Recumbent Bicycle Security (Locks, Chains, Cables, more)

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source University of Columbia Bike Safety webpage

 

In reading through various threads on the net, it seems as if there are several favorites when it comes to top security systems. In particular, a few that seem to standout amongst cyclists are:

CABLE:

ABUS
Granit Steel-O-flex 1000 - 39294


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CHAIN:

OnGuard
Beast 5017


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U-LOCK:

Kryptonite
NewYork Fahgettaboudit U-Lock - 997986​

Each represent the most bank for the buck from what I could tell, and all of them are rated a full 6 out of 6 on the Bike-Locks.com website.(i.e. The cheapest source I found for such locks on the internet.)
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Sold Secure is dedicated to reducing the risk of crime by the assessment of security products. You can download their 2010 catalog/review of products tested here.

 

What intrigued me was the statement in this post:

...I watched in horror as I bet a local crack head £20 that he could not break my Kryptonite New York 3000 Lock, He laughed and took the bet then produced a £15 bottle jack and cracked the lock in 10 seconds.... he then said that if he couldn't crack the lock he would just simply hacksaw through whatever it was locked too and carry the bike away, Being a little upset I said double or quits so he then rummaged through his rucksack and produced a big hacksaw and proceeded to cut through the steel U shaped bike locking things that the local council concretes into the ground for bikes to be locked to in 20 seconds...​

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After that, YES I just had to go looking into things further.

BTW, that post also references another article where a guy pits 9 different locking systems against one another, to see for himself what really works best!

 

stolenbicycleregistry.com

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My name is Bryan. I am a sysadmin, database programmer, and mountain biker. I now live in Portland, OR. ​

I have had 5 bikes stolen in 9 years - plus a handful of beater bikes. The one in the photo above? Stolen from my living room while I was taking a shower, along with some other possessions of mine. (Thanks, Tucson meth kleptos.)

I hate the idiots who steal other people's bikes, and I hated the fact that the world lacked an online resource to register and search for stolen bikes. So I built one.

I decided that the world needed a free, well-organized stolen bike registry. Something that biking enthusiasts, bike shops, cops, and theft victims could all use with minumim hassle.

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Maybe you just had your bike stolen.

Maybe you're buying a used bike and want to run its serial number first.

Maybe you work for a bike shop and want to know if that trade-in is hot.

Whatever the reason, we're here to help. stolenbicycleregistry.com is a free resource to register and track stolen bicycles. It is run by tech-savvy people who love their bikes and hate the people who steal them.

 

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Why I Made This Site​

...The property management company refused to allow me to pass around the word that bicycle thefts had been going on (I found out who was stealing them). This frustrated the **** out of me, and I started to think about how many people out there would have done something different if they knew thefts were going on in their area.

theystolemybike.com

 

Using your lock securely

If you don't lock your bike, Don't Leave It!

Most bicycles are stolen from home, meaning the yard, garage, or dormitory that the bike spends most of its time. If your bike is unattended, lock it. The best place to store your lock is on your bike!

"Bike theft isn't usually premeditated. The bike's there, it's unprotected and people take it. People need to stop providing the opportunity," says Lt. Dave Hiller, of the Grosse Pointe Park Police Department.

"Bike theft is a crime of opportunity," he said. "If you don't lock up the bike, then go into the library or somewhere else for a minute, you'll come out to find out your bike's gone. Or if you leave the bike laying outside overnight and somebody sees it at one in the morning, it's gone."

Rob Dehoff, owner of Dinkytown Bike and Skate, says "More than half the time people left their bikes unattended for just a minute. They walked away, and just a minute later it was gone. That's the key -- always lock your bike no matter what."

To avoid forgetting your lock or carrying 4.5 lb lock around on you 19 lb racing bike, try locking it to the bike rack at work, and just bring the key. Then carry a lightweight cable lock with you, used in combination with the U lock at work, for use at home or in front of the corner store, where thefts are mostly crimes of opportunity and anything will do.

