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#12
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anti-theft idea
In article Vzn2c.723726$ts4.597223@pd7tw3no,
"Dave Mayer" wrote: "ken" wrote in message Place a big HUFFY sticker on your frame , covering the TREK , CANNONDALE, etc. Ken: around here, putting a Huffy (or Schwinn, Murray, Infinity, Dunlop, Mongoose etc.) set of stickers on your bike will increase its chance of getting stolen. Why? Most bike thefts are by drug addicts who sell them for a few bucks. Small-time thieves and their cohorts in pawn shops only know these brands. Put two identical bikes out with Pinarello and Huffy stickers on it and the Pinarello will be left alone. This situation played out here in which an unlocked $4k Klein road bike was moved on a bike rack so they could work on a locked $200 department-store mountain bike. Are you for serious? Where did that one play out? All my bikes have fancy-pants name brands (Kona, Pinarello, Bianchi) but look like crap, -- Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/ President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club |
#13
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anti-theft idea
This device should included with a Cutout Seat and suspension seat post,
with the impaling instrument inside the seat post and tube. Lock would be a locking pin over the seat post. The seat would have the regular male/female cutout with additional disguised by the padding. upon activation, you only need to replace the mechanism and the seat cover. "Lorenzo L. Love" wrote: Zippy the Pinhead wrote: On 5 Mar 2004 21:45:29 -0800, (ken) wrote: Here's an idea I came up with to lower your chances of getting your bike stolen: Place a big HUFFY sticker on your frame , I think a better option would be to place a spring-loaded, barbed harpoon ("The Shaft [TM]")in the seat tube. The Shaft (TM) would be tethered inside the bike by a thin, ten-foot Kevlar cable attached inside the tube down near the bottom bracket. You'd place an unobtrusive key into the seat tube to disable it when you were riding it, and take the key out when you park it. Any weight placed onto the saddle would begin the process of arming The Shaft (TM). In the absence of the key, few turns of the crank-arm would release The Shaft (TM) through the saddle and impale whatever was riding it at the time. An audio alarm would be optional, and would loudly announce in a computer-generated voice: "The guy with The Shaft (TM) up his ass is a THIEF!" at ten-second intervals until the 9V battery went dead. Even in a built-up area, it shouldn't be too hard to find your stolen bike; you'd just follow the trail of blood and diarrhea. It wouldn't be too hard to cut the cable. You'd be out a new saddle, and since The Shaft (TM) is inexpensive and disposable, you'd be able to replace it cheaply and conveniently. Hey! I proposed this years ago! I knew I should have patented it. Lorenzo L. Love http://home.thegrid.net/~lllove "Americans are broad-minded people. They'll accept the fact that a person can be an alcoholic, a dope fiend, a wife beater, and even a newspaperman, but if a man doesn't drive there's something wrong with him." Art Buchwald |
#14
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anti-theft idea
Springfield, IL took recovered bicycles not claimed, painted them
yellow, and put them out for anyone to use. They did not last very long. Ryan Cousineau wrote: In article Vzn2c.723726$ts4.597223@pd7tw3no, "Dave Mayer" wrote: "ken" wrote in message Place a big HUFFY sticker on your frame , covering the TREK , CANNONDALE, etc. Ken: around here, putting a Huffy (or Schwinn, Murray, Infinity, Dunlop, Mongoose etc.) set of stickers on your bike will increase its chance of getting stolen. Why? Most bike thefts are by drug addicts who sell them for a few bucks. Small-time thieves and their cohorts in pawn shops only know these brands. Put two identical bikes out with Pinarello and Huffy stickers on it and the Pinarello will be left alone. This situation played out here in which an unlocked $4k Klein road bike was moved on a bike rack so they could work on a locked $200 department-store mountain bike. Are you for serious? Where did that one play out? All my bikes have fancy-pants name brands (Kona, Pinarello, Bianchi) but look like crap, -- Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/ President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club |
#15
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anti-theft idea
In article ,
Mike Schwab wrote: Springfield, IL took recovered bicycles not claimed, painted them yellow, and put them out for anyone to use. They did not last very long. That's a classic "yellow-bike" program. They seem to work better some places than others. One idea that does seem to work better is where the yellow bikes have a lock with a common key. You join the bike collective, and get a copy of the key. This can be quite reasonable on college campuses; I believe UBC in town has a working program: http://www.ams.ubc.ca/clubs/bikecoop/p&y.htm -- Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine/wiredcola/ President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club |
#16
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anti-theft idea
in article l, Tom Keats at
wrote on 3/6/04 1:36 AM: In article , (ken) writes: Here's an idea I came up with to lower your chances of getting your bike stolen: Place a big HUFFY sticker on your frame , covering the TREK , CANNONDALE, etc. I'm not sure if these are sold in bike shops, but I suppose you can make one up on the computer THe downside of this is that you look like a dork, to some people who think you ride a HUFFY. I haven't tried this myself, as it is just an idea. What do you think? I've heard many people express their belief that it is the ease with which a bike may be stolen, rather than its intrinsic worth or appeal, that is usually the deciding factor in whether or not it actually does get stolen. I agree with them. Even Huffys get stolen. I think it's better to make a bike hard to steal, than undesirable to steal. My local police claim that the main bike thefts occur in my area for - ease of theft - a quick ride to get someplace They claim that less than 10% are thefts that involve extensive efforts to get the bike and/or to re-sell a quality bike. |
#17
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anti-theft idea
This is a little off topic but in the same anti-theft vein.
I read that a guy that had his laptop stolen many times countered the theft by changing his laptop bag. Instead of the usual black ballistic nylon shoulder strappy bag, he now puts his laptop in a used nappy (US read Daiper) bag. He claimes that he can leave the bag unattended for hours and no one will come near it let alone attempt to steal it. Can some bright spark come up with a similar cloaking devise for a bike. -- |
#18
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anti-theft idea
On Sat, 13 Mar 2004 05:47:38 GMT, Dominic Sansom
wrote: Instead of the usual black ballistic nylon shoulder strappy bag, he now puts his laptop in a used nappy (US read Daiper) bag. Can some bright spark come up with a similar cloaking devise for a bike. Hang dirty diapers on the bike, especially on the saddle and handlebar. -- Rick Onanian |
#19
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anti-theft idea
Dominic Sansom wrote:
This is a little off topic but in the same anti-theft vein. I read that a guy that had his laptop stolen many times countered the theft by changing his laptop bag. Instead of the usual black ballistic nylon shoulder strappy bag, he now puts his laptop in a used nappy (US read Daiper) bag. He claimes that he can leave the bag unattended for hours and no one will come near it let alone attempt to steal it. Can some bright spark come up with a similar cloaking devise for a bike. -- What worked for me all through college was taking off the handlebar tape, and covering the frame with duct tape. I didn't have the fanciest components, but if yours are expensive, I'd try covering the labels. Anyway, I used the flimsiest chain for years and it was never touched. Very ugly, though. Mike |
#20
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anti-theft idea
Bicycle are not stolen for their "cool factor" In fact. the frames are
usually scrapped, unless the serial number can be succesfully altered. It's much the same as with auto chop shops. The bike is stripped of it's components, which are untraceable, lacking SN's of their own. They are what's then resold. "May you have the wind at your back. And a really low gear for the hills!" Chris Zacho ~ "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman" Chris'Z Corner http://www.geocities.com/czcorner |
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