Bicycle locks

[The Wanderer]

Well, I finally got myself a bicycle for commuting back and forth to work last week. I have to do something about this spare tire I'm carrying around. The bikes a beater more or less. Ugly as sin. Nothing to write home about. Last years model. It even has fenders. I'm hoping it will go unnoticed due to it's "Old Mans bike appearance". It comes in a primer grey sort of colour. Kona makes a pretty decent bike though, so I may have to paint the company name off the frame right away.
I've been looking at a lot of various locks to keep the bike where I left it. I'm really up in the air as to which lock to buy. I don't want to spend a fortune. I'd say $50.00 to $75.00 is about right. This may sound illogical, but a good lock might tell thieves the bike is actually worth stealing.
I've been looking at OnGuard and Kryptonite mostly. I'm avoiding the tubular locks all together. Abus makes some really fine locks like the Granit 54 for example. I haven't seen them here in Canada anywhere. They’re pricey anyway. I’m sure they are worth every penny though.
Does anyone have any good or bad experiences they'd like to share about bike locks they are presently using that might help me come to a final decision as to which lock I should purchase? Thanks for your replies in advance.

The Wanderer

[MrB]

Actually, all commuting (and road bikes in general) should have fenders, unless you live somewhere it never rains. Without fenders, you are going to hate the wet stripe up your back, soaked feet, and rusty chain. Some bike clubs insist on fenders otherwise the spray from the wheels is murder on the riders following behind...

As for locks, you could go visit www.bikeforums.net and use the search button...

What lock you need depends on where and how long you plan to leave the bike. If it's going to be parked all day and out of sight, two locks of different kinds are better than just one. Your best option if you can is to bring the bike inside while it's parked rather than relying on locks to keep it safe.

You could look to Sold Secure for independent test ratings of bicycle locks. Not all will be available in North America, but some are. http://www.soldsecure.com/main.htm

[vector40]

Do you want a padlock that you can use with a chain or armored cable, or just a self-contained bike-specific unit?

[The Wanderer]

I like the flexibility of using a chain,but don't want to carry the weight. A U lock would be best I think. In Bikeforums they suggested using two locks!! All the good locks are worth 1/3 of the price of my bike. The Bikeforums and Soldsecure sites were a good place to go get a few opinions. Thanks Mr.B.
Now I have to see what's available locally. I'm thinking Krypto at the moment. The 3000 would be my choice if the price isn't too high. I'll find out when I get there.

[raimundo]

The new double sided abloy U locks are good, I don't own any, I use the old kryptonites, I never bought them either, I just found them in the road or people gave them to me when they lost their keys, I make a key and use the lock. you can make a key for one of these with a blank and a flat file if you do the work carefully and copy the depths from a pick. The bic pen trick worked the first time I tried it on one of these, but after that I never succeeded again, didn't try much, but there are two different diameters of tubular lock on these things, the bic trick would probably work on the smaller diameter which is installed throught the side of the tube, but not on the larger diameter which is found inside the end of the tube. While your biking, you can find sweeper bristle on the corners where the curb brush is roughed against the curb.

[The Wanderer]

The Sold Secure site Mr. B put me onto was just the ticket. Finally decided on a good lock for a decent price. I deduced that the best lock for my needs was the OnGuard Bulldog. Nice U or D type lock. Not too much money, and it came with a cable to wrap around the front wheel so I wouldn't have to take the front wheel off everytime I'd park it somewhere. Pretty decent lock for $45.00 CDN. Abloy disc style lock. Works perfectly for me. Comes with a warranty if someone breaks the lock to get the bike.
I'd read there was some concern over the key breakng in the lock with some of the OnGuards from some of the reviewers on the BikeForum mentioned above. They seem fine to me. The depths of the cuts must have been pretty deep in all the wrong places on some of these units. That and a bit of heavy handedness and you got a recipe for disaster.
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I'll keep an eye out for the bristles, Ray. They swept my street a while ago. It never even occured to me to go and look. I've got lots of picks now and don't even have the slightest urge to try and make some with sweeper bristles or anything else for that matter. I'll just buy them from you, Ray!