Pick Your Post

Only lock your bike to a seriously immovable object. Trees, wooden or aluminum posts, and chain-link fences can be easily broken or cut, allowing the bike to be lifted over the post and carried away. Objects which can be removed, such as another bike or an unsecured bike rack, offer little protection. Look for something embedded in the concrete, such as a permanent bike rack or a parking meter, but be sure that the locked bike cannot be slipped over the top.

Pick a well-lit busy area with lots of bystanders. Don't put it somewhere secluded. Try to find somewhere supervised, such as in front of a parking toll booth or inside a building near the cashier. If you are a customer, a restaurant or shop will seldom be anything but cheerful and helpful if you ask them to watch your bike as it leans against an interior wall.

Don't park your bike so that it obstructs handicapped zones, stairs, entrances, ramps, pathways, door-opening buttons, or traffic thoroughfares. A bicycles that is found parked in these areas may be impounded, so be courteous and use bicycle racks whenever possible.

Safety in Numbers

Try to lock your bike where there are others. Thieves are less likely to choose your bike, and beyond that chances are that someone else's bike will be less carefully secured then your own. Thieves go for the easiest targets.

In the same vein, if you regularly park your bike in the same spot, look at the competition. Are they more expensive than your own? Are they less carefully and thoughtfully secured? Is the quality or type of lock inferior? When a bear attacks a group of campers, you don't have to outrun the bear -- you just have to outrun the guy next to you. If the bikes are all sensibly secured using a quality U lock, then use both a U lock and a cord-type lock or two U locks.

Lock the Frame

The best way to use a U lock is to put the U around a seriously immovable object, push your bike up to the post such that the bars pass inside both the frame and rear wheel, and then place the front wheel and locking bar in place.

Do not lock the bike to itself, such as by locking the front wheel to the frame. A thief can simply carry the bike away. Don't pass the lock only through the front wheel, rear wheel, and post. You will return to find two wheels without a frame. You must pass a lock through every component of your bike that you wish to keep, so get both wheels and your frame at once.

Fill the U

The favourite way to remove a U lock is to jamb a car jack into the U, and break it open. To make this as difficult as possible, fill the space inside the U with as many components as possible, so that a jack will not fit inside. Use your bike, front wheel, and the biggest post object that you can still close the lock around. Use the smallest lock that will still work. Some U locks are wider than necessary, making it harder to fill and far easier to fit a jack into than with a skinnier U.

Position the Lock

This is an easy technique which makes access to the lock more difficult and visible. Position the lock as high above the ground as possible, to make inconspicuous tampering and access more difficult for thieves.

If your U lock has the keyhole at one end of the cross bar, point the keyhole downwards. Locks with a keyhole on the end can be easily defeated by fitting a pipe over the lock mechanism and bending the cross bar, but this is only really practical if the keyhole end is accessible. This also keeps rain out and makes picking more difficult, without inconvenience to you.

If your lock rests against the ground or something solid, a thief can use a hammer or rock to smash the lock mechanism.

If you already have a cable lock, wrap the cable tightly around your bicycle and a fixed object, keeping the locking device as high above the ground as possible. This will make it difficult to gain leverage by bracing one leg of a bolt cutter against the ground.

Get a Quality Lock

There is no way to arrange a dog-collar-chain lock to be secure, regardless of how well you absorb the tips in this article. Get a quality lock, such as Kryptonite's Evolution series. Ask at a bike store, and check for theft-prevention guarantees, key replacement, warranty, and a track record.

Safeguard Components

A good alternative for wheel quick releases is Cyclox, a $30 locking replacement that still quick releases as long as you have the key and special tool that comes with it.

Anyone with an Allen wrench can steal major components of your bike very quickly. Expensive bar ends can be secured by filling the Allen recesses with silicone caulk, or even epoxy. It can be peeled out or chipped out, but it will slow them down and make them move on to another bike. Nice pedals can be secured by wrapping electrical or duct tape around the axle where the wrench would go. Peeling of several layers of tape takes time and the crook might move on.

