Mini D Locks

That pic is a circular saw not a angle grinder.

Krypto NY 3000s aren't that heavy. I rode with mine (and change of clothes, mini d lock, food, drink, severed head, book, tools) to and from work everyday over the summer back home, and there's hills there unlike in London. I was definitely fitter after a few weeks.

Htfu!

Quite a haul in the bag that day.

that day? Everyday!

HMV wouldn't let me keep my bike in the staff room, and moaned about me leaving work, then coming back to put my locks in my locker because it meant opening and closing the shutter again. So I had to ride with them everyday.

The last hill on the way home was total agony especially 'cause I was low on food since I wouldn't have eaten since lunch time.

Definitely made a difference to my strength/endurance though!

I'll have to check if it's not worth keeping first, but I found an old mavic tubular wheel (hub looks pretty fucked) I'd be willing to donate it to test this out. Someone would have to supply the angle grinder/2ft pair of boltcutters.

I got one of those mini d lock belt holsters off Roberto - best way to carry the bastards around, you dont notice its ther most of the time

Hell yeah, power tools versus metal is the kind of test I am intereted in. Who has got the right tool? (fnar fnar)

Also, @vinylvillain - I just put the mini in my back jeans pocket, works a treat and never gets in the way, which I was worried about...

isn't part of the problem how secure the bike is perceived to be by thieving scum?
whilst the sheldon educated masses might be aware that cutting through a rim is difficult, to the casual observer a bike locked like this seems less secure. An opportunist thief might well have a go at sawing through a rim (knackering a good wheel, even if they don't get the bike) whereas if it's locked around the frame, the only point of attack would be the lock itself.

Hmm, everyone seems to take Sheldon's word for this (including me, this is my locking strategy most of the time). I'd like to actually put it to the test against a big pair of bolt-cutters/grinder. You can bolt cutter spokes very quickly if you go for the cross, then tension goes away and the rim is a lot easier to cut.

The hacksaw example is bogus, cos no-one around here goes bike thieving with a hacksaw.

some twat got half-way through a abus cable lock in two slashes with a hack saw blade before the staff noticed out the window and he swanned off.

+ =

what? stronger than a model train? bilmey, that is strong.

mini D's are very easy to use, if you know how:

The key is to not worry about getting any frame tube inside the D, just your rim, inside the rear triangle. Then it is a simple matter to fit it around a sheffield stand or a sign post / fence whatever.

BTW, this works because you cannot remove wheel from frame (or frame from wheel) with the lock in place. Cutting a rim (in two places) is just about has hard as cutting through a frame.

This is how Sheldon Brown locked up his bike...

Mashton, I was thinking about this after our convo yesterday... It's good BUT does it not still put your frame at risk? Cutting through an aluminium rim in two places as you pointed out would then leave your frame completely unprotected? there's no way that this would be "just about as hard" as cutting through a hardened steel purpose designed d-lock...? or have i missed summink? let me know what you think.

The idea is that it's supposed to be much more work to cut through a rim in two places (or one place even) than a thief would be be willing to do (or even capable of doing).

Some will object that felons might cut the rear rim and tire to remove the lock. Believe me, this just doesn't happen in the real world. First, this would be a lot of work to steal a frame without a useable rear wheel, the most expensive part of a bike, after the frame. Second, cutting the rear rim is much harder than you might think. Since the rim is under substantial compression due to the tension on the spokes, it would pinch a hacksaw blade tight as soon as it cut partway through. Then there are the wire beads of the tire, also difficult to cut.
From the man's website.

Exactly horatio. You CAN cut through anything, given the right tools.

Having said that, perhaps we should quantify this. Does anyone want to volunteer an unwanted wheel that we can attack with progressively more severe tools, starting with a simple hack saw?

I.e. Let's resurrect the idea up there ^

Perhaps this sits well with the 'OMG I have 400 wheels' thread!

I have an old 27" I'd be willing to laugh at as it's destroyed. But I suspect it'd be better to see if anyone needed a shit 27" wheel.

And this plan for the furthering of knowledge and the fight against bike theft doesn't constitute a real 'need'?

Pah

fair enough! but you get to do the "sawing" ;)

I wonder if sunday AM toolbox would be a cool time to have a go at this? I certainly have a lack of toolage...

Mary, Matt, Sheep (?) What do you reckon?

Sunday tool box is dead! (RIP) Where have you been?

Spain, France, Cornwall, Devon, Brighton.

In that order.

What happened, I heard rumours about tools shifting to a real workshop, is it true?

You should have stopped listing places after France.

And, yeah - it's finished.

We should still destroy this wheel though.

I think one of the drinky's could be a fine venue for a go at it. Maybe Easties - it's the most anarchistic one.

WHo can bring what tools? I have 1 x small hack saw and 1 x swiss army knife.

:-)

I can bring a (battery powered so needs no plug) angle grinder. have cut many d-locks (officially, not to thieve bikes) with this. Not sure if the publican will appreciate the noise though

no no no no. we are not going to bring powertools to a pub, get drunk, then start angle grinding away.

It can't be any louder than Corny or Chirs ;)