, then lock it within someone's sight. Even in the middle of the parking lot chained to a light pole is better than out back, on a secluded bike rack.
My setup (for maximum security) is Blackburn Attica and San Quentin, so basically a top-notch chain/padlock and u-lock combination.

I stopped at the store last night, their lock section was a bit bare, but ended up buying a Kryptonite TKO Mini U-Lock & Cable. Used it this morning.

An interesting side note, it was only $18 at Walmart and is going for $43 on Amazon, very rare to see Amazon be the higher price, especially that much of a difference.

Onguard makes a long shank u lock that will fit rear wheel, frame and rack post. Onguards require two cuts, one to each leg, to remove. They don't use a u leg locking mechanism which only requires one cut. However, the longer your lock is (and the less space occupied) the easier it is to bust with a car jack. Finally, locking to a fence is only as secure as the fence is - if they can cut the fence easier than the lock, they will just take the whole thing with the lock on it and cut it off later.

Always the same bottom line---any bike with any lock can be stolen. All you can do is make it harder for the less determined.

Unless you live in a high-crime area or any major city a u-lock and chain should suffice.

If not, ride a $50 beater and keep a garage-full.

I agree with 1989-Pre: lock your bike where people can see it, even if you cannot. A bike rack around the side where there is not traffic is like an advertisement: Free Bike! Serious thieves won't care, but less serious thieves won't want to spend a lot of time sawing through your security in the middle of a lighted parking lot.

Hello linberl! Thank you very much for the help. The Onguard seems great, but I ordered a Hiplock Gold earlier today, and I think it will keep my bike secure enough when going shopping for food. :-)

I saw an interesting lock on kickstarter it is called Tex-lock. I do not know how good it will be but the concept looks interesting as a secondary lock.

It depends on where you are and what bike theft is like there. I live in NYC where bike theft is a big problem. I use a Kryptonite Fahgettaboudit which sells for about $100. I lock the frame and one of the wheels to the bike rack. I use a cheap cable lock to lock the other wheel to the frame. A thief could easily break the cable to get a wheel, but no one has ever done this to me, for whatever reason.

You may not need to do anything quite so extreme wherever you are.

If you decide to take it in just do it. This is one situation where it is better to ask forgiveness than permission. Just make sure you lock it up in there so some secruity person doesn't toss it unattended and unlocked out back.

Wow...at 5.4lbs it is also a weapon!!! Hardcore.