# How much do you spend on securing your bike?



## please do this survey (19 Jan 2019)

Hi all. I was hoping you guys could let me in on how much you spend to help me with a project based around bike security. Since my last thread got quite a few responses, I hoped you guys could help me with this quick questionnaire too.
How much do you people spend on securing your bike?
Including ANYTHING: from locks to cables


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## Salty seadog (20 Jan 2019)

The price I've voted for is on a discounted product. It would otherwise be £70 rrp.


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## classic33 (20 Jan 2019)

Does this include alarms bought for cycle use?


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## Markymark (20 Jan 2019)

Different bikes, different levels of security.


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## Ming the Merciless (20 Jan 2019)

I bought a house to secure my bike. What can I say?


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## mjr (20 Jan 2019)

YukonBoy said:


> I bought a house to secure my bike. What can I say?


That you got your priorities right.


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## Drago (20 Jan 2019)

Can I count my shotgun? If so, £1300.


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## derrick (20 Jan 2019)

It's never out of sight, so just a cheap cafe lock for when i am in the pub. Apart from that it's in the house.


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## lane (20 Jan 2019)

Can you calarify do you mean out and about or if including security at home such as scuring the garage?


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## mustang1 (21 Jan 2019)

I have more locks but typically secure a bike £250 worth of locks.


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## slowmotion (22 Jan 2019)

I'm in the under-thirty-quid-lock category, but I lob in about £25 of paper insurance. It stops me worrying, and that's the important bit, isn't it?


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## Lee_M (22 Jan 2019)

should I include the cost of my garage burglar alarm, or my electric gates?

What about the secure quick release axles I have?

What does your question actually mean?

You need a better, clearer question if you're going to get an answer that actually means anything


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## BluesDave (22 Jan 2019)

I am firmly of the opinion that nobody should have to lock their bikes. It is my opinion that the fact that we have to lock up our bikes, cars, homes, businesses, churches and children to keep them safe says more about the state of society than anything else at all.


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## MontyVeda (23 Jan 2019)

can't remember the actual price but i think it was 20-30 quid...






Having seen the youtube videos of just how quickly the most expensive locks can be breached by a tooled up thief, i figured spending silly money was futile and went for something that would deter the 'average' thief, or at least make the bikes next to mine appear easier pray.


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## snorri (23 Jan 2019)

BluesDave said:


> I am firmly of the opinion that nobody should have to lock their bikes. It is my opinion that the fact that we have to lock up our bikes, cars, homes, businesses, churches and children to keep them safe says more about the state of society than anything else at all.


Decisions decisions, buy a bike lock or change society?
I'm a bit short of time for the latter so will continue to place my faith in the security of my Lidl bike lock.


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## mjr (23 Jan 2019)

snorri said:


> Decisions decisions, buy a bike lock or change society?
> I'm a bit short of time for the latter so will continue to place my faith in the security of my Lidl bike lock.


It's not an either/or! 

Anyway, I lock my bike because I want to minimise walking (I'm still not right at that unless I concentrate hard, more than 18 months after breaking bone(s) in my foot) or taking taxis.


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## BluesDave (23 Jan 2019)

Lidl bike lock? I never saw those.


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## BluesDave (23 Jan 2019)

Every change starts with one person who has the desire and the courage to try to make a difference.


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## DaveReading (23 Jan 2019)

Asking how much one spends on securing a bike doesn't really tell you much without knowledge of how much said bike is worth.


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## alicat (23 Jan 2019)

Depends which bike and where I am taking it tbh.


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## GilesM (25 Jan 2019)

YukonBoy said:


> I bought a house to secure my bike. What can I say?



I turned my car-port into a garage, cost me about £1k, but it's currently securing 5 bikes and all my tools, spare wheels etc..

But if I'm in a country pub, I usually have a £15 lock for two bikes, so not sure how to answer the survey.


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## lane (25 Jan 2019)

Yes same here. After my garage was broken into and three bikes stolen, and on police advice, I spent a good bit over £1k on security. That secures 4 bikes. Out on the road mostly I have a £15 lock for insurance purposes as much as anything.


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## mjr (29 Jan 2019)

DaveReading said:


> Asking how much one spends on securing a bike doesn't really tell you much without knowledge of how much said bike is worth.


Does the amount one spends securing a bike depend on the monetary worth of the bike as much as its mobility worth, though? I proper lock my bike because I don't want to walk/bus/taxi home more than because it would cost me a lot to replace it.


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## DCLane (29 Jan 2019)

Stupid question; when/where/whixh bike?

= an irrelevant answer


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## please do this survey (23 Feb 2019)

classic33 said:


> Does this include alarms bought for cycle use?


everything is included! Alarms, locks, just not houses or garages.


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## please do this survey (23 Feb 2019)

YukonBoy said:


> I bought a house to secure my bike. What can I say?


what about when you go out and about?


