There's been a bike locked in my neighborhood for 6 months. It's a black conversion with no badges, so I can't be sure of the frame quality, but it has decent components. Weinmann rims, Brooks saddle, Chris King headset, Nitto drops, Look Keo SPD's... It's an all-around nice bike that someone just abandoned. Locked to one of those upside down "U" things by way of a Kryptonite New York mini-u around the top tube and nothing else. It makes me sad to see it there every day with its flat tires, and since winter is coming, I feel that I should liberate it from its current predicament.

Would it be wrong of me to take it and allow it to be used for what it was made for?

If it wouldn't be wrong, how the hell can I get that lock off?

Search says this:

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...bandoned-bike?
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ike-ettiquette
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...hain-bike-lock
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...In-Los-Angeles
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...-are-abandoned
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...bandoned-bikes
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...elated-inquiry
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...aken-the-bike?
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...-this-bike????

A couple of threads from the other side of the fence, i.e. owners coming back to see their bikes have been stolen, err "liberated":

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...d-Sold-my-Bike!
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...to-Cut-My-Lock

My take? It isn't yours. Thou shalt not steal.

--J

6 months? Thats a long time. Throw up a craigslist ad without a picture saying you found a bike, if someone can ACCURATELY describe it and its parts, its most likely theirs and they should have it back. I once liberated a BMX bike that I found near my dads apartment complex, sitting there at a HS football field. It was there for a week, so I rode it home, no one responded to the CL I put up, so I fixed it and sold it to a buddy. If someone knows its gone and misses it, they'll contact you. But again, 6 months is a really long time.

bull****, if the person's not riding their bike they're certainly not scanning craigs for bikes, if you want to try to get in touch with the person you can try taping a note to the bike saying "hey i really dig your bike but it's a shame you don't seem to be riding it anymore, let me know if you'd be interested in selling, i'm at 656-969-x034"

but then again it's probably cheaper and easier to just steal it like you intended

Do what Street Rider said: post a CL ad. If no response in 1 month then leave it be. Don't steal.

Don't steal. You'll be happier.

Man, Take that bike.

Don't steal it. If anything leave a note asking to buy it. Who knows.

I once saw a NJS LeveL locked up throughout winter and longer. I rode by it everyday thinking, I should just cut the lock and take it (it was locked with a cable lock!). The bike just kept rusting and getting worse. But after about 5-6 months, the owner came for it. Saw him riding it. Don't think he knows what he has. Sad sad

Don't steal.

put a nice warm blanket over it, give it a cup of hot chocolate... sooth it over the winter time.

Call the non-emergency police department and see what they have to say about it. if you are worried that someone is going to steal something off of it (and are truly trying to be a good citizen) lock up the wheels+bits with your own lock with a note that lets the owner know how to contact you.

The ad works. If they really did know that it was there, and just didn't care about it and leave it out, when its gone they'll look for it, and hopefully that'll be a lesson for them. And if no one contacts you, then you just got a free bike. Congrats. You should also Lilcphoto said, and talk to the police about it. One time I turned a bike over to them, and after 90 days the gave me a call and asked me to come pick it up.

Great idea. Kill 'em with kindness.

person could be dead or abducted by aliens

if the owner can't lock their bike up properly they probably don't deserve it but that doesn't mean you should steal it. contact the police. depending on the laws where you live they may cut it off themselves and put it in the bike auction.

Write your contact info on a note, laminate it, and glue it to the object the bike is locked to. If the owner contacts you give the bike back, but if they don't come looking by the time the note disintegrates then the bike was probably truly abandoned.

How's that for cutting the baby in half?

Throw a blanket on it lol

This.

hahaha

Don't steal.

I would second the idea of leaving a note with your contact info saying that you'd be interested in buying the bike.

At my school, they would tag abandoned looking bikes with big yellow tags that had a date that the bike/tag had to be removed by before the university would remove it for being abandoned.

I don't think that posting on CL is good idea for two reasons:
1) A person who leaves their bike unattended for six months is very likely not going to be looking at the bikes section of CL.
2) It's a free ad for potential thieves looking for an easy bike to steal. To be honest, I don't know how likely this scenario actually is, but I am just being paranoid.

Wow a bike left abandoned here in PDX after 6 months would be down to frame, fork, and headset. It still has saddle, cranks, and handle bars? Its prob just a midnight ride for the owner, something tell me since its still complete. Or the owner has a great view of the bike from his apartment and thwarts off thieves. You know in some places the Police have bikes with candid cameras just waiting on someone to take the bait.
If you steal a bike, someone will steal yours! Bike Karma is a bitc*

Thats why you don't put a picture up. You say the general area where its from, and the person who wants it has to describe it in detail. If they have it registered somewhere (around here we have to have them registered with the campus police department), then they should be able to give you the registration number and serial number etc

You are not being paranoid. I didn't even think about that until now.

Ok, note going on it today.