Panniers off the bike

[Heltor Chasca]

I rode through Burnham on Sea, Weston Super Mare (really, that’s how it’s spelt) and Avonmouth yesterday. I padlocked myself to the bike in case either of us got nicked.

Another idea I had was the Abus Café locks. I use a 180cm combination one for short stops. Maybe one at each end of the bike through the wheels, panniers, frame etc?

 

[mjr]

I rode through Burnham on Sea, Weston Super Mare (really, that’s how it’s spelt)

It's really not - lowercase s on the super and hyphens between the words, please!

I always felt WsM is pretty low-risk except for the central station and the big supermarket opposite. As long as it was locked to something, a bike seemed pretty unlikely to get swiped. The drawback was that the townspeople are fairly private so no-one challenged an obvious thief with a power-saw taking a bike from by a supermarket entrance (actually a friend who had lost the key).

 

[swansonj]

I use these mini cables. https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/222643538312?chn=ps&dispItem=1&adgroupid=55998050830&rlsatarget=pla-414082151975&abcId=1133916&adtype=pla&merchantid=9506244&poi=&googleloc=9045670&device=t&campaignid=1058842546&crdt=0&ul_ref=http%3A%2F%2Frover.ebay.com%2Frover%2F1%2F710-134428-41853-0%2F2%3Fmpre%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.ebay.co.uk%252Fi%252F222643538312%253Fchn%253Dps%2526dispItem%253D1%26itemid%3D222643538312%26targetid%3D414082151975%26device%3Dt%26adtype%3Dpla%26googleloc%3D9045670%26poi%3D%26campaignid%3D1058842546%26adgroupid%3D55998050830%26rlsatarget%3Dpla-414082151975%26abcId%3D1133916%26merchantid%3D9506244%26gclid%3DEAIaIQobChMI5PHUk7CU2gIVTrXtCh2qzwIfEAQYEyABEgJUh_D_BwE%26srcrot%3D710-134428-41853-0%26rvr_id%3D1483932613688

Crazy link. Sorry. Carrying 4 panniers, my tent and a bar bag is unfeasible. They aren’t going to stop the determined thief, but a knife would also work. They stop the opportunist and of course you could use a couple/more for each bag. And once they saved a pannier that bounced off my rack when I hit a huge pothole. All my valuables go into my bar bag which unclips and goes on my shoulder.

This could be your answer. Its called z lock and is like large zip tie with a steel core. There is a key to open them. You will find them on ebay and amazon. Its what I use.
https://www.hiplok.com/z-lok-zip-tie/

Minor thread resurrection to say: just back from the tour. I bought both your suggestions and used them both when leaving panniers on bikes while sightseeing or for lunch/beach stops. Of course, there's no way of knowing if they made any difference but I like them both. Thanks guys.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

Last weekend I came accross the Hiplok Z loks which would be great too, but pricier. http://www.mbr.co.uk/reviews/locks/hiplok-z-lok

I have just bought the combo version as a café lock. Light and a bit bigger.

 

[woodbutcher]

Come to rural France .....
pas de problème

 

[swansonj]

Last weekend I came accross the Hiplok Z loks which would be great too, but pricier. http://www.mbr.co.uk/reviews/locks/hiplok-z-lok

I have just bought the combo version as a café lock. Light and a bit bigger.

There's some logic in that. Despite being so thin and light, they still need cutters to cut them, which means they basically provide as much protection as a cable lock.

Personally though I like to lock my bike to something, so that if it is nicked, I can claim on the insurance.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

Come to rural France .....
pas de problème

Or not...

I found out many months after buying an old MTB in South West France, that it was hot. Gangs operating in the campsites and music festivals in the Gastes region. Probably as well as drunks who couldn’t be bothered to walk home from a night of big band craziness.

 

[woodbutcher]

Or not...

I found out many months after buying an old MTB in South West France, that it was hot. Gangs operating in the campsites and music festivals in the Gastes region. Probably as well as drunks who couldn’t be bothered to walk home from a night of big band craziness.

Sorry to hear of your trouble in Gastes.....l would say that holiday resort/areas probably attract more dodgy characters than you would find in "ordinary" rural areas no matter which country you are in. "caveat emptor" and all that .