Chain locks

[treeno]

Hi all. I need to buy a chain lock for my CG before I go back to uni where I will be keeping it on campus but locked to something or other. What are the best things to look out for when buying a lock? Is the thickness of the chain the most important thing or is it the brand? I could buy an unknown brand 10mm chain + lock for £15 on eBay or I could get a Mammoth 12mm chain + lock for £30.

What do you guys recommend? I am on TPO and am a bit worried about losing it. It also has no steering lock (unless I am blind, no idea where that went!?). However the campus is relatively safe and is also in the middle of nowhere so if anyone was to steal it they would need a van or would need to hot-wire it. Cheers.

[pinkyfloyd]

I'm sure someone will be along soon to inform you that anything 12mm or under can be chewed through by a toddler with no teeth in about 20 seconds.

In truth, how much do you want to keep your bike? Your best bet would be spending a lot more on security. Think about it this way. Would you ratherspend £80-£100 on a 16mm Almax or spend £500-1000 on a new bike because your insurance wont cover you if someone takes it away?
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illuminateTHEmind wrote: I am just more evolved than most of you guys... this allows me to pick of things quickly which would have normally taken the common man years to master
Hockeystorm65:.well there are childish arguments...there are very childish arguments.....there are really stupid childish arguments and now there are......Pinkfloyd arguments!
Teflon-Mike:I think I agree with just about all Pinky has said.

[Teflon-Mike]

Chain thickness only says how much metal is in the links, don't tell you how good that metal is. Better Brands have hardened steel links.Cheap Chinky Ones have monkey metal pretending to be steel.

Implies you are best going for a reputable brand.

Re comment that some-one would have to have a van, or hot-wire your bike, as campus is in the back of beyond.....

Hot-wiring a CG125 is unfortunately pitifully EASY.... I wont, for obvious reasons explain how or why.... but, it is testimony to the stupidity of the criminal mind that so many scroats display the lack of knowledge they do, attacking the ignition lock on small hondas and honda copies, and leaving stripped wires they have tried touching together, as evidence of thier dumbness.

However, you would be amazed at the perseverance of the stupid.

So... first up, you cant beat hard security and lock-down to something immovable.

So, first thing you need is a chain thats long enough to go round bike AND something immovable. AND if you have some sense, you will put the chain around some more 'fixed' part of the bike, like the front down tube, not merely through an easily removeable wheel.

If you want to get really clever, you get a chain long enough you can thread through the frame and a wheel!

Remember; a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

So rather pointless having a £90 chain, and a £2 padlock on the end.

Some-one a while ago, suggested, on a tight budget, going to a crane and lifting company; the 'big' lifting chains they use are effoff strong and damned hard to get through; probably as good as a name brand chain.... BUT, crane co's have to 'life' the chain for lifting use; so many hours and they have to scrap it for H&S reasons. Consequently they have lengths of 'old' chain, which if you ask nicely, they may sell you for a small cash donation, rather than weigh it in.

May be worth investigating, if you are in the Sub £50 budget; you'd get more chain and have more left for a good pad-lock to join the ends.
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My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[treeno]

How come then a lot of branded chains like Abus are less than 12mm (and are also bloody expensive)? I may be able to get a Kryptonite Fahgettaboudit for around £30, I've used one before and they are pretty beastly, what do you think?

That's a good shout mike, I might try that. But won't their chains be a lot wider than chains for locks? So I wouldn't be able to fit it through anything?

Can I also just add that not only is the campus in the middle of nowhere, but I would also be parking it pretty much directly in front of the 24hr security building which has windows and often guards having a fag out of the front.

[pinkyfloyd]

[covent.gardens]

[treeno]

This is true. Any advice on the first two points from my last post?

[Joncrete Cungle]

Save up and get something proper from Almax or Pragmasis, new or second hand. Abus, Oxford, Kryptonite etc is cheap ass rubbish made in China with their well known and respected quality controls and strignent manufacturing standards and specifications.After Sold Secure get the teaboy to tickle it with a feather duster for 5 mins and it 'resists attack' it gets a gold / silver rating. Then a massive mark up and flogged to mugs. Trust me, I had more than one of the aforementioned manufacturers chains, once.

[Rogerborg]

If I had a bike that I minded losing, parked up anywhere near scrotes, students or 'security', I'd use a 16mm Almax Series III chain and whatever padlock they want to sell with it. I'd also dig out the alarmed disk lock that's buried in the garage somewhere as well.

