Would like advice on preventing QR wheel theft

[David Lowther]

I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.

My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.

I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock Anti
Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.

Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't be
too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?

More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
prevent theft.

TIA

Dave.

[vernon[_2_]]

"David Lowther" > wrote in message
...
>I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
>proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock
> Anti Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't
> be too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.
>
Remove the front wheel and use a cable lock through the front and rear
wheels plus fram when locking the bike to an immovable object. It's
surprising how many bikes I've seen at Leeds University locked to themselves
and nothing else......

You could always spray paint the bike in fluorescent colours to make it less
appealing to thieves and more recognisable if it gets stolen.

[iarocu]

On 30 Dec, 02:13, "David Lowther" >
wrote:

> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.


Crime patterns will vary from area to area so if you specify where
your son will be then someone may have specific advice.

In Glasgow bike thefts are more often all or nothing. Usually from
bikes parked in closes (common staircases) where the thief can
overcome the lock or chain securing the bike without being seen.

I would suggest that your son leaves a substantial heavy lock, maybe a
motorbike chain and padlock, permently at the place he normally parks
his bike at Univ and has a lighter lock to carry with the bike for
short term/low risk parking. When parking at Univ use the bike lock
to secure the frame and the smaller lock to secure the front wheel. It
might be better to have a D lock as the portable lock. This way at
univ the bike is secured with two different types of lock which may
need different methods to overcome.

Unless the bike is flashy thieves will hopefully go fo an easier
target as most parked bkes atre not secred with locks of any great
strength.

Worth lookingf at replacing and quick release saddle skewer with a
normal allen key or security type as well.

Iain

[Matthew Haigh]

vernon wrote:
> "David Lowther" > wrote in message
> ...

>> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
>> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
>> prevent theft.
>>
> Remove the front wheel and use a cable lock through the front and rear
> wheels plus fram when locking the bike to an immovable object. It's
> surprising how many bikes I've seen at Leeds University locked to themselves
> and nothing else......

Or use two locks - one through the back wheel and frame, one through the
front wheel and frame. Ideally both also going round an immovable object
(easy if you are parked at a proper Sheffield stand). This also has the
advantage of making your bike less attractive to pinch as the thief has
to defeat two locks, and can't attempt the trick of using the bike
itself as a lever to break the lock. Also, using a cable (around the
front wheel/frame) and a U-lock (around the rear) - especially if one
has a flat key and one a cylindrical key - means the thief has to carry
more tools to defeat them. Make sure the bike also looks worthless, and
there will be much shinier, easier and more attractive bikes to steal.

[David Lowther]

"iarocu" > wrote in message
...
On 30 Dec, 02:13, "David Lowther" >
wrote:

>> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
>> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
>> prevent theft.

> Crime patterns will vary from area to area so if you specify where
> your son will be <snip>

Leicester.

[Simon Brooke]

David Lowther wrote:

> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.

Honestly, I don't think it is a problem. In my experience, I've had three
locked bikes stolen (and one bike stolen from a locked shed). But I've
never had a wheel stolen from a locked bike. I think they all had QRs.

When I lock a bike I usually take the front wheel out and put it beside the
back wheel, and then pass the lock through both wheels, around the
seatpost, and around something solid anchored to the ground. This deters
casual thieves. A determined thief equipped with cutting equipment will cut
the lock anyway.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; Life would be much easier if I had the source code.

[Pete Biggs]

David Lowther wrote:
> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that
> the wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure
> Lock Anti Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help
> (can't be too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?

A regular theief would carry a tool kit, but the opportunist won't
necessarily have any tools at all.

Tranz X also make a model that takes a more unusual pentagon key:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200185944559

Misspelt as "Trans-X". Suit modern MTB and road bikes (with 135 and 130mm
rear hubs). They're sometimes a couple of quid cheaper from another ebay
seller, but he has none listed at the moment.

I've been using these for a few years in high crime areas and not had a
wheel nicked and don't feel I will get a wheel nicked. BTW, they clamp as
well as ordinary QR skewers, while weighing less. Take care though not to
overtighten and strip the thread.

There are yet more secure skewers, eg. Pitlock - but you will have more
hassle if you loose a key, as well as more expense in the first place.

> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best
> way to prevent theft.

The front wheel will fit many different mountain bikes, so is quite
desirable to thieves. £12 on the product I mentioned buys some peace of
mind, and is much more convenient to use than an extra lock or removing the
wheel.

