Buying a lock

[Geoff Vane]

I was very surprised and impressed with the hobby lock picking and the skill of lock pickers. Especially the movie of Toool where several very good locks were picked in a public demonstration.

My girlfriends bike was stolen, so I bought a real expensive Abus lock to prevent this next time.

But now I am uncertain, after seeing all this.

I figured you guys can give me the best advice.

No lock seems to be safe, but what is the best lock and chain combination one can buy? Please be as specific as humanly possible...

[vector40]

Battlecruiser anchor chain welded shut with a torch.

Come on, specify your constraints. What's practical for you? Pricewise? Weightwise, if it's something to be carried on a bike?

Understand that while there are people in the world who can compromise high-security locks like you saw at Toool, the odds are slim and none that any of them are wandering around stealing bicycles. You should aim for a more balanced approach, including difficulty at bypassing, physical strength (in materials and design), and, yes, cost and weight and usability.

[Geoff Vane]

Well I will be more specific.

In Holland many bikes have locks that are more expensive than the bike itself. Stealing bikes seems to be normal here. If a bike can be removed, it will be removed, even if it is locked. In Amsterdam for instance, many people use motorcycle locks for their bicycle. It's that bad.

I'm looking for a lock & chain combination not heavier than say 3 kilograms. Maximum price about 150 euro.

Without consulting you, I would go for a listed ART 4 points lock.
http://www.stichtingart.nl/sloten/sloten.php

I have heard of thieves with Falle gear and so on. They also use mobile hydraulic cutters designed to free people from crashed cars.

You guys may know better what to buy, after examining this list.

[MrB]

In Europe, there are organizations that test and rate bicycle locks for resistance to attack (much like the web site you linked to).

I believe the best rated locks can resist the strongest attacks for quite some time. You would be best to find who does this lock testing (I don't remember the organization) and go by their recommendations.

There are far fewer bicycle locks available in the USA, and only one or two of them meet the best European standards, so it will be hard to get good recommendations from this side of the Atlantic. There are several British and European readers on this forum, so maybe they will be able to help some more.

[Fasthands]

I suggest Medeco, eh.
Get a Master Pro series IC, and put a Medeco cylinder into it.
As for the chain, get something at least 1cm thick.
Anything else is quite easily cut.