Most secure locks?

GoldenMotor.com

rocksalt27

Member
Oct 24, 2013
121
15
18
Portland, ME
What's better-a keyed lock or a combination lock? Do they make any with both? Are there any other kinds out there? What do you guys have for locks?

I have a Home Depot chain with a keyed disc lock. I'm going to get a tracking device, but I'm still worried about it being picked.
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
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living the dream in southern california
Kryptonite U locks have always worked for me. But any lock can be broken, if a thief wants it bad enough.

Always lock your bike to something secure, and in a well lit, public area.

Most bikes are stolen when left unlocked for "just a minute," while you go into a store or something.
 
Jul 5, 2015
128
0
16
Santa Barbara, CA
Whatever you do, DO NOT use master locks! They are complete garbage and offer less security than tying your bike down with a rope. Search for "picking master locks" in youtube and you will see what i mean. I pick locks for fun, and master locks take between 5 and 20 seconds to pick, no matter what the size. If you want good security get an American Lock Company lock for about the same price as a master lock. If you want the very best security then get an Abloy disc detainer lock, but that will cost $80-100. Try a locksmith for the American, and buy online for the Abloy.
 
Jul 5, 2015
128
0
16
Santa Barbara, CA
I was just thinking-what about Tungsten??? Is there anything made of Tungsten? I'm not seeing any locks made of that. Why not?
Tungsten is extremely expensive, and it is also very brittle and hard, so a thief wouldn't be able to cut it, but a quick whack with a hammer and it would break. Get yourself an American brand padlock and some thick aircraft cable and you should be good.
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
6,537
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living the dream in southern california
Something a lot of people overlook, is what they lock it to.

Friend of mine had his bike stolen when the thief pulled the signpost out of the ground that he locked it to.

Some square signposts are bolted to the ground. A 9/16 wrench can remove it in seconds.

Wrought iron gates can be cut with a hacksaw in a few minutes.

There's a mall by my house where someone unbolted an entire bike rack from the ground, loaded it into a truck and took the rack, bikes and all.

If you need to lock your bike for a long period of time, while at school, work, etc, find a place in public view, that can't be easily cut thru.

That being said, don't count on the public to pay attention, either. A few years back, I locked my bikke to good bike rack at a college holding a swap meet. When I came back, someone had locked their bike through mine. Called my roommate, and he brought my 4' bolt cutters, and in front of a hundred people passing by and watching, I cut the other lock and got my bike.

Not one person said a word to me.
 
Jul 5, 2015
128
0
16
Santa Barbara, CA
I bought a big heavy padlock and about two and a half feet of the heaviest gauge chain lowes had.
What brand is your padlock? If it is master lock brand or says "top security" anywhere on it then throw it away. Most locks that you buy at a hardware store are absolute crap, they have all standard pins and are a breeze to pick. The size of the lock body and shackle doesn't make any difference if the innards are garbage. Trust me about this, i have been picking locks for fun for quite a few years. The brands which you can trust are : Abus, Abloy, American, Medeco, Mul-T-Lok and Ruko. Get one of those, and dump that chain and get yourself some 6 gauge aircraft cable.
 

GoreWound

New Member
Dec 1, 2014
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Canada
What brand is your padlock? If it is master lock brand or says "top security" anywhere on it then throw it away. Most locks that you buy at a hardware store are absolute crap, they have all standard pins and are a breeze to pick. The size of the lock body and shackle doesn't make any difference if the innards are garbage. Trust me about this, i have been picking locks for fun for quite a few years. The brands which you can trust are : Abus, Abloy, American, Medeco, Mul-T-Lok and Ruko. Get one of those, and dump that chain and get yourself some 6 gauge aircraft cable.
brand is brinks it has a six pin tumbler and says on the package that there are security pins. i actually spent almost three months shopping for a lock and ultimately decided that it was this lock, or a worse lock, or I would have to buy something sight-unseen from the web.
I have made an attempt to pick the lock (not that I know what I'm doing or anything) and could not, this at least is an improvement over the temporary bike lock I had before (could be picked in under a minute by myself after three tries)

the shackle is nice and tough, and the chain I bought is galvanized steel with over a quarter inch think links. is there a reason other than weight that you are suggesting using aircraft cable?
I ask because I have never felt this material to be inherently superior to chain, but see it recommended regularly. while I admit my chain is really unnecessarily heavy to carry around, I'ts not like the motor can't handle the extra pound or so, and at least in my opinion aircraft cable can only ever be as secure as the tiny aluminum crimp fit things holding the looped ends together.
either way I would be interested in some dissenting opinions about that, because everybody seems to love the aircraft cable bike locks and I'm just sitting here full of whats about it. but it wouldn't be the first time I'm the wierdo.
 

bairdco

a guy who makes cool bikes
Aug 18, 2009
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living the dream in southern california
Link chains can be cut with bolt cutters or saws. Stranded cables are much harder to cut through. Bolt cutters won't work, and the thief will need a band saw to get through it.