~PB

[Paul Boyd[_2_]]

On 30/12/2007 10:56, David Lowther said,

> Leicester.

Oh sh*t!!! Unless Leicester has changed for the better since I was
there 20+ years ago, it might be best to treat a bike as disposable :-(
Seriously, a cheap bike with a cable lock is probably the best bet,
with bolt-on wheels rather then QR. When it does get nicked it won't be
too much of a loss, but you will be stopping opportunist theft.

Is this Leicester Uni, or what was Leicester Poly - now De Montfort
University? Just curious - I was at the Poly!!!

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

[dkahn400]

On Dec 30, 11:56 am, Simon Brooke > wrote:

> When I lock a bike I usually take the front wheel out and put it beside the
> back wheel, and then pass the lock through both wheels, around the
> seatpost, and around something solid anchored to the ground.

ITYM seat tube - the tube that forms the common side of both the front
and rear triangles - rather than the post that connects the saddle to
the frame.

--
Dave...

[naked_draughtsman]

On Dec 30, 10:13 am, "David Lowther" >
wrote:
> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock Anti
> Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't be
> too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.

From experience if the wheel and frame is well locked and there isn't
an easier target around they'll just take whatever they can from the
bike (e.g. the QR skewers). Staff at Loughborough train station said
they frequently saw people walking away from the station with
handlebars, saddles, pedals etc. An older road bike might be a bit
less attractive than a full suspension mountain bike.

There's some good rides around Leicestershire once you get out of
Leicester itself!

peter

[Simon Brooke]

dkahn400 wrote:

> On Dec 30, 11:56 am, Simon Brooke > wrote:
>
>> When I lock a bike I usually take the front wheel out and put it beside
>> the back wheel, and then pass the lock through both wheels, around the
>> seatpost, and around something solid anchored to the ground.
>
> ITYM seat tube - the tube that forms the common side of both the front
> and rear triangles - rather than the post that connects the saddle to
> the frame.

Yup. Typo.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
There's nae Gods, an there's precious few heroes
but there's plenty on the dole in th Land o th Leal;
And it's time now, tae sweep the future clear o
th lies o a past that we know wis never real.

[Rob Morley]

In article >, David Lowther
says...
> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock Anti
> Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't be
> too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.
>
I use a 6ft cable lock that goes through both wheels and the frame and
around something immoveable, although on my ATB I tend to put it through
the saddle rail rather than the front wheel - the saddle and suspension
seatpost are a lot easier to nick than the "quick release" front wheel,
which requires overcoming the lawyer lips and tyre/brake interference.
I doubt that a serious thief would be interested in a cheap ATB, and an
opportunist generally isn't going to bother with anything that can't be
ridden away. More of a problem these days, it seems, is leaving a bike
somewhere that it's going to have its wheels kicked in.

[anth]

On Sun, 2007-12-30 at 07:28 -0800, naked_draughtsman wrote:
> From experience if the wheel and frame is well locked and there isn't
> an easier target around they'll just take whatever they can from the
> bike (e.g. the QR skewers). Staff at Loughborough train station said
> they frequently saw people walking away from the station with
> handlebars, saddles, pedals etc. An older road bike might be a bit
> less attractive than a full suspension mountain bike.

I once saw a frame, rims and tyres locked to a bike rack. Not only had
the components been stripped from the frame but the spokes had all been
cut to get the hubs.

[Roger Merriman]

iarocu > wrote:

> On 30 Dec, 02:13, "David Lowther" >
> wrote:
>
> > More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> > mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> > prevent theft.
>
>
> Crime patterns will vary from area to area so if you specify where
> your son will be then someone may have specific advice.
>
indeed while surbiton station has it's problems mainly from one bloke as
best i can tell.

one of the pub's in kingston has a old mounatin bike attached for ooh at
least a year now. still locked up and with all it's parts. though the
rear tire is flat now.

snips
>
> Iain

roger
--
www.rogermerriman.com

[Zog The Undeniable]

David Lowther wrote:
> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock Anti
> Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't be
> too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.

The ones that take a (supplied) pentagonal allen key are OK for
low-crime areas. However, the keys aren't hard to get hold of - just
buy another set - and the knurled nut on the other dropout can be undone
with molegrips.

For a cheap MTB I'd wrap a cable lock round the frame and wheels, using
a D-lock to secure the frame to a fixed object. Spray the frame a
horrid colour like fluo pink, and sand the names off any quality
components, for extra deterrence. It will still go just as well.