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## please do this survey (23 Feb 2019)

lane said:


> Can you calarify do you mean out and about or if including security at home such as scuring the garage?


I mean when you're out and about


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## please do this survey (23 Feb 2019)

Lee_M said:


> should I include the cost of my garage burglar alarm, or my electric gates?
> 
> What about the secure quick release axles I have?
> 
> ...



Sorry for the confusion! I mean when you go out, and you lock your bike, how much is that lock worth?


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## lane (23 Feb 2019)

please do this survey said:


> I mean when you're out and about



Then about £15 because I don't leave it for long in high risk area and lock covers insurance requirements. My wife sometimes uss a £70 lock because she leaves her bike at more risk commuting to work.


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## classic33 (23 Feb 2019)

Two slightly contradicting answers.


please do this survey said:


> everything is included! Alarms, locks, just not houses or garages.





please do this survey said:


> Sorry for the confusion! I mean when you go out, and you lock your bike, how much is that lock worth?


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## roley poley (10 Jan 2020)

please do this survey said:


> Hi all. I was hoping you guys could let me in on how much you spend to help me with a project based around bike security. Since my last thread got quite a few responses, I hoped you guys could help me with this quick questionnaire too.
> How much do you people spend on securing your bike?
> Including ANYTHING: from locks to cables


there used to be a manned secure cycle park outside leeds city station £1.50 a day or season tickets available with 24 hour access gone now BOOOO


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## screenman (10 Jan 2020)

My bikes are kept in about £20,000 worth of garage.


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## cyberknight (11 Jan 2020)

MontyVeda said:


> can't remember the actual price but i think it was 20-30 quid...
> 
> View attachment 448574
> 
> ...


Im of a similar persuasion, the only bike i leave locked anywhere but at home aka fort knox is my commuter which i built out of spares, i lock it in the bike shed at work with a similar lock + d lock and in the same shed are bikes worth a lot lot more secured with summat you can nibble through .


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## Spoked Wheels (11 Jan 2020)

I'm a bit paranoid about getting my bike stolen so if I know I'm leaving my bike unattended for a period of time I'm known to use up to 3 D locks. I'm well aware that 3 locks are not enough for a determined thief but I hope that a thief might look somewhere else when they see 2 or 3 locks. I never leave any bike out overnight and when I leave a bike locked in town for a period of time I go for a busy spot. I calculate that a thief would need about 6 minutes with an angle grinder.

I also have a set of pitlock fitted


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## CanucksTraveller (11 Jan 2020)

Depends on the bike, for my older bike which is parked in the garage and sits outside the train station, supermarkets, pubs, or in the town square for several hours I use an Abus D lock which cost about 50 pounds ten years ago. 

My road bike only has a £10 cafe / cable lock as it lives indoors and I don't really ever let it out of my sight on a ride. Only if I nip into a loo.


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## roley poley (11 Jan 2020)

Spoked Wheels said:


> I'm a bit paranoid about getting my bike stolen so if I know I'm leaving my bike unattended for a period of time I'm known to use up to 3 D locks. I'm well aware that 3 locks are not enough for a determined thief but I hope that a thief might look somewhere else when they see 2 or 3 locks. I never leave any bike out overnight and when I leave a bike locked in town for a period of time I go for a busy spot. I calculate that a thief would need about 6 minutes with an angle grinder.
> 
> I also have a set of pitlock fitted
> 
> ...


WOWSERS wont lock my bike next to yours mate as mine would be the easier target


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## mjr (11 Jan 2020)

Spoked Wheels said:


> I hope that a thief might look somewhere else when they see 2 or 3 locks.


Nah, they'll just as likely decide it's really worth nicking if it has three locks on it


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## presta (11 Jan 2020)

I bought a 4 foot chain from the local cheap shop about 20 years ago, I've no idea how much it cost. The lock is an old brass Yale one that I already had. When the plastic sleeve disintegrated I replaced it with an old inner tube.


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## SkipdiverJohn (11 Jan 2020)

Spoked Wheels said:


> I'm a bit paranoid about getting my bike stolen so if I know I'm leaving my bike unattended for a period of time I'm known to use up to 3 D locks.



So am I, so I find using a £10 hack bike painted by a blind man using a yard broom and secured by a £10 padlock & chain achieves exactly the same result as your 3 D-locks without me needing to carry several pounds in weight of extra steel around. Also, if a determined thief armed with a grinder does take a fancy to your bike, not only have you lost the bike but also the cost of the expensive locks that will get destroyed. The best way not to get robbed is don't go around with anything worth nicking. 
My total theft risk exposure out on the street is probably less that one of your locks, never mind the bike. I often don't even carry any lock on my better bikes, because I simply will not leave them unattended out of my sight. There are bikes for riding from door to door and there are bikes for local utility transport and leaving on the street. Different bikes for different levels of risk. The only sort of person who would want to nick one of my hack bikes is a drunk who's just staggered out of the pub or has missed the last bus, and is unlikely to be carrying thieving tools. A thief hunting for a quick sale for ready cash isn't going to look twice at what I leave unattended.