And they make portable, battery powered band saws, sawsalls, and grinders, which can cut through just about anything these days.

As I mentioned earlier, I own a pair of professional, 4' bolt cutters that I used for work, when we'd get locked out of cellular sites. They'll cut thru every padlock mentioned so far.

The cheap ones sold at home depot aren't worth a damn, tho. The handles bend and the jaws dent on a good lock. The pair I own are worth more than most bikes.
 

GoreWound

New Member
Dec 1, 2014
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maybe it's just the cable I've seen around me, but i have never seen a cable lock where I would have even bothered to try and cut the cable (if I were theoretically to try and steal the bike) I would take a pair of small bolt cutters to the crimp holding the loop together (or just pull the cable out of the crimp, or just pry the crimp open with a screwdriver)

my main concern is to place my bike behind something that you have to be loud to get past. in my mind defeating the aircraft cable might be done with small hand tools, whereas cutting the chain would be accomplished with power tools. the powertools might be faster but I will hear them trying.


all of that said the lock itself is more an academic thing, I park my bike inside a garage when I'm at home and somewhere it can be seen if I am not. when I go to the hardware store I chain my bike to a large display outside the store, that way if someone starts walking that way with an angle grinder or bolt cutters the staff are automatically inclined to stop them because they could just as easily be trying to steal the display. when I'm at Timmies I don't even lock the bike up, I park it in a space I can see from inside the store.

ultimately in my mind security is about more than just how hard breaking the lock is, it's about being not worth the time of a thief.

I don't want a thief thinking "could I get this bike lock busted fast enough" I want them thinking "this is a homemade chopper with literally no suspension, and a Kevlar helmet with a golden eagle across the front hanging off the handlebars. oh and look instead of a bike lock this guy is using a couple of feet of chain and a padlock, **** stealing this, it's not like I'm gonna hide it, he will find me"
 

Greenbiker

New Member
Feb 12, 2016
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Oklahoma
I have been doing hours of research on this recently. There are lots of factors when deciding this to consider, i will share my thoughts and some sources on this.
One: do not trust a single lock and or chain to secure your bike. Use multiple varied methods and have them with you so you can decide which one or ones you should use in any given area.
No cables even the abus shielded cable can be cut easier than you think, cables are jist barely better than aa doube knotted shoe lace. You might use them for locking a wheel to the frame, but i wouldnt unless you are in a sleepy area where there is little theft.
I agree that anything that says master on it is pretty useless with the possible exception of the street cuffs which i have not actually used or owned, but i will for a specific purpose, so when that happens, i will review them. I wouldnt use them as a primary frame lock no matter what, they are too limited in what they can lock to amd they are a master lock after all. Master locks can resist bullets oddly enough, but most thieves arent going to use that method, when a pick, or a few surprisingly gentle hammer taps will render safer and more effective results.
If your chain came from a box store and you said it did, you should consider upgrading. Square link hardend chain of 10mm at least is the minimum. Through hardened not just case hardened. In sae that measurment is 3/8 to 1/2 hex chain is a good compromise in cost, much better than round, probably not as good as square. Brands that are well though of, kryptonite, abus, peerless, security max, pewag. Notice master isnt on that list. I havent seen any reviews of masters securit chain, but if its like their locks, its cosmetic and a target for thieves, so i would avoid it. This can get expensive, but the peerless seems prettt good amd its less than 10 a foot plus shipping and its cheaper direct than it is on amazon. Peerless is a 7/16ths hex hardend blue steel (blue probably isn't important, but its a pretty sweet looking chain. This stuff is also heavy.
About american locks, they are the same company as master, though they are a better product in many ways. A bit harder to pick or bypass than master and they are a little better made, so that might wprk well for you.
Keep in mind you need to research and see if the lock you want to use will work with the chain you want to use. See if the chain you want to use can interlink, meaning one end link can slip sideways some way s into another end link so if you have a lock with a shakle too small for both links, you can still use it.
Not all big chain can do this.
Protect your self from your chain. These things are heavy and so are the locks. The chain needs a cover of some sort. Most places that sell chain for this purpose sell nylon sleeves to go with it for pretty cheap. Im thinking that i might try a pool noodle or some clear soft plastic tubing on mine to see what works best to prevent scratches to the bike or the property im locking it to.
Have a bag to cary it in, it makes it so much easier if you can just toss it on a rack or in basket and not have to figure out how to loop ot around the top tube or whatever when you want to ride.
Get more than you think you will need. You arent going to torque attack chain like this with a crowbar very quickly, so if they have some slack , its not that big a deal.
Secure the wheels too, you might be able to get away with cheap chain or cable here, but you have to make that call. The street cuffs are probably good enough for this, but i bet their lock is pretty easy to pick.
There are things called folding locks which are basically chains woth long solid bars fixed together with rivets inside a bearing on each end for links. Some are better than others, you should see what works for your budget and risk level, but the good ones are probably better than cable for locking wheels, and maybe a frame for quick trips where you will be able to see your bike.
There is one called the BL-10 its a Japanese lock that insurance companies require to issue insurance for bikes, mopeds, motorcycle. Its f-ing strong, but i have seen it shimmed in pretty short order. This can be prevented with a mod though by finding or making a steel washer that will fit onto the end of the locking link, and allo it to lock. Then tackweld the washer to the locking link. This will block the locking pawl from being shimmed open. If you dont know what shimming is, look it up, it will frighten you. The bl 10 is hard to come by, but if i can get my hands on one, i will get one and mod it and use it.
Ok, u locks!
Some are good, some are crap. Again master is not a contender here. Its just not, dont buy anthing old and used as the older ones could be bumped open with the plastic body of a bic type pen pretty quiclly.
Kryptonite, abus, foreverlock, are companies that make some good u locks, but not all that they make is great, so do your research, ive used on guard, but heard really less than good stuff about their quality and pickability, so ymmv. U locks can be useful for securing wheels to frames and can be positioned in ways that make typical brute force attacks are difficult to do in public.
Ok, i think that should start you off on the right track, heres a list of brands, products and information sources that helped me
Stanely 24/7 lock pretty good
Abus
Sargent and greenleaf environmental locks (pretty expensive but rekeyable and hard as **** to break)
Abloy (nameplate of abus i think)
Assa (another company associated with abus i think, they make some good stuff)
Viro, italian lock maker with some nice locks
Foreverlock just look it up, you will see
Pacific lock
Commando lock
Kryptonite
BL-10 folding lock
Pewag chain
Peerless chain
Security max by 1st chain supply
Pinhead locks
Frame locks

