Author Topic: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike  (Read 38674 times)

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #50 on: 10 April, 2018, 07:03:25 pm »
Today's instalment of Badly Locked Bikes Of Birmingham:



I'll give them 8/10 for quality of lock, 2/10 for application (points deducted for proximity to perfectly good Sheffield stands).  I suspect foreign students.

The mountain bike in the background illustrates standard Brummie D-lock technique.

Cudzoziemiec

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #51 on: 21 April, 2018, 08:37:33 pm »
The mountain bike in the background illustrates standard Brummie D-lock technique.
Not just Brummie, I think it's standard everywhere (that has Sheffield stands). What's wrong with it? Or am I just imagining that you're implying criticism of it. Is it:
– because a great bike lock with a lot of unfilled space gives a thief lots of leverage and/or room for tools?
– because the wheels aren't secured?
– something else?
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #52 on: 21 April, 2018, 09:32:18 pm »
Mostly those, but I'll add that lock through frame/wheel/stand tends to secure the bike in a way that's slightly less inclined to falling over, the importance of which tends to vary from location to location[1].  (Obviously a second lock or a loop of cable at the other wheel is even better in that respect.)


[1] I'd rate this a medium: Two-bikes-per-stand isn't uncommon at peak hours, but if a bike were to fall over, it's unlikely to be run over by a car or jumped on by oiks or anything.

Manotea

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #53 on: 21 April, 2018, 10:38:43 pm »
I obviously score high on my general bike locking technique but some twunt did steal the back lights off my bike from a recent after dark shop stop. One off the saddlebag loop, the other from a clip. They obviously did not  know how to work the clip so just took the lens. I think they were just doing it for a laugh... how funny it would be, my riding at night and not realising I didn't have any back lights. The far more expensive front light on my bars wasn't touched, or maybe just too hard to take off and/or break.

Cudzoziemiec

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #54 on: 23 April, 2018, 10:38:15 am »
Having a bike fall-over-able at the stand is both a plus and a minus. Bad for your bike obviously but good for the person who parks on the other side of the same stand, as often it's necessary to manoeuvre the first bike in order to get your lock round (any part of) the stand. And thus possibly also good for your bike, in that having it pushed to one side a little might be better than getting scraped with other person's lock, maybe.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #55 on: 04 May, 2018, 12:08:57 pm »
Today's Badly Locked Bike Of Birmingham:



Step 1: Remove QR front wheel.
Step 2: Thread handlebars and fork through cable lock.
Step 3: Skulk off with rest of bike.

Except, this one has a bonus security feature: The rear wheel and drive train are in such an appalling state that no respectable bike thief would bother.

Pingu

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #56 on: 13 May, 2018, 06:37:32 pm »
As above:


IMG_0745_01 by The Pingus, on Flickr

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #57 on: 12 July, 2018, 10:39:29 am »


So near and yet so far.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

ElyDave

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #58 on: 21 July, 2018, 09:39:29 pm »
I almost did that^^^^, this morning :facepalm:
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #59 on: 21 July, 2018, 09:50:26 pm »
Ah, that reminds me, I spotted this earlier:



Through the wheel and under the rack, but not actually through the frame of the bike.  The cheapo cable lock was doing the business at the other end.  I reckon they'd probably get away with it, given the unappealingness of a bike with no back wheel.

(What I actually got the camera-phone out for was some impressive motorised bollard carnage, but it doesn't appear to have saved that one.)

Cudzoziemiec

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #60 on: 22 July, 2018, 01:29:44 pm »
Using a Bordo as an oversized, non-fixed nurses-dutch-horsering-shoe lock?
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #61 on: 22 July, 2018, 01:37:30 pm »
I didn't see the rider, but a lot of poor locking strategy seems to result from the user avoiding bending/crouching for whatever reason (not just disability, I've seen people do half-arsed jobs of locking bikes because their hands were full of those silly cloth carrier bags[1], for example).


[1] You know, the ones that don't stay closed and with handles that are too short for your shoulder and too long for your hand.

Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #62 on: 25 July, 2018, 08:24:53 pm »
This weeks prize must surely go to; Mrs B.  Cycled it to town recently with the little guy, parked our bikes at the same stand as Mrs B and spotted that her D-lock and cable was still strapped down atop the rack :facepalm:
Luckily she had only arrived 5 min before we had and my lock was long enough to secure all three bikes.

Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #63 on: 29 July, 2018, 10:59:12 am »

Cudzoziemiec

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #64 on: 29 July, 2018, 12:14:23 pm »
It looks a fairly crappy generic lock, and yet the thief has found it easier to undo four bolts than cut one cable. Kind of disturbing.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #65 on: 29 July, 2018, 12:23:21 pm »
That's SE London for you.
High footfall area just outside the station.

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #66 on: 29 July, 2018, 12:25:16 pm »
I suppose there's the advantage that fiddling with bikes with allen keys doesn't look particularly suspicious (unless you're black).  Same goes for carrying them.

Cudzoziemiec

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #67 on: 29 July, 2018, 12:30:19 pm »
Yep. Though it's only a matter of time till you need to be over 25 to buy them.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #68 on: 29 July, 2018, 12:44:43 pm »
I got IDed for a wallpaper scraper once.

Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #69 on: 29 July, 2018, 01:00:14 pm »
Going equipped to scrape?

There's a telegraph pole in my road which, until  few days ago had, at its base, a nice, shiny, new padlock and chain which had been recently cropped to liberate the bike which had been attached to it for a couple of weeks or so.

Ordinarily, something like this would disturb me - occurring, as it did, so close to my home.
On this occasion however, the bike which was removed was a Santander hire bike, and I suspect the removal was carried out by its rightful owner.

Meanwhile, I delight in the knowledge that at least one of my neighbours is a thief.

Cudzoziemiec

  • Ride adventurously and stop for a brew.
Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #70 on: 29 July, 2018, 02:08:56 pm »
I got IDed for a wallpaper scraper once.
You're always getting into scrapes.
Riding a concrete path through the nebulous and chaotic future.

Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #71 on: 29 July, 2018, 08:25:39 pm »
Meanwhile, I delight in the knowledge that at least one of my neighbours is a thief.
:jurek:
I would not be happy if I found out one of my neighbours is a thief. At least if something goes missing
you know who to initially suspect.
I think you get my point....

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #72 on: 24 April, 2019, 12:50:29 pm »
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-48035577

No details of the bike or lock, but I wouldn't lock up any bike worth touring on on Borough High Street unless I was keeping an eye on it the whole time.  -10 points to the hostel.


Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #73 on: 24 April, 2019, 05:25:12 pm »
This says "chained with a padlock", which doesn't inspire much confidence. Also leaving a bike in high traffic location for two days running is a guarantee someone will spot it and come back with tools.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bwh22AdHJrG/

(looks like a fairly generic steel tourer with a couple of generation old components, so hopefully not too expensive to replace, although still a total pain in the arse)

Kim

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Re: How Not To Lock Up Your Bike
« Reply #74 on: 24 April, 2019, 05:28:26 pm »
I don't think any lock you'd want to tour with is really rated for That London.

Hope he gets sorted out.