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## Spoked Wheels (12 Jan 2020)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> So am I, so I find using a £10 hack bike painted by a blind man using a yard broom and secured by a £10 padlock & chain achieves exactly the same result as your 3 D-locks without me needing to carry several pounds in weight of extra steel around. Also, if a determined thief armed with a grinder does take a fancy to your bike, not only have you lost the bike but also the cost of the expensive locks that will get destroyed. The best way not to get robbed is don't go around with anything worth nicking.
> My total theft risk exposure out on the street is probably less that one of your locks, never mind the bike. I often don't even carry any lock on my better bikes, because I simply will not leave them unattended out of my sight. There are bikes for riding from door to door and there are bikes for local utility transport and leaving on the street. Different bikes for different levels of risk. The only sort of person who would want to nick one of my hack bikes is a drunk who's just staggered out of the pub or has missed the last bus, and is unlikely to be carrying thieving tools. A thief hunting for a quick sale for ready cash isn't going to look twice at what I leave unattended.


if that works for you fantastic but it wouldn't work for me, people are entitled to view things differently and I think their choices deserve respect.


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## Dogtrousers (13 Jan 2020)

I won't leave my bike for more than a couple of minutes. Even then I try to keep sight of it while I'm away. It's only ever left when popping into shops/service stations for a quick bottle refill and to get a bit of food, and I will always nip back to check on the bike after collecting my goods but before paying. When I leave it I use either one or two crappy cable locks on it. One circa 1980s and one of those little retractable combination gismos. Even if they do only take moments to cut I figure that the places I leave my bike are low risk and the times are so short that they will suffice.

If I had to leave a bike unattended in public for any period of time I'd probably take the Skipdiver approach. But I don't. So I don't.


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## mjr (13 Jan 2020)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> My total theft risk exposure out on the street is probably less that one of your locks, never mind the bike.


Depends how much one's taxi fare home is. Your exposure in London may be limited to the 24h contactless daily charge limit, but in some parts of England, someone could be facing a three-figure fare home on top of the bike's replacement - so even my hack bikes usually get a kilogram of locks on them because I hate walking and don't want to pay that.

That said, I do leave them for hours, sometimes days (but that's usually in a guarded parking), because a bike you can't use to go to somewhere (rather than only through it) is pretty worthless IMO. YMMV.


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## Dogtrousers (13 Jan 2020)

mjr said:


> That said, I do leave them for hours, sometimes days (but that's usually in a guarded parking), because a bike you can't use to go to somewhere (rather than only through it) is pretty worthless IMO. YMMV.


Which kind of sums up why the answer to the OP is always going to be "it depends", because there are so many variables.

These days cycling through, rather than to, places is 100% of my cycling. Worthless to you, fair enough, but I find it pretty worthwhile - takes all sorts. Therefore my needs for a lock are totally different to yours.


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## swee'pea99 (13 Jan 2020)

mustang1 said:


> I have more locks but typically secure a bike £250 worth of locks.




(That's more than three times what I paid for my current bike!)


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## mjr (13 Jan 2020)

Dogtrousers said:


> Which kind of sums up why the answer to the OP is always going to be "it depends", because there are so many variables.


Agreed.



> These days cycling through, rather than to, places is 100% of my cycling. Worthless to you, fair enough, [...]


Oi! I carefully did not call such cycling worthless. I wrote that a bike that you dare not leave parked in any of those places would be pretty worthless - in my opinion.


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## davidphilips (13 Jan 2020)

Hard question to answer, If using a bike just to go to a local shop then about a £10 lock and thats usually for a bike thats not worth a lot, but when on a club run none of our bikes are usually locked and theres some very expensive bikes yet not one bike has been taken maybe just luck?


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## lane (13 Jan 2020)

Probably some rich pickings for bike thieves targeting some popular Sunday run cafes. Let's hope they don't realise.


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## roley poley (13 Jan 2020)

do they want to be chased down by 15+ other members and made to eat bike pump?


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## Gunk (13 Jan 2020)

roley poley said:


> do they want to be chased down by 15+ other members and made to eat bike pump?



