Bike Stolen :(
Discussion
Well, I have now joined the club of having my bike stolen
it was wheeled off in Sutton, London today by 2 opportunistic thieves on a 125.
Police called; have it all on work CCTV, though the thieves were wearing helmets.
Next stop is to call insurance (fully comp) and then see what happens next.
What grates is I spent ages during summer fixing the downpipes, and I filled it up this morning too!
Ian
it was wheeled off in Sutton, London today by 2 opportunistic thieves on a 125.
Police called; have it all on work CCTV, though the thieves were wearing helmets.
Next stop is to call insurance (fully comp) and then see what happens next.
What grates is I spent ages during summer fixing the downpipes, and I filled it up this morning too!
Ian
kers.Thanks all
The number plate of the bike might potentially be traceable (but not from this pic obviously)
Identities not really clear either.
As for locks: no. I have a huge almax 2 chain that I was carrying around, but as I work across 2 sites, I left it at the other site for convenience (thinking it was more prone to theft)
Even a cheap disc lock would have prevented this, but I agree they can be cut through in seconds, if the thief had an angle grinder in his stupid manbag.
The silver lining -Yes, I am already pondering stop gap bikes...cbr600f, fzr600, thundercats etc all under £2500.
But I got rid of a 2004 zzr600 years ago because it was knackered..not so sure I want to take on a 20 year plus project.
Sensible me thinks something fairly new, with 60+mpg, cheap tyres and tax.
But as I commute up the M23 /M25 I want a bit of umph. An er6f will probably fit the bill, but I do miss the sound of an il4, and recall the er6 was a bit vibey.
I've also got to see what happens to my insurance, but hopefully it won't be too much of a kick in the balls.
The number plate of the bike might potentially be traceable (but not from this pic obviously)
Identities not really clear either.
As for locks: no. I have a huge almax 2 chain that I was carrying around, but as I work across 2 sites, I left it at the other site for convenience (thinking it was more prone to theft)
Even a cheap disc lock would have prevented this, but I agree they can be cut through in seconds, if the thief had an angle grinder in his stupid manbag.
The silver lining -Yes, I am already pondering stop gap bikes...cbr600f, fzr600, thundercats etc all under £2500.
But I got rid of a 2004 zzr600 years ago because it was knackered..not so sure I want to take on a 20 year plus project.
Sensible me thinks something fairly new, with 60+mpg, cheap tyres and tax.
But as I commute up the M23 /M25 I want a bit of umph. An er6f will probably fit the bill, but I do miss the sound of an il4, and recall the er6 was a bit vibey.
I've also got to see what happens to my insurance, but hopefully it won't be too much of a kick in the balls.
ChocolateFrog said:
Atleast you know the police will take it seriously and throw some resources at it.
Oh wait, no that’s not right.
Sorry to hear about your bike. Not sure anything will stop someone with an angle grinder, short of taking a wheel off the bike, or maybe deflating the front tyre and having CO2 canisters on you. Something to make the bike completely unridable as they seem to be riding them away.Oh wait, no that’s not right.
Or have a spare seat with rusty nails sticking out of it that you carry in a bag, then swap over when the bike is parked.
Or maybe some way to lock the front brake on using the hydraulics rather than a disc lock.
I dunno. Just crazy ideas. It seems the using locks isn't the answer, because once cut through they're just wheeling the bikes off.
As for the police...
Edited by LowTread on Friday 14th October 08:58
tight fart said:
Are there any locks that perform well against an angle grinder?
There are many claims, but unfortunately cordless power tools are becoming ever more efficient. Latest Makita grinder has a brushless motor & even one of the smaller 2Ah batteries will easily last the time it takes to cut through even the biggest chain. Not only that, the latest system for swapping out cutting discs is tool-less, so can be performed in seconds. We use a cutting disc specialist to advise & supply diamond discs for cutting different types of stone/brick - they also offer a myriad of specialist metal cutting discs, including ultra thin ones that seem capable of cutting through pretty much anything......
Biker 1 said:
tight fart said:
Are there any locks that perform well against an angle grinder?
There are many claims, but unfortunately cordless power tools are becoming ever more efficient. Latest Makita grinder has a brushless motor & even one of the smaller 2Ah batteries will easily last the time it takes to cut through even the biggest chain. Not only that, the latest system for swapping out cutting discs is tool-less, so can be performed in seconds. We use a cutting disc specialist to advise & supply diamond discs for cutting different types of stone/brick - they also offer a myriad of specialist metal cutting discs, including ultra thin ones that seem capable of cutting through pretty much anything......The job was done in no more than 30 seconds. The lock may as well have been made from cheese.
I concluded that they are a waste of time. The best they do is to deter the opportunistic thief from wheeling the bike away, so you may as well just use a cheap disc lock.