You'll keep the chain longer than the bike. Think of it as an investment.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[treeno]

I would love to get an Almax chain but I simply can't afford (being a student and all) the £160 they want for a 1.5m chain + lock and I can only find one on eBay and that's in Newcastle.

Is the Kryptonite one I mentioned really no good, even at 15mm? Also, the CG has drum brakes so no disc locks for me.

[Joncrete Cungle]

If you can afford a bike, to get a licence, helmet, boots, jacket, pants and gloves etc. Buy fuel and pay for your insurance imho you can afford to save up for a proper chain and lock, if you really want one.

If you are TPO can you afford your bike being stolen? How much will a new bike cost you compared to £160 ish for a decent chain and padlock? Your gamble at the end of the day.

[treeno]

Guys I appreciate the responses and accept that I should probably get an Almax but I can't afford it. I bought the bike and insurance, all my gear was a present from my dad and that still leaves me on a tight budget for security. I am just trying to establish the best type of security for the price range I have mentioned (<£30). I think I will go ahead and pick up a Kryptonite Fahgettaboudit as at 15mm these are quite chunky and would hopefully at least deter any theives and with my secret connection () I can get one for £30.

[woo]

lol OP asked for advice got it and still is unhappy.

bikes get nicked best you can do is make it hard for them.

almax and the protector chains are the best on market and you pay for what you get you cannot bolt crop the chains, cannot freeze smash them, cannot hacksaw cut them!

all other chains from other makers can be bolt croped, hack saw cut and freeze smashed!
just because oxford, datatool, abus, superman chain, charge £80+ for some of their chains doesnt equally quality!

if you cant afford almax or proctector 16mm linked chains then use the cheap crap ones as its better than nothing, then save up and buy almax or protector!

complacency reeks in your justifications just as complacency set within me, as my security measures became lax hence my bike was stolen in 2010 in a car park with security guards and barriers, dont make the same mistake i made use your common sense and lock up best you can!
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Elen sila lummen omentielvo!

[Walloper]

[treeno]

[Ingah]

I feel that an Almax 3 or equivalent is completely pointless if you're not chaining through the frame to an immovable object.

For about £30 you can get Kryptonite Evolution series 4 (a D-lock). It's one of the better D-locks, and short enough to present less space with which to be attacked by a car jack (usual way this kind of thing is attacked), but long enough to go through wheels and shocks.

If you're not going to chain/lock it to something, i believe that is more than good enough, as there's no point chaining a CG to itself as others have pointed out.

It's also highly convenient. Next thing to add, when you have funds, is a cheap alarm, like a Cyclone, and if you self fit (designed to be easy to do so), you're looking at another £25-£30 for reasonable security against ride away theft, while the bike still remains relatively pain-free to use day to day. Obviously you are chancing it, but then i suppose you know that by now.

I did the Almax 3 and TPO-insured CG125 (later followed by CB500) thing. It became too much of a pain in the arse after a few years, but i think it kept my bike safe while i was inexperienced, allowing me to build up the no claims.
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-- Ingah

[Walloper]

[treeno]

[nowhere.elysium]

OP: trying to scrimp your way through security doesn't work. You can argue the toss as petulantly as you like; many of us have had to deal with bikes being stolen, and cheap chains have done nothing to solve the situation.

Also, the steering lock on a CG is usually next to the lower yoke on the right hand side, if my OH's one is anything to go by.
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'10 SV650SF, '83 GS650GT (it lives!), Questionable DIY dash project, 3D Printer project, Lasercutter project

[Joncrete Cungle]

[daverave999]

Can't you borrow some cash off friends or family?

Put that £30 you're trying to spend now towards better security.

I'm NOT saying you are like this, but I work in a University and the number of students I see walking in every morning with a £2.50 shop-bought coffee, smoking real fags rather than rollies and eating a £3 Ginsters sandwich then complaining they are skint astounds me. That adds up to a lot of cash in a month.
I'm suggesting perhaps savings could be made in lots of small places temporarily, without affecting your quality of life too much so you don't risk losing something you really value. Even getting wasted can be done on the cheap!

[woo]

dont care if this sounds rude OP sounds like a child and a cry baby, gets real life advice from experienced adults and still winges!

lol
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Elen sila lummen omentielvo!

[treeno]

[nowhere.elysium]

[treeno]