Video of guy using power tool to steal a locked bike in the middle of the day
 

The video is actually from my hometown

Wow, that's fast! I'm lucky enough that I never need to lock my bike up anywhere that it will be unattended.

guess he's not a real Canadian? :-)

fwiw - I used a plug in angle grinder w a cutoff wheel to remove Wifey's old school ulock & it took waaaaay longer than that! :crash:

Damn ... I had no idea anyone was watching, let alone taping. I need to be more careful.

Oh, by the way ... used bikes for sale ......

I'm guessing that was a relatively soft lock by how quickly he broke it (about 6 seconds). Maybe just basic hardware store chain. The thief knew it was weak.

As to how fast you can cut with an angle grinder, a lot depends on the quality of the cut off wheel itself -
I'm sure the thieves have their preferred brands .........

I think u-locks take about 30+ seconds to cut with a grinder. Thicker shanks take longer. Better u-locks lock both ends of the U, requiring 2 cuts to break. New York Fahgettaboudit lock took 2 minutes to break.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/tec...locks/?slide=4

I have to think that he would have been better off with bolt cutters for that one. I bet even 1 foot nippers would have done it. That must have been a really small chain. Might have gone completely unnoticed.

Sure, but just how many folks are walking around with angle grinders?

Yeah, we know it happens, but really, how often?

Are you kidding, they're priced low enough, that everyone can have one - Battery and charger are extra, though.
And don't forget - An extra 25% off this weekend only ;)
https://www.harborfreight.com/20v-hy...nly-63632.html

It'd pay for itself with the first bike ............

In some districts ... there are a lot of bikes in very high concentrations, and it doesn't take a Lot of people with angle grinders ... that gouy rode away ... but what I have heard about is a two-man crew, using a nondescript van.

The guy cuts the lock, and he's gone. When he and a friend load the bike into a van around the corner, no one who sees that also saw the grinding. The teams goes out until the van is full. mostly the guys with grinders know what bikes to steal. Most casual thieves probably don't have grinders ...

But ...

Nowadays even crack-heads and meth-heads know they can hit up a pawn sot for a grinder ... or just steal one. The benefit ias, Every lock is easy. They can steal a dozen bikes a day just like that guy did, and end up with a hundred bucks for drugs. And now and then, when they find a nice bike ...

I'm curious whether that footage was submitted to London police and whether they pursued the suspect.

Down at my quiet little town's library bike rack you'll find unlocked bikes. Meanwhile in high-theft cities...

18/19mm hardened boron-steel security chain, as short as possible but still with a skosh of slack, and, I dunno, maybe a Sargent & Greenleaf 951 lock.

But you don't have to - and actually can't - make a bike unstealable. You only have to make it harder/more trouble to steal than somebody else's bike.

So, you know, a good quality u-lock, but it's not just the lock, it's also good lock technique.

Lock to something secure.
Put the lock down low; make 'em get down on their knees to cut it.
Fill the shackle so the lock can't be jacked or levered.
Lock up in the interior rather than on the periphery.
Lock up against something so the second cut is practically inaccessible at a near impossible angle.
Use a second lock - make it a project for a would-be thief.
Park next to a better bike not locked as well.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...d4327aacb5.jpg

Don't use cable, band or strap locks.
Lock picking is a fun hobby and there are zillions of youtube videos. Out in the wild, bike thieves don't pick locks*.
Two different kinds of locks? Meh.


*Bike Radar reports bike-theft lock picking in London. Beyond bumping or shimming cheap locks, I'm skeptical. Anyway, if this is a concern, make sure your two locks have different core technologies.

$100 bucks for the whole set up... I doubt your casual bike thief is gonna lay that out... although in further reading... no doubt the gang with the van around the corner would have no problem recouping this expense. Glad all my commuting bikes were locked inside during the work day.

Feel sorry for the folks in places where they don't allow bikes "indoors."

My commute parking ranged from a bike locker, to the back of the workout room, to a chain-link cage that required key card access, to simply parking the bike in my cube. I never had to just leave it outside. Actually, I take it back... back in my Navy days, my bike was just locked to a rack, at the front of the building in which I worked, ON THE BASE.

Even the "crudest" parking/shower situation at one long term employer still had the bike "inside." There was a utility room with a shower base and a curtained shower (imagine a basement shower)... I locked my bike up near the building water heater.

And as far as "at home." I often kept the bike in my bedroom or on the stairs leading to the apartment. Bottom line... not "outside, strapped to a pole."

Oh, and back in the '70s, I rarely locked the bike when slipping into a store or restaurant... I would simply open the front QR, then throw the shift lever for the rear derailleur into the highest gear (not actually shifting it, mind you.) That was security "enough."

New, retail. Saw one for $5 @ Goodwill.

Hence the Skunk Lock.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b711ab12ab.jpg

Yes, this is a real thing.

This could probably be defeated too - A baggie, sealed with duct tape, over the cylinder, and cut the backside of the lock -
Maybe best to remove the logo, so the thief wouldn't know if that procedure was necessary.........

I think that's a good idea. But I wouldn't trust it until it's seen more real world testing.

I'd rather see a lock that exploded in bright colored, skin and eye irritating, UV detectable powder, when the shank was cut. Bang and bright colored cloud to attract attention, the thief is marked and may get it on his skin and in his eyes. If it went off when the shank was only half cut through, the bike would still be somewhat locked preventing a quick get away after attracting attention. Easy ID by police who could use a hand-held UV light to check clothing or even the seats of a van or truck through the windows (no warrant needed for that but establishes probable cause). In addition to discharging when the shank is cut, it would likely be possible to have it activate when the lock is forced or shimmed as well.

With charger and battery? What a deal.

What they guy who owns the bike in the video thought? Police have zero cares about bike thieves unless its a rash of thief's and its put further up on the totem pole. Otherwise, you have to put it in front of them for them to act.

Understood, but there are moral and liability considerations. The Skunk Lock folks claim they've checked USA laws & there's nothing illegal about a high pressure spray that smells like fermented herring.

You can't make a bike theft-proof but you can frustrate & complicate a theft. Heavier shackles take better tools and more time to cut, a good lock-up complicates things, a second lock takes more time and maybe different tools, and the baggie+duct tape will take more time & materials. Soooooo much easier to steal the bike in the OP video.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...803b0cebbb.gif

Is there a material that's soft and has a low enough melting point so that when an angle grinder is cutting through it it'll flow and fill-in and gum-up all the valleys of the grinding wheel rendering it useless?