Are brake locks not disc locks worthwhile?

[Davemc37]

I know nothing is foolproof but would this cheap device add nothing to my bikes security or do you reckon a professional thief would just snap it in 2 seconds.

Reason I ask is I have £100 budget for security and a new bike on the way soon which I will be parking in an underground office car park in London most days. I already have a disc lock but need other devices, preferably portable.
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born again biker with a mere 23 year gap between bikes.

[andyscooter]

can be defeated with a spanner on the bleed nipple of the caliper

pushed away as most are and have the lock sorted later on somewhere unseen
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gilera runner vxr200 (chavped)
if its spelt wrong its my fat fingers and daft auto correct on my tablet

[Davemc37]

Brake lever attached to the handlebars that stops people moving the. Bike so easily.

https://www.rydestore.com/ryde-throtlock-motorbike-handlebar-brake-lever-lock.html
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born again biker with a mere 23 year gap between bikes.

[Scythe]

As Andy said, you'll only need a spanner and a few seconds to open the bleed nipple to defeat the lock. Pointless.
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2009 Yamaha YBR125 -> 2000 SV650S -> 2005 Kawasaki ZX6R 636

[arry]

[Tierbirdy]

More security more better. For the sake of £15 it's probably a nice highly obvious visual deterrent. Little more.

But that's what counts, if your bike looks harder to nick than the one it's parked next to, with a disc lock, brake lock, and a chain yours might still be there when you come back to it.

Unless of course you have a highly desirable bike in which case of they want it they'll have it.

[stevo as b4]

In any theft attempt, your steering lock is the first casualty of war, if the theives are attempting a ride away or a push away.

Nothing you can do about that one. But you can at least have one lock to chain a substantial part of the bike to something solid like railings or a post etc. If it's a nice/expensive bike and you leave it or walk away from parking it without at least one chain securing it to a solid rail/post anchor point, then you deserve to have it nicked anyway. That's a minimum amount of effort you should put in.

If they defeat your lock/locks and the steering lock, then you'll probably lose the bike for good if nothing else has been done security wise.

The next steps would be electronic trackers and alarms, and also devise a way to stop them being able to start your bike if they bypass the ignition switch too. There's loads of ways to do this.

If they have a van and defeat your chains, the bike is gone, but I doubt most push away thefts if it's a huge heavy bike like an FJR for example, get very far though, unless they have a close by hiding place or lock up.

[Polarbear]

Sadly, in todays age of battery powered angle grinders and people willing to walk past and not interfere (not that I blame them as the scum carry knives etc) whatever you fit is not foolproof.

As others said, it's all about making your bike less steal able than someone else's.

Thing is, if you come back and four scrotes with angle grinders, hammers, knives or acid and god knows what else are nicking your bike, what the fuck do you do? Get a kicking or probably worse on top of losing your bike?

The only answer in my eyes is have the shittiest looking bike in the world for your commute. It can be mechanically sound but look like a dog turd on wheels and I reckon thats about your best anti theft device.
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Triumph Trophy Launch Edition

[G]

[Rogerborg]

I use a brake lock because it's slightly more convenient for me than a disc lock, and offers about the same degree of security, i.e. a token visual deterrent to the most casual of thieves.

Also, there's usually a nicer, newer bike parked up next to mine with no security at all, and there's no significant daytime bike theft problem (yet) in Glasgow.

Different rules would apply in that London.
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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

[1198]

[ADSrox0r]

Gangs stealing to order will sometimes use a dolly mover under the front wheel to get it to the nearby van instead of wrecking anything. Then deal with the security in a more surgical manner later.
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Current bikes: '08 VFR 800 VTEC(yo) , '07 ZZR1400 Winter hack: '95 Aprilia 650 Pegaso Currently lusting after: RC30

[G]

[Teflon-Mike]

Thieves ted not to be the smartest folk in the herd....
Bar-clamps have the advantage they will more obviously 'see' them.. more still YOU will and will be less likely to try riding off with a disc lock still on!

Neither are guarateed to stop them nicking bike..

Notion that any-one would turn up tooled up with an 8m spanner to bleed the brake fluid, is a bit anathmic... and their chances of success given how many folk in work-shop ask about how t remove sheared bleed nipples..... begs plenty of comic scenarios like the dumbest griminals sitting down to wait for the feds in a convenience store hyste when they could't get the 'pull' to open door open by 'pushing'!?!?!? Before a customer walked in past them, and looked down curiousely!

13mm on the banjo would be more sure way about the job.... but then, how many are going to wander about on the off-chance with a tool-kt in thier pocket? A C02 canister air-grinder on the other hand? Or smplylift the thing into the back of a tranny van!

Pays your money and takes your chances...... its a deterant... and on the bars where seen, not a bad one, AND likely to be less of a hindrance/embarrassment to you forgetting it.

For out and about, I have a disc-lock with a five foot cable; locks the disc and gives some chance to tether to something hard and immovable like a lamp-post.. double deterant, and precaution against a wheel-away or lift-away.. not gong to 'stop' any one more determined to get it... but what the heck? Its easy t carry convenient to use, ad will do enough to make most casual scroats go look for an easier target.

