No not really, but quite close.

First day to work on my new bike, nice feeling. After work a friend called suggesting beers in shoreditch. Knowing the state of thievery in the area, I suggest the eagle on city road, next to a police station. A few beers later we´re off, or so I like to be. My brand new Abus Granit steel-o-flex 100cm felt a bit odd when I got the key in, tried to turn it but it felt stuck. Tried the other key, same thing. Back to first key, felt stuck, turned it slightly harder and snap, the key broke. I didn´t even try to force it, had a good few £20 locks before that I´ve applied much more force to without snapping keys.

So, in to the police station, friendly guy there told me it´s prob best to bite the bullet and cash up for a locksmith. Called one up... 95 + VAT to sort it.... started thinking. Bought superglue from the corner shop, tried to glue the snapped key to the rest of the key.... no luck... Bit the bullet and called the locksmith. 40 mins later he´s there, angle grinded the lock in less than 30 seconds. Seriously, I thought I´d timed it out of curiosity, but before I had my phone up he was through it. All well and good, I unlock my mini u-lock for my front wheel, just to notice a tiny dent next to the lock... Did someone have the guts to tamper the locks right outside the police station?

Anyhow, walked home accompanied by my girlfriend who came to listen to my cursing, bless her.


Lesson(?): never ever lock your bike anywhere?

or was I just unlucky and got a faulty lock from Abus?


thanks for listening, feel better now

Send it back to Abus with the receipt from the locksmith and a note saying how long it actually took to get through. You never know, they might send you a new one out of good faith!

Yeah that´s what he said too. Honestly not very surprised he got through it so quick, an angle grinder is after all an angle grinder. More surprised with the shit key, shouldn´t brake that easy I think

sounds well dodgy, i reckon someone superglued your locks in the hope you'd leave it there overnight ..?

did you pay him 100 odd quid for that??

yeah i did, called 3 locksmiths and all said the same price. Checked with the police too, he said it was steep but since it was late and an emergency not much to do about it. Couldn´t get hold of a angle grinder myself and wouldn´t dare leaving my bike there overnight

thats what i was thinking...

yeah now that you say it it kinda make sense. But still, outside a police station, quite daring if you ask me

hmm yeah.

i once saw a gt mountainbike totally stripped and it was locked right outside the police station steps on lambs conduit street.

Would be an interesting tactic - thief fucks with your lock til you leave it overnight and then grind through when you're sleeping...

if i was going to go through that much effort, i would just get a van, and some bolt croppers and chop right threw it then and their with the van as a sheild

ergh another thing for me to be paranoid about.

that's what insurance is for though

My flatmate had the same problem with his brand new Abus, locked on Oxford Street and key snapped... He had to come home and get a hacksaw then cut it off in broad daylight, no one said a word to him... Two Kryptonites for me, I figure it'll keep the lil' toerags busy for a coupla minutes at least...

locksmiths.


license to print money

Mackenz' key snapped off in her lock on brick lane and it cost £100 - and about thirty seconds - for the locksmith to come out and angle grind it...

Too right. I've now got all my possessions insured (I think). Before about 6 months ago nothing was insured. If my laptop had been dropped down the stairs or something similar I'd just have gone without. Now for £50 it'd be as good as new (Housemate dropped a bottle on his Macbook and broke the screen and under our insurance all is well for £50).

I've heard of people arriving to find new locks put on bikes. They then leave them overnight and, hey presto, they vanish by morning. Apparently if you contact the local fire brigade (NOT by 999!) and if they are not busy/far away they like to come and have a play with their kit for free.

Ah that's a good idea, should've thought of that. next time!

great idea! suppose a few crates of beer to the fire station is cheaper than the locksmith. does anyone have an angle grinder on the forum? might be good to have an alternative to £90 in the future ..ouch kboy :(

my thought too, it it'd been earlier in the day I'd gone to argos and got one myself



that should've done the trick

if you have an electricity socket...

I had exactly the same thing happen to me, paid 90 quid for a locksmith, sent the fucked Abus lock back to wiggle along with the locksmith receipt who refunded me the cost of the lock and sent it on to Abus to try and claim the locksmith charge, about a month or so later I got feedback from Wiggle saying that Abus had managed to extract the broken key and got another key made and the lock worked perfectly with it, and because of this they weren't going to refund me, I argued that if the lock itself wasnt faulty then it must have been the key, they said that because it said the lock was jammed on the locksmith report that said that the lock mechanism itself was faulty and because this wasnt the case they wouldn't refund. So 90 quid down the drain.
Needless to say I dont use Abus anymore - I'm very happy with my Kryptonite NY chain now.
I feel your pain Kboy.

the locksmith needed that too, the pub (the eagle on Sheperdess walk) sorted me out, the police station couldn't help me though...

Try this one

http://diytools.com/store/detail.asp?ProductModel=9500DW&ProductID=58727

Yep, that was there for a while. It ended up having the fucking spokes cut to get the hubs out - I think it was done as a dare to see how far you could go in front of a cop shop.

It's right b y my flat and made me sad whenever I walked past it.

how did you get your macbook insured?>

Oldest trick in the book.

Mine is through Endsleigh. Some student deal but I think they do it for general public as well.

i don't know bout you but i'm a bit worried that a lock smith would just come and cut it off, surely if a bike theif really wanted your bike (and knowing that most people on here's bikes are worth more then £100 second hand) would that be the eaisest way to steal someones bike?

my thought too, I didn't need to proof my ownership at all. Don't really know how I would either, but it struck my mind. I guess get a van, fake some locksmith stickers and get some tools and you're ready to start thieving with no questions asked

I asked the locksmith helping me if people never ask him what he's doing, or if the police doesn't come round... happened once in three years!

Thing is right, if you are out to steal a bike and you're cutting the lock with bolt cutters, angle grinder etc... and the plod stops and says, hello, hello hello.. Surely you're just gonna turn round and say, Well Officer, someone glued my locks, so i've had to go and get these/this to cut off my lock! Is there any reason he would say, have you got proof it's your bike etc?

Dunno, it's just my thoughts, but WHY would they question the act? I know they should, but if they get that reply, why question it?

Just goes to show that people will steal anything.
The demolished IRO which is chained to the railings on Essex Road has had EVERYTHING removed from it now. Even though there was almost nothing worth salvaging from it!