Which of these locks for French tour...

[chris-s]

I'm pondering on which lock(s) to take with me on my short cycle-camping trip in a few weeks time. I'm not really expecting to leave the bike anywhere other than outside a super-market/shop/cafe or on a site whilst I sss or sleep, definitely no going off sight seeing leaving it for any period of time. The ONLY exception to this would be on the one day I'm planning to see the end of the Tour in Paris where I might leave it at the campsite at Bois de Boulogne.

Bearing in mind I'm only taking a single saddlebag on the Bianchi, here is the selection....

(the padlock is a motion/alarmed job)

Chris

 

[andym]

I'd take a longer, thinner, cable if you can get one. In the bits of France I've been in, the only cycle parking facilities have been the racks you stick the front wheel into. You can often find something to padlock a d-lock or armoured cable to, but it's not quite as handy as in the UK. A longer cable means you can put run the cable round trees and through the front and rear wheel.

I'm not convinced about the spikes - I can't remember ever staying at a campsite that didn't have a tree or a fence handy.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Kryptonite D lock and a kryptonite cable for me. Put the buggers off.

alarm could be very annoying on a campsite at night.

 

[benb]

Don't know, but you could open a big bottle of wine with that corkscrew.

 

[J-Lo]

Where does one get one of those 'corkscrews' from? Never seen anything like that for a bike before...

 

[Mark Grant]

Where does one get one of those 'corkscrews' from? Never seen anything like that for a bike before...

Pet shop, it's a dog stake.

 

[rich p]

Pet shop, it's a dog stake.

Korean? No, that's dog steak

 

[Cubist]

it's a dog stake.

Looks pretty tough.

Anyway, if the majority on here are to be believed you don't need bike security in France because the bike is revered in similar fashion to the Dalai Llama. My mate Paul believed this right up until his Boardman was nicked off a campsite.

Go with the D Lock and a longish cable.

 

[rich p]

In rural campsites or indeed many others I don't worry too much about security although I do use a cable lock. If I was camping in a huge site on the south coast, say, or the Bois de Boulogne I'd be a bit more security minded. If it was a smart-looking road bike in the B de B I doubt if I would leave it out in the open at all.
Chat up a nice family with a spacious caravan on the day of the tour!

 

[benb]

Korean? No, that's dog steak

Korean meatballs.
They really are the dog's bollocks.

 

[vernon]

I've never been convinced by the dog stake. One only has to unscrew it and the bike can be carried away. However, using two of them at the bike frames extremities will make unscrewing impossible but then two locks and cable will be needed with the attendant weight and bulk.

Locks only stop honest people anyway. If someone is determined to have your bike they will arrive fully equipped to cut through any cable and be able to jack apart d-locks.

Bike theft does happen but it tends to be opportune thefts.

I use a thickish cable and integrated lock. There again my bike id Decathlon hybrid worth around £350. It does have bling appeal.

 

[rich p]

Locks only stop honest people anyway.

?????? Honest people wouldn't nick an unlocked bike Vern!

 

[yello]

I'd go with the cable and (non-motion sensored) padlock or combination lock. The D-lock's a bit hefty to lug around and is not always going to be a easy to secure to something. I'd only take a D-lock if I was planning on being in cities and leaving my bike unattended for any length of time.

A cable lock is enough to stop the casual thief just walking off with your bike, which is all you want in practice really. If someone's hell bent on taking your bike, not even a D-lock would prevent them! Like many things, it's a trade-off. You accept your level of risk and go with it. The only way to be absolutely sure is by not going!

Around where I live, I never lock my bike because nobody in my club locks theirs either! Took me a while to get used to that (having previously lived in London) but there just isn't a need. And we'll be 2 hours inside a restaurant for lunch, bikes unattended outside.

 

[Joe]

I lost the key to my lock near the start of my french tour and never got around to getting another.
Was expecting to come out of a shop to find it gone, leaving a lycra'd up me with nowt but a bar bag, but thankfully it never happened!
I'd take a light but longish combination cable lock next time.

 

[vernon]

?????? Honest people wouldn't nick an unlocked bike Vern!

But I was talking about locked bikes.....