I dont leave the thing i the same park-space for work hours every work-day, for a steal-to-order thief to target and give them bi window of oportunity, that is more likely and where heftier security 'may' help a little....

At home, park spots of sight behind 6ft security gates and bikes tied down with almax andcround anchor.... but if they are deturmined eough they'll get it, and I had to tackle home invasion them trying to grab the keys a couple of years back.... and folk get 'jacked' at traffic lights.

There's no 'single' solution; you have to spread spend around where most likely most effective... like I say, pays your money and takes your chances, but almost anything is better than nothing, and lever-locks can serve purpose within a wider strategy.
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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?'

[Vracktal]

Recently i've been weighing up the idea of making a brace that connects to the front wheel at one end and the crash bars at the other, that fits in place when the bike is on steering lock and acts like a brace to make it harder to break the lock. Wouldn't be mass marketable since it would have to be a custom fit to an individual bike bike but would make it harder to wheel away and would make a great twatting device for beating pedthieves heads in in case of bikejacking
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2007 BMW R1200R: On road
2009 BMW G650X Challenge: On road
1975 Norton Commando 850: Off road, awaiting recommissioning

[zark]

^do it

Is there anything in the market that would lock the bike in gear, thus stopping pushing it away? In my mind, it's a bolt that pushes in and locks into the gearbox somewhere that needs a key to come out... Is there such a thing, or did I dream it?

I'm toying with the idea of a 'quick release' gear shift/change, so I can park it in gear then remove the pedal somehow, for leaving it parked for long periods... I reckon, chained to something and too much hassle to move it would improve my chances of not losing it? (Though obviously the fact that it's a 14 year old Fazer and not a Ducati helps)
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CBT - Oct 13. Theory - July 14. Mod 1 & 2 - June 15.
Rides a Fazer like an idiot... Edit: Now ride a Fazer Thou...

[Bozzy]

[ScottT]

If your bike is used now and then and left in a garage most of the time
or
if you don't mind a little bit of hassle before you ride to/from home/work

The best option is to take your handlebar bolts out (if you can)



Try it, undo your bar clamps so the bars hang loose, then try getting the bike off the centre stand, wheel it outside your garage, turn it round and wheel it back in, see how easy that is without your bars fastened, plus there's nothing to lever against to break the steering lock.

If your bike lives in a garage and gets used once a week, taking 5mins to bolt your bars back on is fairly easy, keep the clamps, bolts and an allen key in your jacket pocket.
Sports bike, steering lock on undo the clipons bend in towards the tank then tighten up, a couple of minutes extra hassle each time but a bit more secure than a cheap lock.

[Lupo]

[andyscooter]

[stevo as b4]

Might be the daftest suggestion ever, but what about some form of light weight wheel clamp for bikes?

Was thinking about it yesterday after I saw a Ford Focus RS with a wheel clamp fitted. You can get strong light plastic wheel chocks, if you had a set around front a rear wheels, with some form of steel band around the rim to hold them on, and spring loaded so if someone deflates the tyre it just tightens up with a rachet system like a CCT, maybe?

Only going to stop pushing a bike not lifting it. But saying that for every bike that's lifted by 4blokes with scaffolding poles, there must be 100's of bikes stolen by 1-2people that just wheel them away.

Oh and I'd pay fucking good money to see 4blokes lift and carry a Triumph rocket 3 or a Fatboy Harley etc.

[Polarbear]

[G]

Effectively the same as a disc lock, but a load more hassle - and still foiled by a skate board.

Rocket 3 would come out at around 90kg per person.

So, err, how much *would* you pay? .

Ok, that's a fair bit to walk with, but really not too bad - last time I was doing weights (dodgy shoulders I need to sort for a while now so a few years ago), in maybe 9 months, taking it easy on the progression I was doing a 165kg deadlift - lifting from higher (such as a bar through the top of the wheels) is a good bit easier than that.

So 90kg walking along shouldn't be too bad for not-total-weaklings .

[stevo as b4]

Maybe it's the total weaklings bit I'm struggling with. Years ago at the gym I might have been able to shoulder press 80kg, bench a bit more, and leg press the same, but that's a few quick reps when your in a good position for lifting, warmed up, and prepared for it too.

Walking along with 90kg on one side of your body is a totally different thing isn't it?
Also how far typically would said blokes have to carry a bike to the van anyway? It could be 20-50m away in a pedestrian zone maybe? I've not seen many ordinary Joe's carrying 90kg that far?

I had to carry a small petrol air compressor weighing I guess 25-30kg the length of pedestrian zone high Street at work once, say 100m? And I was fucked after. Can't see 90kg worth of bike being able to be moved more than a couple of metres or so at time for most people?

[G]

Errr, did you skip leg year or somethng? Normally people can leg press massively more than a shoulder press!

In the past I've carried a bit more than that in a slow shuffle - picking up a car engine block from the ground. The last bit of the a dead lift is the easiest and a pole through wouldn't be too lopsided.

In most cases I'd expect they just drive into a pedestrian zone anyway if they can - in the grand scheme of things, that's not going to be a big issue for them .

Second year I went to Glastonbury Festival my back pack was around 30kg and I did fine apart from an inverted-turtle moment.