Winfried

Hello

I heard about some compact air jack that can be used to break open U locks when there's enough space between the lock, the bike frame and whatever fixed point it's connected to.

But Google didn't return much infos. It mostly mentions using regular car jacks, which are probably too big for use to steal bikes.

I was just curious to see how compact those air jacks could be. Does someone have more info?

Thank you.

fietsbob

Think Hydraulic jack ... because fluids don't compress, air does,
its the space between the molecules.
so with air, the volume input needs to be great..
to raise the piston PSI.
are you planning a crime spree?

unterhausen

yeah, I'm guessing hydraulic bottle jack too. I was wondering about the crime spree, but I think the OP is concerned he's leaving too much room for the thief to use

TireLever-07

I used to read to keep your padlock, etc off the ground so they can't use a lever, whatever device to cut through. I'd guess with the numbers of cordless power tools available that new crooks are working hard. Chris

MijnWraak

Any more than in inch of free space is too much in my opinion. Thats why I love that my work has very thick tubes on its' bike racks. Look for a mini-ulock instead of those huge ones as well. You may not be able to get it through your rear wheel and seat tube though, but I don't worry about it too much where I live.

jsdavis

Some hydraulic jacks can be operated using an air compressor in addition to the handle.

IndianaShawn

This is the reason that the Kryptonite New York lock was developed from what I understand. The lock is too small for a jack to fit inside of the bar portion of the lock but the downside is that you also need the chain to lock it to something solid like a bicycle rack. See how small the lock is compared to the Mini 9. They call it mini because it isn't as wide as some other locks.....but its still 9 inches long to span the distance from bicycle to rack.

Winfried

Thanks guys for the feedback. No, I don't intend to steal bikes, just to avoid getting another one stolen ;-)

I guess only hardcore thieves carry hydraulic jacks.

I'll check really small U locks like Kryptonite's NY lock instead of bigger U locks, which is probably how my last bike got stolen (left too much space between lock, frame, fixed point).

BTW, does someone know what the dimensions mean, eg. "3.9” 10.3” (10.3cm x 26.1cm)" for the New York Lock M18-WL? Before ordering it, I need to check the size of the inner space to check that it's big enough to connect the frame to a fixed point.

Drago1010

The preferred tool of the urban bike thief is the cordless angle grinder.
By most accounts it takes less than 1 minute to cut thru a U lock.

Winfried

But then, there's nothing that can be done against cordless angle grinder, so I'll just do the best I can :-/