[Zog The Undeniable]

anth wrote:

> I once saw a frame, rims and tyres locked to a bike rack. Not only had
> the components been stripped from the frame but the spokes had all been
> cut to get the hubs.
>
The last time I did that (on my own old wheel, I hasten to add) I
impaled a finger on one of the cut-off spokes. Right in one side and
out of the other, fortunately missing bones and tendons and not
requiring any treatment.

[Paul Luton[_2_]]

Simon Brooke wrote:
> David Lowther wrote:
>
>
>
>>My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
>>wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
>
> Honestly, I don't think it is a problem. In my experience, I've had three
> locked bikes stolen (and one bike stolen from a locked shed). But I've
> never had a wheel stolen from a locked bike. I think they all had QRs.
>
>
Had a front wheel pinched from a mountain bike that I had used to tow a
trailer to the supermarket. Right pain to get home and remarkably
expensive to replace wheel, tyre etc. ( I then replaced all the QR
skewers and have a frozen seatpin due to never moving it. Drat !!)

--
CTC Right to Ride Rep. for Richmond upon Thames

[David Lowther]

"David Lowther" > wrote in message
...
> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.

<snip>

Many thanks to all the people that replied with advice.

Dave.

[DavidR[_3_]]

"David Lowther" > wrote
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.

Thieves don't seem very discerning.
My son has lost 2 bikes at uni. The first was his fault because he didn't
lock it. But it was in the garden of the terraced house he lives in. This
bike was built from a plain steel frame I found in a hedge fitted with
reasonable 7sp kit from a old, smaller bike of his.

The next was a Sterling House 50 quid wonder, taken from inside the house.
This one didn't even have its chain fitted at the time. During the burglary
the thieves also only took the obviously inferior of two printers and missed
a Sky box in plain view.

Since the house only has plastic drainpipes I made a flower pot filled with
concrete and a U bolt for the 2nd bike. Hopefully noise and the distraction
of having to
remove the flower pot or carry the bike with a dead weight attached will
put thieves off. Well... it worked in the period the bike was left locked
outdoors.

[Martin Dann]

DavidR wrote:

> The next was a Sterling House 50 quid wonder, taken from inside the house.
> This one didn't even have its chain fitted at the time. During the burglary
> the thieves also only took the obviously inferior of two printers and missed
> a Sky box in plain view.

Often thieves will only spend a minute or two inside the house they are
burgling, just grabbing the first things they see, or looking in obvious
places. They don't want to spend the time assessing which is the best
thing to steal.

[Ekul Namsob]

David Lowther > wrote:

> I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
> proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock Anti
> Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't be
> too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.

Between 1991 and 1995 I had three bikes stolen from around Manchester
University. The first, I carelessly left outside my flat for five
minutes while I looked inside my suitcase for the lock. (I had, at this
point, lived in Manchester for six minutes.)

The second was locked to a chainlink fence. That was when I learned
always to lock the bike to something stronger than the lock itself.

The third was locked to a Sheffield stand overnight.

I would recommend always securing both wheels to a stand or the bike's
frame with a cable or sturdy lock. The frame, obviously, needs to be
secured but most importantly: insure the bike for its replacement value.
I never had any problems claiming on insurance.

Mancunian criminals nicked the handlebars from my brother's bike, the
pedals from my fourth bike and the saddle from my mate's bike. If it's
not nailed down or bolted, anything left out for long enough will
vanish.

Cheers,
Luke


--
Red Rose Ramblings, the diary of an Essex boy in
exile in Lancashire <http://www.shrimper.org.uk>

[Geoff Pearson]

"David Lowther" > wrote in message
...
>I live in a low crime rural area so don't have any experience of thief
>proofing bikes, other than a token cable lock I use on my own bike.
>
> My son is taking a cheap 2nd hand bike to uni and is concerned that the
> wheels will get stolen if they have QR skewers.
>
> I was thinking of replacing the normal skewers with Tranz X Secure Lock
> Anti Theft skewers which are £12.99 from SJS.
>
> Does anyone have any advice on whether the above is going to help (can't
> be too hard for a thief to carry an allen key) ?
>
> More generally any advice on whether wheel theft from a £40 2nd hand
> mountain bike is likely to be a problem, and if so what's the best way to
> prevent theft.
>
> TIA
>
> Dave.
>
>
>

I have QRs with a five-sided allen type key, not 6. I can't remember the
make but I changed the whole set from standard QRs when my saddle was stolen
under my office's CCTV in broad daylight.