Run your helmet strap through the lock when leaving your bike. There is no resale value for used helmets with a strap which has been cut. Secure your seat by bringing it with you or using a cable lock in combination with your U lock. Many, many quick-release seats are stolen, especially for expensive seats.

Repainting your bike to look old or otherwise defacing it will not deter the sophisticated thief who is able to penetrate your lock. A defaced bike, of course, is less likely to be the victim of a crime of opportunity if you leave it in front of a store while picking up a Gatorade, but then you wouldn't do that, would you?

source bicyclesource.com

 

Choosing a Lock

Materials

Buy a lock or chain of tool-hardened steel. This means that cutting, sawing and drilling tools will be meeting metal of the same hardness, and will not penetrate it as they would ordinary steels.

Cheap locks use a brittle steel that can be broken by a car jack. Look for a flexible, shatterproof steel which will yield, rather than break, under stress.

U Locks

U-shared bar and shackle locks are the most effective devices for securing your bike. Its design and construction make it impervious to pry bars, hammers, freezing, hacksaws, and bolt cutters.

Good U locks are nearly impossible to pick. "It is very hard for us to pick our own locks," says Kryptonite company representative Neil MacDaid. Kryptonite has difficulty replacing lost keys to their U locks, and there are no master keys.

Not all U locks are good. Those with an extended lock can be removed by using a crow bar or pipe which fits over the end of the lock to bend the locking mechanism, which disables it. Note the extended cross bar in image at right. You can thwart this attempt by placing either a red cuff (available at bike shops) or a plumber's tee ($1.50 at hardware shops) over the locking end. More expensive models have the lock in a different place, such as the center of the cross bar, which prevents the disabling of the mechanism.

Two Inferior U-Locks

Better U locks have only enough space to fit your frame and front wheel to a bike rack, so that there is no room to fit prying tools or car jacks inside. Try aftermarket lock enhancements called "bad bones" which take up space in the middle of your lock.

Look for a convex barrel at the end of the locking mechanism, to make it resistant to drilling.

Regardless of the brand, a $30 U lock is an entry-level lock and provides only a moderate level of security when used correctly. Expect to pay more to protect an expensive bike or if you will be leaving it for prolonged periods, such as when at work. A lock which combines all of the above features runs about $60, and is worth the money.

O Locks

O-Locks offer the best protection for your bike. A few manufacturers are marketing them; Bike Club and Masterlock are two that come to mind, but not all bicycle shops carry them. Ask around. The adjustability makes them great for snugly securing the frame and a front wheel to a bike rack. This helps prevent thieves from getting a prying device into the lock. Their locking mechanisms are also difficult to pick.

Chain Locks

The chain should be at least 3/8" thick, otherwise it can be cut with simple wire cutters. It should be covered with plastic or an inner tube to prevent pinching or frame scratches. Both St. Pierre and Kryptonite make super heavy duty chain locks that use large, beefy, squared links to prevent the thief from getting a grip on them with a cutting tool. The Krypto version comes with a mini U-lock and the St. Pierre comes with a very powerful bolt-type lock on its chain, and these are seriously heavy-duty locking devices, but they are really heavy, expensive, and can't be mounted on a bike. If the chain lock you are considering is lesser than this, then choose a U-lock instead. Hardened chains work well on bicycles such as recumbents, which are difficult to lock.

Inexpensive chains and padlocks will not stop a thief with proper cutting tools, so it has to be both thick and case hardened. Be sure that the chain links are welded together; otherwise the chain can be trivially defeated with a chain spreading tool. Chain locks can provide an added deterrent when used beside a solid U lock, but they are heavy and cannot be passed through the seat like a cable lock.

Cable Locks

These are lighter than other locks and therefore more conveniant, but they offer no real protection. Most cables and padlocks can be cut with bolt cutters, and they are every day by high-school janitors for kids who forget their combination. These are "easy pickings" for thieves.

