Decent lightweight bike lock

[Wassy]

Can anyone recommend a good bike lock to lock up two bikes whilst on a touring holiday. We're hoping to do a bit of sightseeing whilst on tour and don't want to have to be worrying about getting back to discover our bikes are gone, nor do we want to be heffting around really heavy locks as well as all the rest of our gear.

I've been looking at the Master Lock Street Cuff 9 Link Bicycle Lock but I'm not entirely sure how it works, I'd then add a couple of coil locks for extra deterants. Or do you think I should just go for a kryptonit D Lock and then the coil cables.

I've got an old lock that I use on my commuting bike but as our combined bikes cost over a grand I don't think it would be up to the job,

Cheers

Rebecca

[thirdcrank]

Wassy

In the absence of a reply from anybody else:

Decent + lightweight + bike lock are not things normally mentioned in the same breath.

Strong lock = heavy lock. Even then whenever there are comparative tests in bike mags, even the strongest locks only resist determined attack for a few minutes. (The Sold Secure Gold Standard is something like 5 minutes.) In any case, unless you attach it to something substantial, thieves are just as likely to attack that as your lock.

If I'm thinking of the same thing, the Cufflink thing is more of the sort of lock intended to provide a bit of a deterrent while you nip in a shop. They sell them in B&Q if you want to have a look at one.

The problem you are experiencing faces all modern cyclists because modern thieves can use vans, although most are probably just opportunist passers-by. In the end luck plays a bigger part than anything, so I'll wish you 'good luck.'

[Edwards]

I am after a bit of advice as well for a lightweight lock extra to an other I use.
I have been wondering about the effectiveness of some of the older type of handcuffs.
The lock might be a bit suspect to others with the same key. I wondered if the sight of handcuffs might out of some who would have felt the use of them by the police.
They are very quick to use for short stops. The length would be an issue.

[quiksilver]

I find it constantly annoying that I have to carry a heavy duty lock to protect my bike from tealeaves. The best I have found is either a Kryptonite Evo Mini or a Forgetaboutit

[thirdcrank]

There are several types of older handcuffs. What you might call the newer old type, flat metal with a ratchet, can be opened easily with a hairgrip or similar, although some types have a bit of a deadlock. They depended - not always successfully - on it being difficult to pick them with hands fastened in them. Better than nothing in an emergency (if you happen to have some with you, I suppose) but otherwise relatively heavy. I'd have thought the linking chain would be easily prised open with a screwdriver.

Proper prison escort cuffs with Chubb locks and all the rest of it are a different security proposition but I fancy they cost a lot more than a bike lock and are not designed for the purpose.

[Edwards]

Thank you for the reply TC.
Just forget about that one. The search continues.

[allen-uk]

Have a look at these (3 pdf pages out of a Cycling Plus lock review from 2007).

Basically the products are all still the same, and the test results are interesting (and scarey).

http://b6.s3.p.quickshareit.com/files/locks1f68d4.pdf
http://b2.s3.p.quickshareit.com/files/locks223c2d.pdf
http://b3.s3.p.quickshareit.com/files/locks35330a.pdf

Allen.

[Big T]

Tesco sell a Sold Secure Bronze standard bike lock for around £10. You'll pay at least £25 elsewhere. We used two on our recent JOGLE tour and locked the bikes up in the centre of Glasgow for a couple of hours, using them.

They're not light, though. They weigh about 3 lbs each. I just used to attached mine to the top of my rack with a bungee cord.

[Wassy]

Thanks everyone,

I did think that Lightwieght and Lock don't go together. I have a good quality D lock with an old bike that some theives tried to swipe. They couldn't get the lock off so they decided to take their anger out on my wheels instead. I turned up after my shift and discovered that I still had a bike but couldn't actually ride it home and the damage they'd done to the key hole mean't I couldn't even remove the mangled mess to fix it.

I think I'm going to have to just go for heavy Kryptinite and then get some other lighter coil locks as a deterant. We shouldn't leave the bikes too long but I suppose it is just luck really.

Wassy

[Mick F]

All you can do is use two or three flexi-locks IMHO. They are light and easy to use.They won't stop a determined thief. Nothing will. Best thing is to either hide your bikes out of prospective thieves' view, or lock them in a building. Not easy whilst stopping for sightseeing.

There's no good answer except not leaving the bikes out of sight.

[Tako]

re: locks. like bikes, cheap, strong, lightweight, pick 2!
I have the Krypto fahgedabouit+cable locks and they are a brute but inspire confidence. I am looking at replacing them with amotor bike disc lock that have 110dB alarms, which should prove enough of a deterrent.
In another thread, someone posted a handy tip: undo the master links of your chain and use them as an additional lock.

[chris667]

MKS make detachable pedals, which would put off a lot of opportunists.
But TBH, for a nice bike, a heavy lock is the way to go. It can also help to disguise it. My Dawes Galaxy is "rat look", partly from use, partly from taking all the stickers off.
Motorbike chains are as strong as you can get, and not much more expensive than decent bike locks. The sad truth is, you need to spend 1/10 of the value of your bikes securing them.

[PentonJohn]

I have used a stainless steel cable, with braided lops at each end, and an abloy padlock for years. This is a pretty light weight combination.