0

For a long time I was a happy owner of an Abus Catena chain lock. However, last night someone tried to steal my bike. Luckily, they either didn't have enough time, or the lock was too tough for them so they abandoned it after cutting through 0.5mm from two sides.

Now I am looking for a better, more secure and more deterrent-looking lock. These are my current options:

  • Abus Granit Plus 51: U lock, security rating 13/15, 13mm thinckness, 23cm height, costs 46€

  • Abus Bordo 6000: folding lock, security rating 10/15, 5mm thickness, 90cm length, costs 55€

With the first one, I like the better security. However U locks are sometimes pain in the ass to set, especially because I usually lock front wheel and frame to a stationary object. I am not sure if this is even possible with this U lock, as the distance from the inside of the rim to the inside of the frame is a little more than 20cm.

I like the folding lock, because it is more versatile. I can lock my bike to a variety of stationary objects, but it is less secure for sure. Also, it is a bit more expensive.

I will keep my old chain lock, as it is not damaged too much and change the outer skirt so that nobody knows it was damaged. I thing it should be OK as a secondary lock when I leave my bike overnight in a communal room. Any ideas what could be a smart choice?

Improve this question
8
  • 1
    The million dollar question that has a different answer for every dollar. The pragmatic answer is "buy enough lock to make your insurer happy to payout". If you 'self insure', buy enough lock you are happy you can sleep at night, knowing you 'did enough' if you have to buy a new bike.
    – mattnz
    Aug 21, 2017 at 23:08
  • 1
    "All locks can be cut, it just depends on whether it takes 1 minute with a loud grinder or 5 seconds with tin snips" and "Buy a better lock than the one securing the bike next to it."
    – RoboKaren
    Aug 21, 2017 at 23:12
  • ps. Welcome to bike stackexchange. The reason your question is attracting close flags is because it's unanswerable. We can't tell you to get X lock ("opinion") and we can't say whether Y lock is any good ("product recommendation"). You might want to take the tour or visit the Bicycles Chat room to talk about this more.
    – RoboKaren
    Aug 21, 2017 at 23:14
  • 1
    "Why not both?" Common wisdom is a U Lock and a chain or cable lock separately, or simply stay on the bike till you get home again.
    – Criggie ♦
    Aug 22, 2017 at 1:04
  • Hi all and thanks for the comments. I am trying to decide between these two locks, because I believe both of them are good enough for me. One is more secure and other is probably more convenient. This is generally true for all U locks vs folding locks. I know that all locks can be cut and I am aware they are more a deterrent than anything else. I don't think having multiple locks or cables is a practical solution for me. It is just too much work and nobody in the area is doing that.
    – Leta
    Aug 22, 2017 at 1:23

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
2

I have recently been in a neighborhood watch training. Bike theft was one of the topic.

They showed us a footage where they asked a skilled thief to break various locks, from low end dental floss (10 Euro worth) to high end sturdy looking one (60 Euro). The thief was able to take rid of all of them in a matter of about 30 seconds, with few difference between flimsy and sturdy ones.

Bottom line: the only way to safely lock your bike is make it an hassle to remove all the locks with respect to the other available targets.

  • Use redundant locks (they will require more time to be removed)
  • Lock your bike where other similar bikes are available (thieves go for the low hanging fruit, unless you park a carbon frame 5000 Euro bike among steel 100 Euro bikes)
  • Make it hard for the thief to be unnoticed while working around your locks (don't lock your bike in a dark and out of sight alley)
Improve this answer
1
  • Although it's true that a motivated thief will brake any lock in less than a minute, having a better lock will force him/her to use increasingly conspicuous equipment ... there is a big difference between using snips on a cheap wire, and having to resort to an angle grinder on a strong U-lock. No bike lock is unbreakable but saying the difference between cheap ones and stronger one is "few" is simplifying it a little too much I think.
    – zeFrenchy
    Aug 23, 2017 at 9:09
0

Everybody, thanks for weighting in.

I decided to go for a more expensive, less secure option because of the extra convenience it offers.

U lock are not that common in the place where I live and many many people use a folding lock. Also, I will be able to change the outer hull on my old chain lock so nobody will know it is damaged and will use it as a secondary stationary lock. This is OK, as nobody in the communal area where I leave my bike uses two locks. :)

Improve this answer
1
  • 2
    "U locks are not that common where I live" - so buy a U-lock, and be the only person with one. Thieves will take tools with them that are useful. If no-one else has a U-lock, thieves won't bother carrying the tools needed to break a U-lock.
    – AndyT
    Aug 23, 2017 at 8:49

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.