I suspect the best way to deter bike thieves is to ride something that no one would want to pinch, such as a Jawa or an old Guzzi.
When parked for a whole day, you could dump the air out of the front tyre. Then carry round one of these. Start the bike, plug it in, inflate, then ride off.
https://www.airman-uk.com/product/tour-adventure-c...
They're unlikely to have a way of inflating tyres on them. And deflated it's VERY hard to a) push them up a ramp into a van, or b) ride them off while their fellow-scrote pushes them along on a scooter.
EDIT: Just bought one of those compressors. Seems like a great bit of kit, and the SAE connectors will just plug into my optimate connector, which i always have fitted to my bikes.
https://www.airman-uk.com/product/tour-adventure-c...
They're unlikely to have a way of inflating tyres on them. And deflated it's VERY hard to a) push them up a ramp into a van, or b) ride them off while their fellow-scrote pushes them along on a scooter.
EDIT: Just bought one of those compressors. Seems like a great bit of kit, and the SAE connectors will just plug into my optimate connector, which i always have fitted to my bikes.
Edited by LowTread on Friday 14th October 09:42
tight fart said:
Are there any locks that perform well against an angle grinder?
Yes. Hiplok D1000. Most only last slightly longer, ie they last maybe 60 rather than 20 seconds, I'm not aware of any others that are *actually* resistant enough to prevent a thief and involve carrying around what is in essence a ships anchor chain to actually use them.
tight fart said:
Are there any locks that perform well against an angle grinder?
As others have said, not really. It is a deterrent though. Even the most ham fisted thief will be through your chain in a matter of seconds. The thickness of your chain will vary the number of seconds but it will still, ultimately, result in theft. I wonder if there's a technology or material available that's either less susceptible to angle grinders or is there a material that could shatter angle grinder disks? Perhaps having a steel chain where the core of the link is ceramic or something so as the thieves cut through it, the disks are either slowed down or damaged by the harder ceramic material. Or perhaps some sort of fibrous sheath that would stick to the grinder disks and hopefully jam the grinder up.
Sorry to hear this. It's infuriating seeing this happen
I've got into the good habit of using one of these all the time, whether it's if the bike is tucked away in the garage, on the drive whilst I go back inside for 30 seconds having forgotten something, parked at work, the gym, a shop etc. and I'll apply other locks as and when convenient or necessary. Yeah it can probably be smashed or prised off but it's one more line of defence and fits in a jacket pocket easily and is fitted/removed in seconds.
https://grip-lock.com/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grip-lock-Motorcycle-Scoo...
If anybody buys one of these, make sure it's a genuine Griplock one, not a Chinese Amazon special saying 'Capslock' or a shiny metallic one etc.
I keep a huge Oxford chain attached to a post at work (a large business park) and a colleague helpfully pointed out that there's nothing stopping my bike being spotted locked up securely in the day, and a potential thief coming back at night and carefully cutting through the chain just enough that it appears secure when I lock it up the next day, but said thief can then come back at any time the bike is there and finish the job and cut through the final bit of the chain and it's bye bye bike in a matter of seconds.
tight fart said:
Are there any locks that perform well against an angle grinder?
Basically no, or we'd all have one.I've got into the good habit of using one of these all the time, whether it's if the bike is tucked away in the garage, on the drive whilst I go back inside for 30 seconds having forgotten something, parked at work, the gym, a shop etc. and I'll apply other locks as and when convenient or necessary. Yeah it can probably be smashed or prised off but it's one more line of defence and fits in a jacket pocket easily and is fitted/removed in seconds.
https://grip-lock.com/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grip-lock-Motorcycle-Scoo...
If anybody buys one of these, make sure it's a genuine Griplock one, not a Chinese Amazon special saying 'Capslock' or a shiny metallic one etc.
I keep a huge Oxford chain attached to a post at work (a large business park) and a colleague helpfully pointed out that there's nothing stopping my bike being spotted locked up securely in the day, and a potential thief coming back at night and carefully cutting through the chain just enough that it appears secure when I lock it up the next day, but said thief can then come back at any time the bike is there and finish the job and cut through the final bit of the chain and it's bye bye bike in a matter of seconds.
Ian Geary said:
Sensible me thinks something fairly new, with 60+mpg, cheap tyres and tax.
But as I commute up the M23 /M25 I want a bit of umph. An er6f will probably fit the bill, but I do miss the sound of an il4, and recall the er6 was a bit vibey.
Honda NC750? I'd have another one if I was in the market for a reliable and frugal commuter. Its party piece is a huge storage compartment where the fuel tank traditionally would be (perfect for carrying around a big chain!), but paradoxically, I'd imagine the NC750 isn't particularly high up on the average bike thief's list.But as I commute up the M23 /M25 I want a bit of umph. An er6f will probably fit the bill, but I do miss the sound of an il4, and recall the er6 was a bit vibey.
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