Sources
Wayne winton on youtube
Bosnianbill on youtube
Lockman28 on utube
Hal ruzo on youtube (the guy is a clown, but he knows how to secure a bike)

So look it up and decide how to secure your ride, this is a fun subject, but remember two is one, one is none, so have ore than one way to do it.
 

Greenbiker

New Member
Feb 12, 2016
83
0
0
Oklahoma
No thats illegal. Funny but illegal. And readong some of the reples above i guess i missed the forst time, no aorcraft cable isnt the best choice, though it may be better than any chain from lowes. It really can be cut with bolt cutters or pther manual cutters or the portable hydraulic cutters now available. As for the 4 foot cutters the gentleman memtioned, ive seen my ptimary lock and chain tested with a 4 foot cutter using a ratchet strap to pull the handles together, and no dice , the high quality cutters the guy used couldnt crack rhe lock or the chain. I use the kryptonite 1510 (i think thats the product number) and an alarmed u lock. My **** stays put. If the guy i saw cpuldnt break it woth freshly sharpened cutters in an ideal situation using a force multiplier to pull the handles together its not breaking.

Also i cpuldnt find reference anywhere tp 6 guage aircraft cable, just its dimensional measure,ents but npt a guage. Maybe i missed the good stuff, but it all seemed pretty easy to defeat.
 
Jan 21, 2015
610
25
18
Portland, Oregon
Kryptonite U locks have always worked for me. But any lock can be broken, if a thief wants it bad enough.

Always lock your bike to something secure, and in a well lit, public area.

Most bikes are stolen when left unlocked for "just a minute," while you go into a store or something.
I will never use a Kryptonite U lock again, I bought one of their top of the line models a few years ago, and about a year in, it broke and wouldn't open, and I was left stranded with my bike locked to a bike rack. I had to call my parents and have them bring me my battery powered angle grinder and saw off the lock.
 

Inf3ct3d89

New Member
Apr 30, 2018
22
1
3
34
I'm a lock smith , I would say that the best lock you can go with is the American locked because it has barbell pins in it which cannot be picked no matter how good the pic artist is you also want to have a shrouded walk around a 5-foot cable if possible Maybe 16 mm in diameter would be most secure because they can't get bolt cutters to the lock Shank when locking your bike comes to mind you should think of several ways to immobilize and tie down your bikes meaning disk brake locks keyed ignition coil, locking the clutch. If they do somehow wind of stealing your bike you don't want them m************ riding it that's for sure.
 
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