catatonic

if your going to replace a u-lock from screwing it up, jsut go get a heavy bike chain. Avenir sells one for $30 that is every bit as good as the Kryptonite ones, and uses a double-row key instead of the cyndrilical keys kryptonite uses.

Anyways, you can get that lock to work again, you just have to be very patient...I got mine unstuck plenty of times last night.

flipthekid

yep.
i've got an evolution 2000 mini.
took me about 3 minutes with the bic pen.
and that's my first shot at it. with some practise i bet i could do better.

this totally sucks.
i'm going to switch to something without a barrel key for sure.

i hope kryptonite does something for us.
i've been on the phone with them twice, they still don't know what they are going to do, but she said they "wouldn't leave me high and dry"

hope not.

thekid.

WheelsofJustice

I own a bike shop in Oakland California.

I called Kryptonite after reading this thread and asked them what the official word was.
The nice lady you all reference told me that it's true, some of their locks can be "compromised" and described the same locks you all did.

I asked her if I should take the locks off the shelf, she said yes and that they should have an action plan for consumers, retailers and distributors by the end of today. She took my number and name and said that they'd call.

I'm sure you'll all hear as soon as I do, I just thought I'd offer help from a different perspective.

brunning

hey guys!

this is exploding!

i just got back from the NPR studios here in NYC where i interviewed with michele norris for today's edition of All Things Considered - it airs at 4PM est on most public radio stations around here. check your local listings!!!!!!

SSenorPedro

Dang,

Ben why are you getting all the attention? Share the love with some of the other "pioneers"; me, unaesthetic, etc......

JK, thats awesome for you. Know what time it airs on the west coast by chance?

I was thinking that we should all set up something similar to this bike in our respective city centers...

A mild form of protest and something to do with our now useless locks, other than heavy clunky windchimes, that is.

shecky

My Kryptonite lock was bought around '89 or '90. The key fits on the end of the shaft. I got the keyway to turn 90 degrees immediately with the bic pen. A couple more minutes, and I opened the lock.

I think it should be kept in mind that this problem doens't seem limited to Kryptonite locks, new or old, but rather all locks using cylindrical keys.

DocRay

I have had three bikes stolen in the last five years with Kryptonite locks, all cases, the lock was taken with the bike. I've heard of this picking with a compass point.

Forget the warranty, I don't know anyone who has made a successfull claim against Kryptonite.

vrkelley

Just another cheap bike accessory. Folks don't buy bike accessories....they just can't hold up.
Make your own.

brunning

i don't know why i'm getting so much attention. perhaps my location makes it easy to get in touch with me. i'm just answering the emails and calls as they come in!

anyway, i give you guys a little love on the page you get when you link to the moves - https://thirdrate.com/misc/locks/krypto.php

do you have a link you'd like your name to link to? unaesthetic (chris) asked me to link to his site, https://www.collectornerd.com

RichardW

I got this the first time through, a mate of mine worked on New Cyclist magazine in the UK in '92 when they picked up the story. Things have moved on but the model that seemed to come out of all the tests best in the UK at that time was the Squire UBX which has a 'proper' key. Don't know if it's avaialble in the US.

The other tip was to go to a motorcycle dealer and get induction hardened (!important!) chain and padlock, and loop it through the bike frame and wheels so it's difficult to get a prybar or jack inside it to pop it apart. HTH

Crazy Cyclist

what i dont like is the video that shows thieves how to use the pen, I think this is the last thing they should show on here

RichardW

100% True. And another variation is to pop the cover off with a chisel and then when all the pins have fallen out use the biro.

quaternion

Alright, so my 3-week old Kryptolok is worthless. "What's Krytonite going to do about it?" I thought.

I went to their corporate website. Nothing. Actually, something: They moved. That address that I sent my warranty info to is 2 years obsolete, and the current occupants neither return the mail to sender nor forward it to kryptonite -- EVEN THOUGH THEIR NEW LOCATION IS ONLY 1 BLOCK AWAY. Very clever business strategy.

OK, so my warranty is also worthless. My lock purchase was now officially a big fat waste. Time to head to the bike store.

The shelves are empty of Kryponite locks. I ask the employees how often they rotate stock. "Oh, locks go through quite quickly."

OK, so the warranty book that came with my new lock that listed an obsolete address that effectively SILENTLY (how was I to know that they moved? I was never expected to visit their website. I reread the Warranty Limitations just to make sure.) junked my warranty sat in a Kryptonite warehouse for years or, worse yet, just wasn't reprinted since they relocated.

That, my friends, is negligence times two. Assume now that they knew about the BIC compromise *and* knowingly sent out old addresses with the warranty booklets, well, that's criminal.

I asked the bike shop guy what he expected Kryptonite to do, and he said, "Not much. We'll trade in your lock for one of a different brand, but I'm not expecting Kryptonite to do you any favors."

I asked him then if he'd join in a class action lawsuit. He smiled. I smiled - what option was left to us??

(Anybody else make the mistake of mailing off their warranty info to 320 Turnpike Street instead of 437 Turnpike Street?)

From the Kryptonite website :
Yes, quite right, maybe they should be locked up.

Antz

If Krypto is still working on a solution to this problem how did https://www.bikebiz.co.uk/daily-news/article.php?id=4640
know they are replacing locks.

