A Warning to all

On the Friday before Christmas my son's bike was stolen from our back
garden and I reported it without much hope of getting it back.

I went to Coles Supermarket today and bugger me if it wasn't parked
outside the door. It had been stripped of bar ends speedo etc and
crudely sprayed to disguise it but it was definitely the bike. so I
picked it up and wheeled it home and went straight back to see who had
missed it (I live a few hundred yards away) Unfortunately they had
scarpered.

Anyway two points when I took it no one made any attempt to stop me
even though it was the main entrance from the car park with plenty of
people around and the bike obviously diidn't fit me so lock your bike
up. Secondly no where is safe from thieves the bike originally was not
visible from the road behind a 6ft fence.

Anyway now I have the task of restoring it - though perhaps a crude
paint job is the answer to theft.

Actually two bikes were stolen but the other was next to the trailer
ready for the dump as it had been trashed by my other son, they were
welcome to that it saved dump fees!


Regards
Prickles

This message only uses recycled electrons

Flying Echidna wrote:

Anyway now I have the task of restoring it - though perhaps a crude
paint job is the answer to theft.

Yes, coupled with a decent chain and padlock.
It won't stop the pros, but does stop the opportunists.

Flying Echidna Wrote:

On the Friday before Christmas my son's bike was stolen from our back
garden and I reported it without much hope of getting it back.

I went to Coles Supermarket today and bugger me if it wasn't parked
outside the door. It had been stripped of bar ends speedo etc and
crudely sprayed to disguise it but it was definitely the bike. so I
picked it up and wheeled it home and went straight back to see who had
missed it (I live a few hundred yards away) Unfortunately they had
scarpered.

You didn't wait for them to return to the bike?
Maybe call over security first for backup?

hippy


--
hippy

On Sat, 7 Jan 2006 04:27:35 +1100, hippy
wrote in aus.bicycle:

I went to Coles Supermarket today and bugger me if it wasn't parked
outside the door. It had been stripped of bar ends speedo etc and
crudely sprayed to disguise it but it was definitely the bike. so I
picked it up and wheeled it home and went straight back to see who had
missed it (I live a few hundred yards away) Unfortunately they had
scarpered.

You didn't wait for them to return to the bike?
Maybe call over security first for backup?

With hindsight it was a mistake but I was concerned that they would be
quicker on their feet than me and scoot off with the bike, I wasn't
worried about violence I am 6ft and solid these were kids (young
teens). I expected to be back before they returned I was gone a matter
of minutes.


Regards
Prickles

This message only uses recycled electrons

Flying Echidna Wrote:

With hindsight it was a mistake but I was concerned that they would be
quicker on their feet than me and scoot off with the bike, I wasn't
worried about violence I am 6ft and solid these were kids (young
teens). I expected to be back before they returned I was gone a matter
of minutes.


next time, change it into the smallest gear possible or just remove
front wheel, leave it beside bike. That way they are either distracted
or too slow to get away. but hopefully the scenario never happens again



--
flyingdutch

flyingdutch Wrote:
next time, change it into the smallest gear possible or just remove
front wheel, leave it beside bike. That way they are either distracted
or too slow to get away. but hopefully the scenario never happens again


The trick I was shown, when leaving bikes outside the cafe for the
obligatory latte (HUCK TOO!), was to screw out the brake's barrel
adjuster so that the brakes were locked on. Makes it a little trickier
for someone to wheel or ride the bike away.

hippy
- What's with laptops not having line-in?! Sheesh!!


--
hippy

On 2006-01-07, hippy (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

flyingdutch Wrote:
next time, change it into the smallest gear possible or just remove
front wheel, leave it beside bike. That way they are either distracted
or too slow to get away. but hopefully the scenario never happens again


The trick I was shown, when leaving bikes outside the cafe for the
obligatory latte (HUCK TOO!),

Oi! Stopit! I'm going to have to order a skinny soy latte with no
fur next time, if you guys keep on bagging them out!

was to screw out the brake's barrel
adjuster so that the brakes were locked on.

And More Bakeries Than Cycling trick is to put a rubber band over the
brakes, holding them onto the handlebar. This is as a handbrake to
stop the bike from rolling and then falling over, but I have used it
once or twice as a method to slow down thieves when I have been stuck
without a lock.

--
TimC
"Saving four times is just paranoia. Unless you're using an Exabyte
5gig/8mm tapedrive." -- Graham Reed

TimC Wrote:

On 2006-01-07, hippy (aka Bruce)
The trick I was shown, when leaving bikes outside the cafe for the
obligatory latte (HUCK TOO!),

Oi! Stopit! I'm going to have to order a skinny soy latte with no
fur next time, if you guys keep on bagging them out!

was to screw out the brake's barrel
adjuster so that the brakes were locked on.
[/color]

In the 'nongs (forget where) there is a cafe offering a "Why Bother".
Perfect for ya Tim, it's some kind of skinny, decaffy 'cino thing.

Google says: "NIENTA (Italian for "why bother"), decaffeinated
cappuccino with non-fat milk"

hippy
"Full fat"


--
hippy