Armored cable locks are useful for securing seats, wheels, or other bike components in combination with a case-hardened U lock, but most are trivially easy to cut. However, thieves usually carry the equipment needed to cut either one type of lock or another, so using two types of locks can not only keep the seat in place, but it is very good at convincing the lowlife to deprive someone else of their pride and joy.

The best cable locks are the ones that have the lock built-in, rather than relying on a padlock. The padlock is the weak link, easily cut with bolt cutters, the tool of choice for most bike thieves. A new, sharp bolt cutter will cut a cable too, but an old, worn-out one will only crush a cable.

If you purchase a cable lock, look for something identified as Flexweave or Kryptoweave. Cutting weaved cabling is more difficult than a straight strand cable, as is typically the case with thicker cable, but don't use a cable lock by itself.

Warranty

Good locks will guarantee your bike against theft up to a specified value. As home insurance policies generally does not apply to stolen bikes worth more than $500 or so, this is an important feature.

Nothing's Absolute

Any lock can be picked, cut with a welding rig, or made brittle enough to shatter with a sledgehammer with liquid nitrogen. However, with a good quality lock, all are about as impractical. I've heard of only a single instance of a Kryptonite Evolution lock being welded apart or picked, but it can be done.

source bicyclesource.com

 

What to do when you are the victim

If some kids are trying to boost your bike, tell them to scram

If you come out of school to find a band of street urchins swarming over your bike, busily trying to break your lock, the best approach is simply to tell them to beat it. Sermonizing or moralizing is a waste of time, and punitive actions short of shooting the bastards aren't effective. Unfortunately, your best option is noisy, messy, and illegal, so the next best thing is to tell them to scram and forget about it.

On the other hand, if some guy is hanging around a bike rack with a guitar case (containing bolt cutters, a car jack, or a big long pipe), it's a good idea to have the police deal with them. But taking a bunch of kids to the police will only teach them to be better crooks.

Direct Assault

Depending on your age, gender, the value of your bike, and what kind of town you live in, there is also the possibility of direct assault while riding. This is generally limited to parks and other relatively isolated areas, and to a lesser extent to slum streets.

This type of theft can range from a seemingly friendly and casual interest on the part of a stranger who would like to "try out your bike," to people leaping from the bushes, knocking you flat, and riding away on your bike. Unfortunately, there is little one can or should do in this case, unless you are experienced in physical combat. After all, you wouldn't be in the situation if the attackers did not have the advantage. Instead of risking a cracked skull or a knife in the gut over a bike, buy insurance.

The best approach is to stay away from unsafe areas, if you live in a city which has them. Stay out of unsafe or isolated areas in parks in general, and steer clear of parks altogether at night. If you have to travel through unsafe areas, stick to well-lit streets and maintain a fair clip. Stay away from lonely business or shipping districts at night.

Above all, be alert. Look for likely ambushes, and watch people who seem unduly interested in you. If in doubt about your safety, keep moving, and be prepared to downshift and sprint to outrace someone on foot.

If your bike is stolen

If your bike is stolen, you have a chance of getting it back if you register it beforehand and have the serial number. Call the police to report the crime immediately, and give them the information so that your bike can be returned if it is recovered.

As soon as you know it has definitely been stolen, start by making up a flyer with the details of the bike and a picture of it; include an offer of a "no questions asked" cash reward for information. Photocopy a couple of hundred. Deliver a few to each of the local bike shops that buy second-hand (most do). Put them up in every shop window in your area. The chances are that the thief is local, and has enemies that will inform on them in order to extract revenge. The flyers will also make the bike harder to sell.

source bicyclesource.com


Also:

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Register your bike

The best thing you can do to safeguard your bike is to register it with your local police or campus security. Registration is usually free, and means that if your bike is stolen, you can call up the police and likely have it returned to you. If you don't even have the serial number written down, then your chances of getting it back are very slim.

