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college student, beautiful bike: have U-lock, what about audible alarm?

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college student, beautiful bike: have U-lock, what about audible alarm?

Old 09-04-12, 08:18 AM
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college student, beautiful bike: have U-lock, what about audible alarm?

I have this beautiful pink bike, and feel the thieves are really going to be looking at it..

Have thought about some type of audible alarm, pager system...

Any ideas? thanks
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Old 09-04-12, 08:50 AM
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You could keep a trained howler monkey tethered to it.
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Old 09-04-12, 09:28 AM
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Go to https://www.amazon.com/ and type, Bicycle Alarm, into the search. You will get plenty of choices.
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Old 09-04-12, 09:42 AM
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Originally Posted by jlm86
I have this beautiful pink bike, and feel the thieves are really going to be looking at it..

Have thought about some type of audible alarm, pager system...

Any ideas? thanks
People never pay attention to car alarms going off in public. What makes you think they'll act any different with a much, much quieter battery powered one?
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Old 09-04-12, 09:52 AM
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the mere bumping may set it off .

heard the Legend of Peter and the Wolf?

that is the perhaps an illustration core of alarms being ignored.
from before cars were invented.
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Old 09-04-12, 10:31 AM
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Originally Posted by mulveyr
People never pay attention to car alarms going off in public. What makes you think they'll act any different with a much, much quieter battery powered one?
This. I walk by a dozen alarms a month, and nobody pays attention to any of them.
Is it a GOOD bike, or just a pretty one? Pretty pink bikes aren't as likely to be stolen as good bikes, because they're conspicuous on campus. And I wouldn't take a good bike to school.
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Old 09-04-12, 11:17 AM
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Trust me, do not buy the alarm, it won't do a thing to protect your bike. Just invest some money and get two good u locks or two good chains. Chainreactioncycles has a f-ing strong chain with only 27 euros. Noone will even think about stealing your bike.
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Old 09-04-12, 05:01 PM
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Get an old bike off Craig's List or a garage sale etc. Colleges and their neighborhoods are prime theft areas. Ride something functional and ugly if you are going to leave it locked up outside.
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Old 09-04-12, 07:24 PM
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Integrated GPS tracking from Spybike is pretty hot. There's a model that stealthily replaces your top cap on the steerer, an it sends you SMS alert if your bike is heavily jostled or moves, and then starts tracking. This both helps stop theft by giving you an early warning and opportunity to intervene or gather info, and helps with rapid recovery :

https://www.spygroup.eu/
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Old 09-04-12, 07:41 PM
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Originally Posted by chaadster
Integrated GPS tracking from Spybike is pretty hot. There's a model that stealthily replaces your top cap on the steerer, an it sends you SMS alert if your bike is heavily jostled or moves, and then starts tracking. This both helps stop theft by giving you an early warning and opportunity to intervene or gather info, and helps with rapid recovery :

https://www.spygroup.eu/
Isn't stealthy sort of the opposite of what you want in a theft deterrent? I mean it's not like cops are going to follow up before it's stripped and/or resold anyway, so why not emblazon that it's got GPS all the hell over it so thieves find a slightly less dangerous bike to steal?
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Old 09-04-12, 08:13 PM
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Originally Posted by jlm86
I have this beautiful pink bike, and feel the thieves are really going to be looking at it..

Have thought about some type of audible alarm, pager system...

Any ideas? thanks
Back when I was in college, the parking enforcement would pull your parking privileges if you had too many false alarms. (I was on campus during the 1987 Whittier Narrows earthquake. It set off every single car alarm.) I think it would be the same for bike alarms.

My idea: ship the nice bike home, get a POC bike from the campus recyclery and a couple hefty U-locks, and park near bikes that are easier to steal. Thieves tend to steal one bike at a time.
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Old 09-04-12, 08:26 PM
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Originally Posted by Jeff Wills
My idea: ship the nice bike home, get a POC bike from the campus recyclery and a couple hefty U-locks, and park near bikes that are easier to steal. Thieves tend to steal one bike at a time.
^--- this. People hate car alarms, and would probably applaud the thief if he knew how to turn it off quickly.
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Old 09-05-12, 08:38 AM
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I echo the question from above: Is the bike 'good' or is it 'pretty?'

A good bike should probably not be used as you grocery-getter in a college town, because the one time you are in more of a rush and do a 1/2 assed job of locking it will be the day that it is spotted by a freshman who just discovered crack.
If you have a 'good' bike, find a secure place to lock it, and leave it there except for special occaisions, and go to a thrift store, bike kitchen, or garage sale and buy a cheap 10 - speed or something.
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Old 09-05-12, 09:16 AM
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I think the OP is just trolling.
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Old 09-05-12, 11:41 AM
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You need an ugly, cheapo beater for a daily rider. Never let the good bike out of your sight.
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Old 09-05-12, 12:20 PM
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Originally Posted by tagaproject6
I think the OP is just trolling.
That's always possible, but I'd rather give them the benefit of the doubt and try to be helpful first.
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Old 09-05-12, 08:04 PM
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Originally Posted by himespau
Isn't stealthy sort of the opposite of what you want in a theft deterrent? I mean it's not like cops are going to follow up before it's stripped and/or resold anyway, so why not emblazon that it's got GPS all the hell over it so thieves find a slightly less dangerous bike to steal?
I meant "helps prevent theft" in the sense that as soon as the bike is jostled, the system sends you text, so you can check on it, and if you're not far away, perhaps catch them in the act and run them off. Granted, very situationally specific, and not my pure definition of a deterrent either, but nonetheless may help prevent theft in some circumstances.
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Old 09-05-12, 08:07 PM
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Originally Posted by Paul01
You need an ugly, cheapo beater for a daily rider. Never let the good bike out of your sight.
Call me vain, but I never ride cheap, ugly, or beaters. I just can't roll like that. A sweet bike is sweet to ride.

I ride for the joy of it, have always lived in college towns, and have only had two bikes stolen in my adult life, three if I include elementary school.
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