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hermanf

Member since Apr 2012 • Last active Apr 2012
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  • in Bikes & Bits
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    You can buy them in most LBS. But they are kind of heavy and overpriced for what they are.

    An Axa Defender is a serious enough lock to prevent opportunistic thieves from breaking it in the spot. It really needs some serious tools. I worked in a centre for addiction psychiatry and always just placed my bike in front of the building. Since I was too lazy to use my chain + discus lock I only used my frame lock. At one point presumably one of our clients had aquired some taste and had set his eye on my rusty bike. When I wanted to drive off I was there with empty hands. That was not a very nice situation and I thought I had lost my trusty bike forever. But there is was, 25 meters away, parked nicely to a wall. The thief realized there was no point in carrying a locked bike all the way with him. So the frame lock certainly can work. Also, a when you use a frame lock a thieve knows that when he manages to cut your chain he still is not able to immediately run off with your bike, which might make for a psychological effect.

  • in Bikes & Bits
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    I live in The Netherlands and would like to add my experiences. First let me emphasize that I think the environment here (at least in Amsterdam) is a little bit different. People here generally don't use very expensive bikes in the city, but have old ones that look like a wreck for this purpose. I think professional bike thieves (that use serious tools like bolt cutters) are relatively scarce for this reason. Of course they exist, but this is not the main problem here.

    Tradionally here it's about homeless drug addicts trying to score an easy bike and then sell it in some alley for 10 euro's. The amount of homeless heroine addicts has drastically been reduced in the last 10-15 years however, so this probably has made the problem less severe. Some of the most popular locks here are the relatively simple Abus Steel O Chain 810 (now succeeded by the Iven 8210, with a thougher sleeve) and Viro Supermorso, which seem sufficient in most cases. Somewhat more serious is the Axa Procarat 105 or 130. The most popular more heavy duty lock here that is being used on bikes probably is the Viro Super Blocca Catena with a 10mm chain. This last one is really a pretty serious chain/lock combo.

    Example of an effective combination of shitty looking bike and heavier Viro chain (clickable):

    Also quite effective as an extra security measure is a frame lock, like the Axa Defender or the Abus Amparo 4850. Since a frame lock is fixed and the key is always in it when open, it's very convenient to use. Also, although of course far from unbreakable, it probably still takes an uncomfortable amount of time to unlock it without the key, which leaves a thieve with a bike which might be 'mobile', but still is not driveable (of course it looks very suspicious to walk with a bike while lifting the rear wheel).

    So, although I realize it's a different market out here maybe it's still usefull to see how people lock their bike in this place.

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