Call your local police or the campus security at the nearest university. They may have a bicycle registration program; many do. It will probably be free.

If you can't find a local registration service, in the US the National Bike Registry charges $25 for a lifetime registration http://www.natlbike.com/register.html, and services about 85 police departments, counties and campuses in the United States.

However, if you don't have a free local or national program, you can serve the same purpose simply by writing down your bike's vitals and keeping it somewhere safe. Get the serial number, colour, make and model, number of speeds, and the like. The police department in my area has little card which you can fill out and keep in your wallet, to produce in the event that your bike is stolen to ensure a useful report.

When a bike is reported stolen, it is entered into a national computer database maintained by the police for furniture, cars, bikes, and everything else. If you have the information on tap, registering a stolen bike works just as well as registering it before it is stolen. Provided you have your serial number available, of course.

Next time you ride by the police station, stop in and use their engraver to etch your driver's license number onto your bike. Choose somewhere obvious, such as your top tube, to act as a deterrent against theft. Use your driver's license number, as it is the easiest for police to look up.

source bicyclesource.com

 

Bicycles are stolen in huge numbers in many parts of the world. In the city of Copenhagen 20,000 bikes annually. In the USA an average of 250,000 bikes are annually reported stolen according to the FBI. In UK, the Home Office reports an average 480,000 bikes. Globally the number is estimated at 1.5 million bikes reported stolen annually; perhaps another 3.0 million go unreported annually.

BikeRegistry offers an easy way to register ALL the important information regarding your bike(s) (including photo).
If lost or stolen, your bike will have the highest probability for recovery if registered with Bike Registry. Guaranteed! (see FAQ)

• ROBUST PEER BASED ARCHITECTURE; STOLEN BIKE INFO ACCESSIBLE BY POLICE AND THE CYCLING PUBLIC. PHOTO HANDLING, ADVANCED SEARCH (incl POSTAL CODE), PARTIAL SERIAL NUMBER, $ REWARD, ETC. IDENTIFY AND PROTECT YOUR WHEELSET(S) AND OTHER ACCESSORIES VIA YOUR BIKE REGISTRATION.
• DO YOUR PART TO HELP ELIMINATE BIKE THEFT. "BECAUSE ONLY A HYPOCRITE RIDES A STOLEN BIKE!"

There is no charge to register/manage your entire fleet of bikes. High-quality Decal Kits are available at nominal cost to TAG your registered bike. Packaged by Goodwill Industries, a non-profit charity providing employment opportunities to the mentally & physically challenged.


BikeRegistry was conceived of and designed by a small group of cyclists for the benefit of the global cycling community. The concept of BikeRegistry addresses the changing marketplace for stolen bikes. Formerly it could be expected that missing bikes would turn up somewhere in the neighborhood or perhaps at the local pawn shop.

Today it is possible that a stolen bike can be sold on one of the many peer-to-peer ecommerce sites (craigslist, eBay, etc) and "fenced" to an unsuspecting buyer many miles or perhaps countries away. All very rapidly. High value models are especially susceptible to such theft.

BikeRegistry offers:
1) Peace of Mind - Even if your bike never becomes a stolen bike statistic, it is good to know that you are protected.
2) Opportunity for Recovery – Without pre-planning a stolen bike will have less than a 2.2% chance of recovery (NYCPD_1991). With BikeRegistry you have the highest probability of recovery available from any registry service. Instantly and reliably.
2) Police Report – One of the reasons that the recovery rate is so low is that the typical police report is fraught with sparse details. With BikeRegistry, all information concerning your bike's “identity” is available to you if needed.
3) Insurance Report – You’ve invested a lot in your bike. In the event you need to file an insurance report you will have all the accessory details available to enable you file a claim and obtain an equitable insurance settlement.
4) Easy and effective access to stolen bike information by the cycling public and law enforcement.

source bikeregistry.com