Motorcycle Security

Dogbreath said:
What brute force would destroy one of them? Do you think you could break it with a crow bar? They are very difficult to even cut with a grinder, though you can do it given long enough.
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The website stated that the chain cannot be cut with boltcutters and even an angle grinder would have problems, whereby the cutting disk would get mangled. With time and determination, however, the chain would get cut. Obviously though, if this is going on right outside in my driveway, I would definitely notice.

I'm actually leaning towards the Oxford Hardcore XL chain and padlock (for £50). Its a lot cheaper and it won the supertest in Ride magazine.

I'll also go with Datatag and a Anchor bolt.
 
You really should be putting your chain through your frame or onto an Anti-Pinch Pin which goes through your frame or rear axle. It is, by my calculation, one gazillion times easier to take a wheel off than it is to cut through the chain going through said wheel.
 
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Anything Oxford branded is a steaming pile of manure, regardless of however much Oxford paid Bike to review it favourably.
Ok, I may be slightly biased against Oxford as a company, but as they sell locks that can be opened with biro's and tailpacks that even when fitted according to instructions come off, stop the wheel and kill the riders, I'll pass thanks.
 
The thing with locks is that both Sold Secure and Thatcham are nothing but confidence tricks, meaningless in the real world- they test with tools that don't work, so they can say "This stood up to 5 minutes of attack, A+!" But the huge majority of top-rated SS and Thatcham chains can be broken in seconds and in silence with big, cheap bolt croppers. How well they protect against sledgehammers or anglegrinders or gas torches instantly stops being relevant when the most common attack breaks them so fast.

Both SS and Thatcham were still awarding top marks to locks with the old round keys even after the bic-pen crack was being reported in the mainstream press, if they'd had any credibility then they'd have lost it, but fortunately for them they already had none. The only reason to pay any attention to their grading is for insurance. But I'd sooner get a chain that works than a chain with the right stickers.

sunama said:
I'm looking at the The "Protector" 16mm professional series of chain:
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That's the Pragmasis someone mentioned up the page. Very decent chain... Big chains are just naturally harder to attack, even a bad 16mm chain gives a lot of protection just because it doesn't fit effectively in most bolt croppers.
 
I'm getting a lot of mixed messages here. It would appear that everybody has their own preferences with little concensus.

Logically, the thicker chains will be stronger than the slimmer chain. What I liked about the blurb for the "Protector, 16mm, chain" is that the makers guarantee that manual bolt cutters cant cut it. The only problem is its extremely high cost (£145 for a 1.5m chain and padlock).

Logically, I would quite like to have an alarm on the bike, just to be able to tell me when somebody is tampering with my bike. The immobiliser is an even better idea, yet some posts above will infer that alarms are next to useless.

Needless to say, as someone who is new to biking, I am getting very confused.
 
I never had an alarm on my 125 and I left it in all sorts of dodgy urban places. In fact, for a while the ignition barrel was split so you could just turn it over with anything that's fit in the hole as it was a stolen recovered bike in the first place. At home was the same, but I lived in a very remote area.

Knowing the alarm going off is no cop to alert you. All you can do at that point is notify the authorities but these things are usually lifted in daylight. Unless you park right next to your daily place of work/business then I doubt the alarm with be worth it.

It's all about increasing the potential time it could take to take the bike. They WILL get it if they really really want it and there is no foolproof legal alternative. It's a case of visual deterrent to reduce the risk of being targeted at all, which is what you want. An alarm is great but if they get half way through ripping it to bits to stop it and run off, you're left with a broken bike and nobdy to recoop the costs and you lose NCD.

I would go the tracker route if it really bothered me. At least then there is a chance to recover the bike and this will reduce your premium. Is there a blackjax equivalent for bikes?
 
At the end of the day you're not trying to be theft-proof, you're trying to be untheft-worthy. Or at least, less theft-worthy than the guy down the road. Oxford etc do a public service- if everyone had good security, then thieves would all tool up to deal with better chains etc (hydraulic cutters) and you're back to square one. But with so many people using expensive rubbish which really offers no more protection than a £10 chainl, all you have to do is be in more secure and thieves are likely to go elsewhere. As long as there are badly secured bikes, you can be better secured without too much hassle, and at the end of the day most bikes are badly secured. Mine is :D But it also has a binbag for a fairing and a luggage rack made out of wood, so I don't feel I need a chain.

Dup said:
An alarm is great but if they get half way through ripping it to bits to stop it and run off, you're left with a broken bike and nobdy to recoop the costs and you lose NCD.
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Pros almost never try to disable an alarm on site... 2 strong people can get a bike into a van in a matter of seconds so it never makes sense to do otherwise. It can still attract attention but most people ignore them. By and large, alarms are for insurance discounts and for occasionally breaking and stranding you in the middle of nowhere in the rain :D But they do effectively deter amateurs and kids, who do account for a lot of thefts.
 
My chain had 10mm or 12mm links, was about £60, and nobody got through it despite a couple of attempts when I had it locked in dodgy areas. Not many bike teefs have expensive croppers that can get through a good chain that thick. I also noted that nobody else used that degree of protection so they are more likely to go for an easier bike.

