Lightweight locks

[quixoticgeek]

I would like a better lock to use on the TCR. On RatN i carried a 1.4kg abus lock. Which given it was the Netherlands, and the high rate of bike theft, seemed appropriate, tho I did curse it in Limburg.

Given TCR isn't going through Amsterdam, it central Rotterdam, I can get away with something lighter. I did ponder a ti-gr lock, but it's still about 400g.

What other options are there? I'm not planning to lock the bike over night where I can't see it, but I'd like to be able to run into a shop or restaurant without stressing too much.

J

[Kim]

Abus Bordo Lite?

Security is mostly psychological, as it does a passable impression of a proper Bordo.  The lock mechanism itself looks a bit feeble.  But on the basis that it's a decent step up from a cable lock, and mounts to the bike neatly in a rattle-free holder, it's now my lock of choice for touring.


Alternatively, one of those alarm things with the homeopathic bit of wire for a cable.  Possibly in combination with Sheldon bicycle-immobilisation tactics such as a luggage padlock through a chain link, or turning the bike upside down.

[Cudzoziemiec]

I reckon most UK audaxers use a lightweight cable lock. Many you could cut with pliers but they're generally left outside cafes and church halls in low-risk villages. But you won't be in the UK so different conditions might apply...

Not sure what you mean by not locking it where you can't see it at night. Surely you're going to sleep a little bit? Josie Dew dental floss trick (but she does say she has no idea what she'd do if it got triggered!)?

[Tim Hall]

Abus Bordo Lite?

Security is mostly psychological, as it does a passable impression of a proper Bordo.  The lock mechanism itself looks a bit feeble.  But on the basis that it's a decent step up from a cable lock, and mounts to the bike neatly in a rattle-free holder, it's now my lock of choice for touring.


Alternatively, one of those alarm things with the homeopathic bit of wire for a cable.  Possibly in combination with Sheldon bicycle-immobilisation tactics such as a luggage padlock through a chain link, or turning the bike upside down.

Presumably the Bordo Lite is what you showed me at Maldon.  The Abus website suggests at least two "lite" models. Do you know which yours is?

[Kim]

Presumably the Bordo Lite is what you showed me at Maldon.  The Abus website suggests at least two "lite" models. Do you know which yours is?

Yeah, that's the one.  Mine's the longer version, on the basis that much of the time I'm locking to a random tree or fencepost on a campsite, and not that fussed about the extra weight.

*searches email archive*

6055 apparently.  That's the lighter variant, but in the 85cm version, so 500g.


ETA: Forgot there were two lock versions.  Updated.

[Frank9755]

Most people on tcr either use a small cafe lock or don't bother.

[Tim Hall]

Presumably the Bordo Lite is what you showed me at Maldon.  The Abus website suggests at least two "lite" models. Do you know which yours is?

Yeah, that's the one.  Mine's the longer version, on the basis that much of the time I'm locking to a random tree or fencepost on a campsite, and not that fussed about the extra weight.

*googles*

6050 apparently.

Great,  thanks.

[quixoticgeek]

Abus Bordo Lite?

Security is mostly psychological, as it does a passable impression of a proper Bordo.  The lock mechanism itself looks a bit feeble.  But on the basis that it's a decent step up from a cable lock, and mounts to the bike neatly in a rattle-free holder, it's now my lock of choice for touring.


Alternatively, one of those alarm things with the homeopathic bit of wire for a cable.  Possibly in combination with Sheldon bicycle-immobilisation tactics such as a luggage padlock through a chain link, or turning the bike upside down.

I have one of those bordo lite locks in stock. I don't however seem to have the key...

While it's lighter than the current Bordo 6500 granit that I have, it's still a substantial hunk.

Will certainly consider it tho.

What other options are there?
J

[Kim]

6050 apparently.

Great,  thanks.

Or not.  Corrected post above based on actual invoice rather than google guesswork.

[Phil W]

Once you are down to 400g you start entering the terrain of cable locks.  So to go much lighter it will need to be cable. Once down to around 200g you are in the terrain of cafe locks.

[Kim]

Once you are down to 400g you start entering the terrain of cable locks.  So to go much lighter it will need to be cable. Once down to around 200g you are in the terrain of cafe locks.

Agreed.  I reckon the 500g Bordo Lite was a significant upgrade on the ~490g of Halfrauds cable lock I was using previously^[1]. Unless I forget the key and have to hack through it with a swiss army knife, of course.

I've got a cafe lock in the ~100g range, which is rated for stopping your bike blowing over.  I've only used it a few times, usually in typical AUK middle-of-nowhere village tearoom scenarios.


_{[1] Now bagged by barakta as a convenient physioterrorism weight, but also occasionally useful for immobilising the trailer when securing the bike with a D-lock.}

[Karla]

I went most of the way round the world on a Bordo Lite Mini at 400g.  I could have done away with it for sleeping tbh: it was there to enable me to go around sightseeing and faffing off the bike.  If you're racing you won't be doing that so you don't need one.

