How to keep your bike from being stolen

Step 3 Actually locking the bike

Even if you have the biggest, scariest most theft deterring u-lock its useless unless you use it properly. Ideally you want to lock the bike to something, as well as lock it to itself.
The easiest way to do this is to put the u-lock around the rear wheel inside of the rear triangle. This is effectively locking both the rear wheel and the frame. The wheel can not be removed from the frame, regardless of the amount of jumping up and down it can sustain.

If there are bike racks, use them, you can almost always lock more securely to a rack than to a street fixture. There is also the safety in numbers. As long as your bike is surrounded by bikes that are easier to steal, its somewhat safer.

Alternatively, bring it inside with you. Much more secure than any lock.

Comments

[robbied]

you could also carry a small length of rope. If you lock your bike using a U-lock and cable lock, then tie the whole lot together with a piece of rope, that would make it way more annoying for a thief to try and get around. I'm not sure bolt cutters would cut through rope.

[capsaicinrain]

theft deterring u-lock its useless unless you use it properly.

what an alliteration!

[fantastic.poison]

if you can only lock to one wheel, make it the FONT- not the rear. a front wheel with quick-release skewer can be stolen in under 30 seconds- a rear wheel takes longer (increasing the likelihood of getting noticed) since the thief would need to disengage the chain. locking around the seat tube only works if there's not a quick release there, too. if you haven't swapped out for a bolt (and ideally, filled the head of the bolt with hot glue), consider using a dollar-store cable lock or zip tie a busted inner tube from the frame rails to the frame to slow down the thief. bike theft is a crime of opportunity; make it difficult & they'll move on.

[.happy.hippie.]

i can take my back wheel off my bike in about 30 seconds.  rear wheels have more parts, and more parts = more money

[jeff-o]

I also suggest locking up to a natural gas pipe, if there is one close by. A thief would have to be pretty ballsy to pry, cut or yank on a U-lock tied to a pipe full of explosive gas!

[jbmarsh]

In high-crime areas and where thieves carry cutting tools, extra insurance is provided by locking around both the rim and the seat tube.