How were they stolen?

Waffles
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Joined: 25 Dec 2009, 8:14pm

Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Waffles »

I've not left my bike anywhere except work and home, neither of which I trust either... I blogged about my new locks recently:
http://timscyclingblog.wordpress.com/20 ... e-cycling/
You're talking a lot of weight for decent locks, it's a trade off I guess, but if you can buy multiple and leave at the office and home, then you avoid having to carrying those kilos around.
I wouldn't leave my Thorn bike anywhere I didn't know, I have a cheap "station" bike I can use, but I rarely due utility cycling, it's all commuting.

See also http://www.lockyourbike.org.uk/how-to-l ... ike-guide/
daddig
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by daddig »

Oh if only I could have laid a shocking surprise,would have been worth the health and safety hassle? Though I suppose I could have put a elec shock warning on the door!
Mike G
Malaconotus
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Malaconotus »

Waffles wrote:I've not left my bike anywhere except work and home, neither of which I trust either... I blogged about my new locks recently:
http://timscyclingblog.wordpress.com/20 ... e-cycling/


I see in the blog post that you've used the 'Sheldon method' of locking the back wheel inside the frame, which arguably undermines the strength of the Fahg lock. Tyre and rim are far more vulnerable than any good D-lock. Defeated in 18 seconds in this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9fLtdZyX-A
zee

Re: How were they stolen?

Post by zee »

I've installed Pinheads by now and it looks/feels pretty safe.. For sure D-Lock is the weakest link in my chain now.
Waffles
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Joined: 25 Dec 2009, 8:14pm

Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Waffles »

daddig wrote:Oh if only I could have laid a shocking surprise,would have been worth the health and safety hassle? Though I suppose I could have put a elec shock warning on the door!


If people will (attempt to) steal copper cabling from an electricity substation then I doubt it will deter them.

Malaconotus wrote:I see in the blog post that you've used the 'Sheldon method' of locking the back wheel inside the frame, which arguably undermines the strength of the Fahg lock. Tyre and rim are far more vulnerable than any good D-lock. Defeated in 18 seconds in this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9fLtdZyX-A


Yes, that is true, there is no room for locking the frame as well, what other method would you suggest?
Whichever way I do it they could always cut 32 spokes and walk off with my Rohloff, that is the most valuable part of the bike and I have no idea how to secure that, any ideas?

Thanks
Dynamite_funk
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Dynamite_funk »

Anyone heard of anyone using this??

http://tigrlock.com/
Vladimir
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Vladimir »

misterbenn wrote:I'd say that if the bike is going to be left for more than 1 hour then a solid lock is a must! And for bikes left for over 4 hours i'd say two solid locks are a must, one for front wheel and one for frame/back wheel.


At first I was puzzled at these seemingly arbitrary time limits and locks to be used. Then it dawned on me that statistically, leaving the bike locked with a bad lock (or even unlocked) for a few minutes is likely to be safe, due to the limited exposure to thieving eyes, and the longer you leave it, the greater the exposure; it's all risk and statistics, which I have nothing against as a concept. However, statistics mean nothing to the individual, and a bike can be stolen in less than a minute, even breaking a sold secure silver lock, so really; you might as well lock your bike properly every single time, a tooled up thief could be anywhere...

For me it would have to be more like: If left for longer then 6 minutes, a solid lock is a must, and if left for longer than 30 minutes, two solid locks are a must.
Waffles
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Waffles »

Vladimir wrote:At first I was puzzled at these seemingly arbitrary time limits and locks to be used.


Statistics are of course of little comfort to those who pop in a shop and exit within five minutes to find their bike has been stolen.

I don't apply a limit on time, more on value of the bike, if your bike is valuable then lock it with two very high security locks, preferrably different locks so two different methods for breaking them is required.

A cheap bike is not worth the bother, but still, it is a trade off, buy and use decent locks or risk walking home.

I do worry about component theft, but then some people steal parts from cars and I don't have any special protection against that other than parking sensibly and that applies to where I park my bike too.
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meic
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by meic »

I suppose it is so obvious that you forget it but the main factor is where you leave the bike rather than its value or duration.

I frequently leave my brand new expensive bike unlocked in the street for however long I am doing my shopping etc. It would probably remain there until the streets cleared of people before anybody would take it.
I only carry a lock if I am leaving for other areas.
Yma o Hyd
Waffles
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Waffles »

meic wrote:I frequently leave my brand new expensive bike unlocked in the street for however long I am doing my shopping etc.


