Originally Posted by
Bald Paul
Unless, of course, the thief also steals a can of spray paint from the local box store and repaints over your paint. I mean, why not?
1- If they want to do that, then it wouldn't make an ugly-bike any more of a target. Any bike that's not locked as well as mine is an easier/ more attractive target. I'm not trying to rely on ugly; I'm thinking of using ugly in addition to secure locking and being smart about where/when I leave the bike. In general, anyone motivated to either have a nondescript bike for themself or sell a nondescript bike is likely the kind of thief who's looking for bikes that are either not locked, or locked very poorly; a thief looking to ride or sell a "nice looking" bike is likely to be a thief who can and will cut through a decent lock to get what they want.
2- Ultimately, the serial number stamped into the frame is the best evidence of ownership.