And on top of that, that article only lists the evo and the kryptolock...what about those of us with the NYC + disc lock (which is also worthless)

allikzar

I would imagine the majority of us had sent it to the wrong address.
I think that I had sent it to was whatever address was on the paperwork,
which is probably the wrong one since I had received no conformation that
they had received it. I like the class action lawsuit idea. I am pretty sure
whatever Krypto decides to do for us "users" is not going to make people happy.

hooligan

You're going to interbike? The one at T.O? If you're going, Ill see ya there!

mc510

They knew because Kryptonite issued a press release on BusinessWire on Thursday saying exactly this. Funny, though, that Kryptonite hasn't put ANYTHING about this issue on their own web site. There's pretty much nothing that Kryptonite could do at this point to regain my trust in them. (Visit businesswire.com if you want to read the press release.)

brunning

they just called me. i need to send them my old keys and they will send me a new lock.

quaternion

Great! Ask for their most expensive item. Then try like hell to open it with a BIC. Lather, rinse, repeat, profit!!

Um, they'll be calling me too right? Oh wait, I mailed my phone number to the wrong address...

slvoid

Nice, I wonder if kryptonite will do that for the people who's locks are also affected but weren't quoted in a news paper.

timmhaan

[off topic]i wish i had a dollar for everytime someone viewed this thread...[/off topic]

Zanx

Another one here, not Kraptonite, but Oxford (UK company) and even worse, it has a Sold Secure sticker on it to show that it has been independently tested and found to be a satisfactory deterrent against theft. Sold Secure stuff gets discounts on insurance in the UK, you tell me if the whole system is corrupt or not.

Right click, save as.

www.zanx.net/pick2.wmv

iamdoingthat

Kryptonite just called me too. They're sending me a different kind of lock for my NY chain, that I assume will not be susceptible to the pen.

The woman I spoke to told me that they are doing the free replacement for locks under 2 years old, and because of my KK***** key code, they knew it was bought recently. I have to mail back my keys, and they will send me a new lock. New locks will be shipped priority mail.

Other, older owners will either have to provide some proof of purchase, or are only eligible for a partial credit/refund/replacement.

This is straight from Kryptonite. I'll be getting my lock by early next week since I didn't want to mail my keys yet (I still use my EV with another padlock), so she took my CC information and will send the new lock today/tomorrow. When I return my keys, they will shred my CC information.

I think Kryptonite hit this right on the head with customer service. They have restored my faith.

phantomcow2

eeh i think the lesson learned here is just use combination locks

fitzludlow

I went to the NPR website and the links to the audio of their shows is F***'d! They end up pointing to completely different stories. To get the Kryptonite lock story, go to this link and click on the audio link on the page:
https://www.npr.org/rundowns/segment.php?wfId=3924659

Anyways, here's a transcript of the interview that I did after I finally found it. Mispellings and mistakes are mine.

Can Plastic Pen Defeat Kryptonite locks?
September 17, 2004

Michele Norris: Bicylcle shops around the country have pulled a style of U-lock off their shelves as word spread that they have a weakness. The Bic ball-point pen. Many locks with a cylindrical key are at risk. The Kryptonite is one possible, one popular brand. Benjamin Running is a graphic designer in New York city. He helped bring the lock's vulnerability to national attention with a demonstration video on his website. He says a quarter of a million people have logged on to learn how to pick these locks.

Benjamin Running: The first time I did it, it took a while, you know, you sort of have to get your technique down. The first time it take maybe a few minutes. But after 5 or 10 times I had it down to 5 seconds. Literally the time it takes to open the lock with a key.

MN: Well, I happen to have a pen in my hand, and, uh, what I do? How do I do this? I have a pen and a lock here.

BR: Yeah, the pen gets inserted into the lock. And at that point and time it's basically just a matter of jamming it in there good and jiggling it around a little bit, until you get some traction, and then twisting it.

MN: Well, it's not popping open. But I definitely have some movement in there.

BR: You have some traction.

MN: If I, like you, could do this 5 or 10 times, it's clear that I put this Kryptonite open, and I, and lo and behold it doesn't take Superman to operate the lock.

BR: Would be bike thieves with a little bit of time on their hands who can practise this, uh, you know, can obviously pop these locks open very quickly.

MN: What's the word on the street, I mean, bicyclists as they talk to each other? What are they saying?

BR: This is, the word is spreading fast. Uh, which is a good thing because if you walk down any street in NYC, you're going to see a dozen, you're going to see 20 bikes locked up on some blocks. And, you know, 90% of these bikes have Kryptonite locks on them. And, um, at first, you know, on Monday and Tuesday it was the bike specific groups and websites that had these stories on them. But now it's spreading to the New York Times, the Daily News, I think people are, uh, realizing the severe problem which affects them.

MN: Well, before this happened, you were using your bike on a daily basis, and what are you going to do now, how are you going to secure it when you venture out of the house or the apartment?

BR: Well, I've purchased a flat lock which uses, sorry a U-lock that uses a flat key. And I'm also going to purchase a new padlock which I'm going to use on my existing Kryptonite chain. And several brands have been recommended on various Internet newsgroups. Um. So we're going to look for something a little more secure.

MN: Alright Benjamin, thanks so much for coming in to talk to us.

BR: Thanks very much Michele.

MN: Benjamin Running is a graphic designer in New York City and avid cyclist in search of a new lock. Although I couldn't open up a lock, one of our producers, Ben Gilbert, popped open a colleagues lock in a matter of minutes. The owner of that lock plans to take Kryptonite up on its offer to upgrade the lock.