Which street is that by chance?
:)
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meic
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by meic »

I seem to have forgotten. :wink:

Though is it worth somebody staking it out all week, just waiting for the time I go shopping?
Only to find that I took the rusty old Raleigh that week instead. 8)
Yma o Hyd
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CJ
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by CJ »

misterbenn wrote:When i lived in oxford my D-lock key broke in the lock mech - so my bike was stuck in a very public place in the middle of town (outside the central libary). In the end i paid a man to cut the lock off with a portable angle grinder during my lunch break (1pm monday, so very busy). To my suprise not one passing person questioned this at all!

I really think a small alarm system should be deviced for our lovely bikes!

Don't count on that working any better.

I street-tested an alarmed lock by locking a bike in the middle of Guildford and having a burly colleague in a hoodie pretend to hacksaw it.

He was able to work almost undisturbed for five minutes with people sitting nearby and dozens walking past (including groups of fit young men) and this lock screaming the whole time during which only two people approached our pretend theif: a fellow cyclist (who didn't look the fighting type) and a young woman. Both were easily dismissed by saying it's my bike and showing them a key. At the end of this time the police arrived. They sensibly asked to see that the key fitted the lock, and fortunately didn't find it in the public interest to do us for wasting their time.

Conclusion: alarms are no use unless you the owner are in earshot.
Chris Juden
One lady owner, never raced or jumped.
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CJ
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by CJ »

Vladimir wrote:
misterbenn wrote:I'd say that if the bike is going to be left for more than 1 hour then a solid lock is a must! And for bikes left for over 4 hours i'd say two solid locks are a must, one for front wheel and one for frame/back wheel.


At first I was puzzled at these seemingly arbitrary time limits and locks to be used. Then it dawned on me that statistically, leaving the bike locked with a bad lock (or even unlocked) for a few minutes is likely to be safe, due to the limited exposure to thieving eyes, and the longer you leave it, the greater the exposure; it's all risk and statistics, which I have nothing against as a concept. However, statistics mean nothing to the individual, and a bike can be stolen in less than a minute, even breaking a sold secure silver lock, so really; you might as well lock your bike properly every single time, a tooled up thief could be anywhere...

For me it would have to be more like: If left for longer then 6 minutes, a solid lock is a must, and if left for longer than 30 minutes, two solid locks are a must.

I think you need to get inside the mind of the thief. They see a bike they think they're able to steal and sell, but they don't want to be fiddling with it when the owner comes back. They'll probably walk past it a few times to inspect the lock and also to be more certain the owner isn't returning anytime soon. The longer a bike is parked - after the first few minutes - the less likely it becomes that the owner will return in the next few minutes. Leaving a bike outdoors overnight is perfect for the thief. The chances of owner return are negligible in the small hours, neither is there anyone else around.

So minutes matter. And I think that the likelihood of owner return within a given time period is a big part of what makes some parking locations better or worse than others. Near high-street shops there's a high risk of owner return - people often spend only minutes in specialist shops. So high-streets are good places to park - but only when the shops are open. Supermarkets and malls are okay but not so good. People spend a bit longer in supermarkets - but not hours. Museums are bad, people do spend hours in those. Railway stations are the worst: you're surely not returning anytime soon, especially when a train isn't due.

When I park in a city I will often circle back to somewhere I can surreptitiously view my bike and its surroundings, to see if anyone nearby is looking at it or worse. I once came out of a shopping mall to see a bloke leaning on the pedestrian railings I'd locked my bike to, but standing on the wrong side of them, i.e. in the road, looking at the mall entrance. Our eyes met, he departed across the road. When I reached the bike my cable lock was facing the road, not as I'd left it. I think that was perhaps the closest I've come to losing a bike.
Chris Juden
One lady owner, never raced or jumped.
ben888
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by ben888 »

The weakest link in my lock set-up the other day was the cast-iron railing outside my house. [The lock I was using was the £95 Kryptonite M18 D-lock].
Cast iron is brittle and can be broken through with the whack of a hammer, or perhaps the whack of a hammer and chisel. :cry:
Vladimir
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Re: How were they stolen?

Post by Vladimir »

ben888 wrote:The weakest link in my lock set-up the other day was the cast-iron railing outside my house. [The lock I was using was the £95 Kryptonite M18 D-lock].
Cast iron is brittle and can be broken through with the whack of a hammer, or perhaps the whack of a hammer and chisel. :cry:


sorry to hear it! is the bike gone?
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