freedomrider

What do you all do as far as locking up your bikes. U-Locks, Cable locks...

I am a newb (obviously) and am planning a short trip but am not sure I want to carry the weight of my U-Lock. Any clever solutions?

And no, I don't know how to use the search function for all the smart ones out there.

Thanks in advance...

NoReg

I carry my U-lock. My touring bike is my best bike, and most of the time all the stuff I own is attached to it. It isn't practical always to remove every scrap of stuff from it in order to make some stop. And in campgrounds I am actually asleep, so it would be easy to steal.

The only other thing I do is if it is possible to wheel a bike in some place I do. If I am making a stop in a grocery store, or a home depot, etc... I would try to just roll it in and around. It isn't any dirtier than the carts they have. So far I have never been questioned. I won't leave my bike if I can take it with me.

nancy sv

It really depends on where you're touring. If you are in the USA and plan to be in cities a lot, you will need the U-lock. If you plan to be mostly in small towns, a lightweight cable will probably be sufficient.

We are currently traveling in South America and only have one lightweight cable for our three bikes - and mostly don't even use it. If we are in a campground with lots of people around, we will lock the bikes together, but out in the wild we don't bother. Of course, since we are four people, we always have someone stay with the bikes at supermarkets and such.

One thing that we use that we LOVE is our plain ol' blue plastic tarp. We cover the bikes with it and tie it to the frames at night. Not only does it keep the bikes dry in case of rain, but if someone were to try to steal the bikes, the noise from the tarp will wake up my husband who is a very light sleeper. It's great!

Cyclesafe

+1 for the tarp. Cover up your bike at night so the thief can't see where your (lightweight) cable lock is. It's not likely that he/she will risk the light and the sound from the disturbed tarp if your tent is just a couple of feet away. Cable locks are good enough in front of stores, but taking a peek outside from time to time at a store or taking a table in sight of your bike at a restaurant is a good idea. I leave the U-lock at home.

raybo

Unless you will be in a city, which I try to avoid when I am on tour, a U-lock won't be much use as it is made for the kinds of poles only found in a city. I use a cable lock, when I use a lock. Most of the time, I just take my bike with me inside.

Here is an article I wrote about locking a bike on tour.

Ray

sehsuan

for those stealth camping, a green oversized groundsheet will help to reduce the bike from being seen...

Knuckleheads

I have used a ski lock while touring in smaller towns and rural areas. It is enough to deter the honest theives. I have also carried a cable lock while in urban areas and larger centre's. the ski lock is small and light and is tough enough to lock my bike and wheels so they can't just wheel my bike away. I solo tour quite a bit so I don't have the option of having someone stay with the bike while I am in the store. I like the tarp idea, but usually I need it to keep me dry since I live in a rain forest on the west coast!

BigBlueToe

I buy a cable lock from Home Depot. I lock my bike whenever I go into a store, and I lock it to a tree or picnic table when I go into my tent at night. I feel a little more assured when it is locked.

truman

Cable lock for me too. A 5 foot one with a 4-digit combination so I don't have to have a key on me. I use it when I can't keep the bike in sight, but I don't trust it to keep it secure for longer than it takes to buy some groceries. If I don't see anything sturdy to lock it up outside a restaurant or someplace, I'll ask to bring it in.

Tansy

When I leave my bike unattended for a short time at a store, I go into the lowest gear, rubber band the brakes, and lock it with a light cable lock. In future tours I'll be hauling a bob, making it even less desirable to throw in the bike of a truck, or quickly ride off on.

I've never felt the need to do this, but I imagine there have been many situation where if I had needed to leave my bike unattended for any length of time in a campground, I could have asked a neighbor with an RV and a more secure looking campsite if I could lock it up in their area. I wouldn't necessarily go around asking - just wait for someone to ask me about my trip and then bring it up.

I'm planning on getting some "Warning: alarm will sound if bike is tampered with" decals printed out. If I can find a cable/alarm combo that isn't a waste of money, I'll probably get one of those too.

What worries me most when leaving my bike unattended is that someone will rifle through my panniers. I keep valuables at the bottom, but that's only a small comfort. Someone could just take the whole bag and go through it later. If I could lock them, I'd worry that I'd find them cut open and rummaged through!

threecarjam

For the record, using a google search like "touring lock site:bikeforums.net" will get you all kinds of useful info. The regular search can be wonky and annoying. If you're on a short trip somewhere around the Bay Area (I'm assuming, as your profile says Oakland), I'd just take whatever you regularly use at home. If you're going further afield and won't have to deal with bigger towns, it still can't hurt to take a U-lock. I've carried my usual Krypto Ulock or an Abus chain + a cable for my wheel, which is what I usually use around town. With all the crap I'm carrying anyway, a couple more pounds don't hurt. A cable lock seems to suffice for the majority around here, but for me, even if I don't end up using my heavy duty locks for days at a time, I still feel better having them with me.

DW99

When in a town at grocery store, cafe, convenience store I always try to park the bike where it can be seen from inside, usually but not always, I run a cable lock thru the frame and each rim. At night, like others, the cable lock goes thru the bike frame and around a tree or thru a picnic table, bags go into the tent with me. I have never tried a U lock, they just seem heavy and not as functional as a cable lock.

freedomrider

Thanks everyone. I like the low gear, rubberband around the brakes idea. I sounds like a cable lock will suffice for my next trip.

Pukeskywalker

Living in Philadelphia, you all sound crazy to me. I'll be bringing a (mini) U-Lock wherever I go

fietsbob

At the hardware store I got a long section like 10 feet of plastic coated cable ,
and some pieces made to form a loop in that cable that you close with a Hammer.

Long cable is to go around trees. that may be all you have to lock to.

My recent acquisition is a bike with a frame mounted ring lock
that stops the back wheel from rolling, by closing it around the wheel.

AXA and Abus are both in the game, and have a lock up chain that fits
into a catch receiver, on the lock , to lock the bike onto stuff.

Abus also has a folding lock that would mount on the frame and always be handy
to lock and keep the roll off theft.

adding a shorter but beefy cable to lock your kit to stuff..

In a Parade square in Warsaw PL, I did decline a strangers request
to 'try' my loaded bike out, quickly imagining them riding off saying "sucker".

xilios

We use two (cheapish) cable locks and hook up a 120+ db purse alarm (click here) to one of the spokes at night in case someone comes along and wants to take the bikes. It works well as long as you remember to unhook the alarm in the morning, I've forgoten it a few times and the other campers weren't too pleased

raybo

And, be sure to let us know how that work's out for ya.

Ray

positron

a variation of the trick: stop your bike first, then shift to your granny gear and leave it. A thief jumping on to pedal away will clunk through the gears for a while before ending up in the spinner gear - noisy and takes time. Before you get back on to ride away, just shift back to the original position.

But like others, I use a light cable lock mostly...

positron

Not a bad idea if touring through bigger cities... they aren't THAT heavy, and losing a bike while having a lunch and a beer would be horrible. Cables are useless against bolt cutters, after all.

raybo

Frankly, I wouldn't ever take a Ulock on tour. If I was that worried about my bike, I wouldn't leave it alone. Period.

Ray

AdamDZ

Two steel Master Lock cables that I bought from Home Depot with combo locks. I found that a loaded bike is hard to lock to anything with a u-lock. At night I would cover it, as others said, so it's an additional deterrent.

If touring in Mongolia watch out for the horsemen, locks won't help you much...

staehpj1 

I agree in big cities, but since I prefer to avoid bigger cities where possible it wouldn't be an option for me. In camp a mini u lock would often be hard to lock to anything unless you also had a cable. Any place I need that much lock I won't be touring.