They won’t be running very fast in their fancy carbon Sidi cycling shoes. The thieves will be long gone wearing their Nike Airs


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## roley poley (13 Jan 2020)

Gunk said:


> They won’t be running very fast in their fancy carbon Sidi cycling shoes. The thieves will be long gone wearing their Nike Airs


 one of us is always on watch and we would ride them down faster than adidas felony fliers and and and get knifed and run down by their following loot van ...I`ll just sit down for a bit now as I feel a bit wobbly ...maybe a cup of tea and a biscuit


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## mjr (15 Jan 2020)

Gunk said:


> They won’t be running very fast in their fancy carbon Sidi cycling shoes. The thieves will be long gone wearing their Nike Airs


I rather suspect the cyclist will be riding rather than running once they get to their bike, whereas the thief will be cross-chaining and accidentally activating the brake each time they change gear - or just dropping the chain if it's my derailleur bike with the funny shifters, or popping their knees if it's one of my roadsters and I left it parked in top again.

Apologies to those who know the story, but a fixie rider left a local shop to see a thief pedalling away on his steed. He shouted "stop thief", the thief looked round and tried to stop pedalling, at which point the bike bucked him and deposited him by the feet of two passing police officers. The thief tried to argue that the rider should be ticketed for leaving an unsafe bike around to be ridden, but didn't get far with that!


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## davidphilips (15 Jan 2020)

Lol, That brighten my day.


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## rogerzilla (18 Jan 2020)

I usually ride a fixie, and not many thieving junkies will manage the first corner. Not out here in the provinces, anyway, where hipsters are in short supply.


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## icowden (24 Jan 2020)

My thought is similar to others - the question is a bit general.
For example I spent money turning part of my brick lean-to into a secure cycle shed. Does that count?
Are we talking per bike? Per month? Per year?

Like many others I use a fairly bog standard lock when out and about but i don't leave the bike in places that aren't secure, unless it's for a very short period of time. Then we have the rest of the family bikes so I have enough locks to lock those up. And then there's the spare cheapo locks purchased in an emergency due to forgotten lock / key / broken key etc..


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## Oxford Dave (24 Jan 2020)

I use the ground anchor and heavy chain/padlock I bought for my Harley Davidson a few years ago. No-one nicked either of my Harleys, so hopefully, the bicycle currently in the garage, which cost about 1% of my first Harley, should stay put!


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## Ming the Merciless (24 Jan 2020)

rogerzilla said:


> I usually ride a fixie, and not many thieving junkies will manage the first corner. Not out here in the provinces, anyway, where hipsters are in short supply.



I’m a bit like that with my recumbent. Most thieves wouldn’t know where to start, would quickly fall off if they did try riding it. Most of them probably think it’s for disabled people. I’m a bit more relaxed about locking it up outside a shop in a village than my upright bikes.


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## roley poley (29 Jan 2020)

leeds city railway station has reopened its cycle point with evans cycles again ,a covered staffed cycle lock, up it used to be 1.50 a day for storage .. wonder if my part used booklet of day tickets will still be valid


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## iateyoubutler (6 Feb 2020)

Bikes are locked to each other, to an anchor point, in an alarmed garage. That`s as much as I`m going to reveal


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## vickster (7 Feb 2020)

I spent around £750 having an Asgard fitted in the garden. Rather cheaper than extending the house


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## classic33 (7 Feb 2020)

iateyoubutler said:


> Bikes are locked to each other, [B[to an anchor point, [/B]in an alarmed garage. That`s as much as I`m going to reveal


Did you use left-handed bolts?


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## HMS_Dave (9 Feb 2020)

Ive invested in D lock and a hardened chain... If a thief really wants your bike, the thief is going to get it. The question is how fast can they get it, that's what determines if they go for your expensive bike, or the poor buggers next to yours. They're not going to hang around long. Having different locks requires different tools so even the most experience hard attacker or lock picker will likely walk on by if he sees he needs 2 different methods of getting access to your bike. The downside of course is the inconvenience and weight of such items. Only you can decide what matters most...


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## Ashimoto (5 Mar 2020)

Its very rarely out of my siight. Even if I nip into a little village shop in the middle of nowhere I lock it up. My lock is just a cheap combo lock. I would use something stronger if I was commuting and leaving the bike somewhere for a longer period.


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## Dogtrousers (5 Mar 2020)

Ashimoto said:


> Its very rarely out of my siight. Even if I nip into a little village shop in the middle of nowhere I lock it up. My lock is just a cheap combo lock. I would use something stronger if I was commuting and leaving the bike somewhere for a longer period.


Exactly my approach. I have two cable locks, a thick (key( one and one of those little retractable fag packet size jobs with a combination. I figure two rubbish locks will have to suffice for the very short periods while I nip into a village shop.


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## DSK (19 Jun 2020)

I voted £50+.

The reason being, I have realised that my bikes are not exactly cheap or easy to replace. For a few days I was wandering what would be best, use secure temporary storage if I go away or get suitable insurance cover with the home policy. So when I get off my butt and phone them next week, I guess I will have to pay extra to insure the bicycles suitably.

I do not use public parking/security so its a £0 for locks.


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