Glued locks

Commuting, Day rides, Audax, Incidents, etc.
TonyR
Posts: 5390
Joined: 31 Aug 2008, 12:51pm

Glued locks

Post by TonyR »

A reminder and warning about an old trick to steal a bike. My daughter's boyfriend locked his bike up outside the pub and when it was time to leave the lock wouldn't work and the key snapped off. When they phoned me for advice I suggested that the lock could have been super-glued so it would be left there and the wannabe thieves could come back when it was quiet in the middle of the night. With the prospect of sleeping out with it overnight, BF managed to get a locksmith to come out and cut the lock off. BF has now broken the lock open and it was indeed full of superglue and the bike obviously being targeted. So be careful out there and if your lock stops working suddenly be suspicious.
MikeF
Posts: 4339
Joined: 11 Nov 2012, 9:24am
Location: On the borders of the four South East Counties

Re: Glued locks

Post by MikeF »

If the lock is sprayed with WD40/GT85/grease/oil/release agent/etc is the superglue still able to "glue"? In other words is there anything that stops superglue gluing?
"It takes a genius to spot the obvious" - my old physics master.
I don't peddle bikes.
cjchambers
Posts: 855
Joined: 29 Jun 2008, 9:55pm
Location: Hartlepool

Re: Glued locks

Post by cjchambers »

A similar trick is for the thief to apply their own lock then come back later. They may even lock up another (scrapper) bike with the same lock to make it look more like an accidental double locking.

MikeF wrote:In other words is there anything that stops superglue gluing?

Yes. You can buy 'debonders' - the police use them when protesters stick themselves to railings etc. An acetone-containing nail varnish remover* would work too.

*Not all nail varnish removers do contain acetone nowadays, due to the popularity of "solvent-free nail varnish remover" which contains ethyl acetate instead of acetone. Still a solvent really, but less nasty.
Italia50
Posts: 109
Joined: 1 Jun 2014, 10:05am

Re: Glued locks

Post by Italia50 »

I've seen the above scam practiced twice,its a tough one because it can look like a very plausible mistake and the temptation is to come back later or the next day,when youre bike will be gone!
axel_knutt
Posts: 2879
Joined: 11 Jan 2007, 12:20pm

Re: Glued locks

Post by axel_knutt »

I keep a junior hacksaw blade in the toolkit.
“I'm not upset that you lied to me, I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche
Italia50
Posts: 109
Joined: 1 Jun 2014, 10:05am

Re: Glued locks

Post by Italia50 »

The one I saw the U lock had to be cut off with a tungsten angle grinder!! Sparks did fly!!!
Tonyf33
Posts: 3926
Joined: 17 Nov 2007, 3:31pm
Location: Letchworth N.Herts

Re: Glued locks

Post by Tonyf33 »

Call the police if someone has glued your lock as it is criminal damage for one thing and if another bike has being 'accidentally' locked to yours same as, it's attempted theft. Nobody accidentally locks their bike to someone elses, the only reason to do so is for something illegitimate.
User avatar
Cunobelin
Posts: 10801
Joined: 6 Feb 2007, 7:22pm

Re: Glued locks

Post by Cunobelin »

... and of course if someone does ask the thief what they are up to - they can provide absolute proof that someone superglued their bike, the key broke and they are now trying to free it!
yakdiver
Posts: 1466
Joined: 12 Jul 2007, 2:54pm
Location: North Baddesley Hampshire

Re: Glued locks

Post by yakdiver »

Tonyf33 wrote:Nobody accidentally locks their bike to someone elses

Sorry but I did once, I was glad I got back before they did :oops:
geocycle
Posts: 2177
Joined: 11 Jan 2007, 9:46am

Re: Glued locks

Post by geocycle »

yakdiver wrote:
Tonyf33 wrote:Nobody accidentally locks their bike to someone elses

Sorry but I did once, I was glad I got back before they did :oops:


Yep, happens regularly where I work, always not malicious but very annoying when it happens to you!
CliveyT
Posts: 461
Joined: 13 Jun 2012, 2:55pm
Location: Cambridge

Re: Glued locks

Post by CliveyT »

geocycle wrote:
yakdiver wrote:
Tonyf33 wrote:Nobody accidentally locks their bike to someone elses

Sorry but I did once, I was glad I got back before they did :oops:


Yep, happens regularly where I work, always not malicious but very annoying when it happens to you!


It's happened to me several times amongst the tangle of bikes at the railway station- last time it cost me £18 for the taxi ride home
MichVanNic
Posts: 10
Joined: 23 Jun 2014, 8:56pm
Location: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Contact:

Glued locks

Post by MichVanNic »

I use an old mountain bike for the pub run but only have my decent lock I use normally which begs the question, what do you do if your lock is worth more than your bike?
Postboxer
Posts: 1929
Joined: 24 Jul 2013, 5:19pm

Re: Glued locks

Post by Postboxer »

When my brother was at school he had his lock stolen but they left his rustbucket bike, I'll never understand why they wanted a lock that they were able to steal.
User avatar
[XAP]Bob
Posts: 19793
Joined: 26 Sep 2008, 4:12pm

Re: Glued locks

Post by [XAP]Bob »

Postboxer wrote:When my brother was at school he had his lock stolen but they left his rustbucket bike, I'll never understand why they wanted a lock that they were able to steal.

To lock up a nice looking bike, then come back in the middle of the night...
A shortcut has to be a challenge, otherwise it would just be the way. No situation is so dire that panic cannot make it worse.
There are two kinds of people in this world: those can extrapolate from incomplete data.
Vinko
Posts: 180
Joined: 27 Feb 2014, 7:11pm

Re: Glued locks

Post by Vinko »

[XAP]Bob wrote:
Postboxer wrote:When my brother was at school he had his lock stolen but they left his rustbucket bike, I'll never understand why they wanted a lock that they were able to steal.

To lock up a nice looking bike, then come back in the middle of the night...


:lol:
Post Reply