You're right about the CBR vs CG. My first bike was one of those plastic peds and it just attracted too much attention from **** faced kids and eventually it got stolen. After that I went for a Vespa which, although a better bike, faster and better handling, wasn't so desirable to the scallies and was a lot safer to leave alone.
 
sunama said:
I'm getting a lot of mixed messages here. It would appear that everybody has their own preferences with little concensus.

Logically, the thicker chains will be stronger than the slimmer chain. What I liked about the blurb for the "Protector, 16mm, chain" is that the makers guarantee that manual bolt cutters cant cut it. The only problem is its extremely high cost (£145 for a 1.5m chain and padlock).

Logically, I would quite like to have an alarm on the bike, just to be able to tell me when somebody is tampering with my bike. The immobiliser is an even better idea, yet some posts above will infer that alarms are next to useless.

Needless to say, as someone who is new to biking, I am getting very confused.
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There isn't really that much to be confused about. Go through my post and price up the levels of security I have mentioned. Once you have done this, sort yourself out a budget and try to get the best possible security for that budget.

P.S. The only person paying attention to your alarm will be you. There really is not that much point (in my experience).
 
Nebzor said:
If you have a chain/Anti-Pinch Pin through your frame
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I've read about anti pinch pin on the sellers' website. However, how easy are they to fit through the rear axle? And once fitted, I assume they can never be removed? Also, what other areas can anti-pinch pins be fitted?

After watching the videos, I am now pretty much set on buying a 16mm chain (as opposed to the lesser Oxford Hardcore XL, whose elder brother - Oxford Monster - was cut in less than 20 seconds). The 19mm chain would be good, but it wouldnt be as portable and would weigh down a 125cc bike too much.
 
The trouble with Almax is that they're not that impartial :rolleyes: But they used to do the same demo at the bike shows, I turned up at their stall, cut a Hardcore in about 40 seconds despite being incredibly puny. The only real criticism you can level at them is that some of the locks in their vids and in Captain Cropper's are mis-identified, no malice in it I think but there's a vid of a cheap cable lock that's wrongly ID'd as a more expensive Abus, and a Kryptonite chain that's got the model name wrong. But that's pretty trivial, the point of the demos stand.

Jonny69 said:
My chain had 10mm or 12mm links, was about £60, and nobody got through it despite a couple of attempts when I had it locked in dodgy areas. Not many bike teefs have expensive croppers that can get through a good chain that thick.
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The Machine Mart ones cost about £30 :D The tools to break the chains are generally cheaper than the chains themselves. But you're right, a lot of thieves don't use the right tools at all. it's not something to depend on, though.
 
RDM said:
Wheel lock and alarm and huge great big chain attached to a concreted ring in the floor/lampost/other large immovable object.
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agreed. the wheel lock can be an alarmed disk lock. a big chain is neccesary because with smaller bikes they can be picked up and put in van so it IS needed.
 
sunama said:
I'm still deciding on which ground anchor to get. The choice is between

The Torc Ground anchor (£68.50inc):
http://www.torc-anchors.com/proddetail.php?prod=TorcAnchor

and

Hardie Ground anchor (50inc):
http://www.almax-security-chains.co.uk/z6b5gY116035/All-Products/Hardie-Ground-Anchor/p-73-133/

Can anyone help me decide please?
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i'd say the 2nd but it's waste of money tbh. get a better chain and attach it to the lamppost so they'll have to take down a lamppost to nick it.

almax chains are said to be indestructable to and i've seen videos of one being ground away/beaten with sledgehammer etc and they are solid!
 
When I bought my first bike this time last year, I went all out and bought the following:

- 2.0m Almax Series III Chain
- Squire SS65CS Lock
- Hardie Ground Anchor
- Motrax Vishas Forged Disc Lock

Totalling about £270 or thereabouts. I've used each of the items once. All very well built and impressive looking, but I just don't bother. They all sit in the shed next to the bike, unused. I've got insurance, and if someone really wants the bike, they'll take it regardless. Rather just take the thing than come into my house with weapons after the keys.

But living in the edge of a quiet town in the middle of nowhere, I'm in a much different situation to the OP. :p
 
helpimcrap said:
i'd say the 2nd but it's waste of money tbh. get a better chain and attach it to the lamppost ...
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The motorbike will be in my driveway, so the anchor will be installed there to enable me to secure the bike. On my road there is residential parking which means that if I choose to park the bike on the road in front of my house (chained to lamp post), I will be charged for a residents parking permit.

Bear in mind that I dont use my bike everyday. In fact, I would say on average, I intend to use it twice a week, so I will chain the thing up religeously as the bike will be left alone most of the time.

Also, the chain I am getting is already one of the best out there. The Almax IV is the best, but this chain is a lot heavier and not at all portable. Hence, the Almax III is overall, the best chain currently available.

I was thinking about getting the Mortrax Vishas disk lock, but I think I will be taking my chain around with me whever the bike goes, hence, negating the need for the disk lock.
 
it can be worked on but unless you chain it somewhere you can spend a million pound on a chain and it will be useless.

i'm not a fan of ground anchors as i don't think theyre secure enough but it depends entirely on how you attach the anchor.
 
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