How to survive without a lock on the road:

1) If staying in paid accommodation in a built-up area, take the bike in with you.  If the area is built-up enough for theft to be a serious theat, there will be competitor accommodation nearby if they refuse to let you do this.
2) If bivvying in the sticks, get far enough into the sticks they you can get out of sight and not get your bike stolen.
3) Ask yourself what level of theft risk you are prepared to tolerate.  If the answer is"zero", give yourself a hard slap for wasting your own and everyone else's time trying to achieve the impossible.


[snip to remove fragment of previous draft]

[bludger]

I tour with two locks: a fully gold sold secure rated kryptonite evolution d lock which weighs in at 1.6 kg for stops where the bike is out of my sight including when sleeping, and a small café lock I got in a sale for 5p (!) from Planet X https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/BLJOIMRELO/jobsworth-ristretto-retractable-cafe-lock which I stick on when I'm in circumstances where I can keep an eye on the bike e.g. from the other side of a bakery window in rural Belgium. I also use the ristretto to lock up the front wheel.

In urban places I'm more wary and will also take the precaution of jamming the gears (sticking the gears in big-big and then bunging the shifters in as high a gear as possible without pedalling) so that anyone who did manage to break the ristretto will hopefully panic upon the drivetrain locking up and abandoning the theft. I would also consider removing the chain in some circumstances, which might deter a thief wanting to ride it away.

It's a hard balance to get right - of course you don't want to be lugging round a big hunk of steel especially in a race but then if your bike is pinched it is 100% game over. For someone like me, who often uses supermarkets to stock up, the peace of mind of a good lock is definitely worth it.

If I was on the market for something light, the bordo lite from Abus would be on my list, it's less than half a kg. https://www.abus.com/uk/Mobile-Security/Bike-Safety-and-Security/Locks/Folding-locks/BORDO-Lite-6050

I intend to take part in the trans continental race in the fullness of time and would definitely pack a lock that is sold secure silver at the least.

[Paul H]

If you get one of those chains in a canvas cover and replace the the links inside the canvas with plastic ones, it'll weigh well under a kg and any thief who discovers it has a security rating of zero is likely to be tooled up to deal with the genuine thing anyway.

[Kim]

If you get one of those chains in a canvas cover and replace the the links inside the canvas with plastic ones, it'll weigh well under a kg and any thief who discovers it has a security rating of zero is likely to be tooled up to deal with the genuine thing anyway.

Ha!

[bludger]

If you get one of those chains in a canvas cover and replace the the links inside the canvas with plastic ones, it'll weigh well under a kg and any thief who discovers it has a security rating of zero is likely to be tooled up to deal with the genuine thing anyway.

This has inspired me to 3D print an facsimile Abus granit 540. Brilliant.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Potemkin lock, brilliant! But it'll only fool the thinking thief, not those who use brute force or are in too much of a hurry to consider.

[grams]

I snapped the key in my abus lock and continued to use it for a while, even though you could turn the lock with a screwdriver. I can’t imagine many thieves would try.

My ideal lightweight lock would be a cable thick enough to deter casual attacks and just long enough to get round a lamppost - i.e. the opposite of the very long wire you could cut with toenail clippers format that most café locks go for. I haven’t found anything that fits the bill yet.

[Zed43]

I love the idea of the Potemkin lock 

What I'm currently use on audaxes and touring though is (the predecessor of) the Abus 2503. It won't stop a bike thief, but it will stop someone too lazy to walk home from the pub from taking your bike. No key to lose, 120cm cable is long enough to secure your bike to something solid and its compact and 90 grams.

[Karla]

The Potemkin lock is basically the Bordo Lite: it's mostly plastic but as Kim says, it looks a lot like the full fat Bordo.  It's still too heavy for racing though.

[Greenbank]

My ideal lightweight lock would be a cable thick enough to deter casual attacks and just long enough to get round a lamppost - i.e. the opposite of the very long wire you could cut with toenail clippers format that most café locks go for. I haven’t found anything that fits the bill yet.

I use an Abus 1150 for that. Lightweight, easily stowed on a saddle rail, combination lock so I don't have to worry about keys, could withstand toenail clippers but not wire cutters, long enough to go around a lamp-post and even sometimes able to get both wheels, frame and lamppost.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

We use a couple of varieties of https://ottodesignworks.com/shop/ottolock as cafe locks.

[robgul]

I have a couple of the HipLok Z LOK Armoured Security Tie locks - it's a steel lined cable tie!    Two versions : 1 with a "key" but that is universal, and 1 with a combination lock.  I had a combo one BUT the wheels are so small to be difficult to use and quite easy to inadvertently reset the number (I KNOW about that !)



As a simple, no weight, option they're as good as a basic cable cafe lock - at the moment they are a bit on the short side (I sometimes use two connected together to lock to a post etc) but I understand a longer version is in the pipeline.

Rob