Saddle rustlers

Luther Blissett <[email hidden]> wrote:
: Sometimes I see cyclists remove their saddles when locking up their bikes. I don't know of anybody
: who has had their saddle stolen, and was wondering how often it happens. Has anybody any
: first-hand experience of saddle theft?

I had wheel, chain and saddle stolen many years ago from a bike parked at the University of
Edinburgh. There was a bike co-operative workshop in Edinburgh at the time, so I built a
replacement wheel from a spare hub, rim and bunch of new spokes.

There haven't been any similar thefts from the area where I currently leave my bike, so I don't
remove or lock the saddle.

I imagine there are still some areas where bits are likely to vanish of parked bikes. If more
than one or two people unsrew bits from leaving their bikes in the same area as you do, it might
be wise to ask them, or take precautions yourself!

Dorre

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by Luther Blissett
Sometimes I see cyclists remove their saddles when locking up their bikes. I don't know of anybody
who has had their saddle stolen, and was wondering how often it happens. Has anybody any first-hand
experience of saddle theft?

Three or four years ago I had my bike (the frame) locked up outside of work... it was a small 2 storey office complex in Melbourne. Anyway, sure enough my seat and seatpost were taken during the day... I was just lucky that both the wheels didnt go as well as I only had the frame attached with the lock.

Quick-release seatposts are good for mtb'iking, not so good for commuting.

Now wherever I go I use a cable lock for the wheels and seat and a u-lock to attach the frame.

Quoted message said:

Three or four years ago I had my bike (the frame) locked up outside of work... it was a small 2
storey office complex in Melbourne. Anyway, sure enough my seat and seatpost were taken during the
day... I was just lucky that both the wheels didnt go as well as I only had the frame attached
with the lock.

Quick-release seatposts are good for mtb'iking, not so good for commuting.

Now wherever I go I use a cable lock for the wheels and seat and a u-lock to attach the frame.

Locking spindles & seatpost clamps are available from most bike shops for $30 or less. They are sold
in sets of 2 spindles + seatpost, and come in a few different methods of locking. Go for the type
which uses a five-sided allen key. Unless the thief has the exact same tool (VERY uncommon), he/she
has no chance of pinching your wheels or seat.

"Luther Blissett" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Sometimes I see cyclists remove their saddles when locking up their bikes. I don't know of anybody
who has had their saddle stolen, and was wondering how often it happens. Has anybody any
first-hand experience of saddle theft?

I don't remove my saddle myself but the only person I know who does says he does it to make the bike
more inconvenient to ride away. He takes the normal precautions of a lock etc.

I read somewhere that it is a good idea to make it more difficult to ride the bike even if the cable
or chain can be cut. The examples given were locking the padlock round the chain and a spoke so that
even if the cable/chain is cut the bike still can't be riden. This won't stop a determined thief but
it may make the casual one look elsewhere.

Luther Blissett said:

Sometimes I see cyclists remove their saddles when locking up their bikes. I don't know of anybody
who has had their saddle stolen, and was wondering how often it happens. Has anybody any
first-hand experience of saddle theft?

On a Great Vic bike ride about nine years ago there was a great moaning and whinging at breakfast
time --- around 30 seats had been stolen during the night as someone's idea of a jokje. Pedals also
dissappear at times. I didn't lose either, but on another Great Vic had my complete bike stolen :-(

I have had bar ends stolen off my bike during the 45minutes it was locked to the fence outside a
friend's house!

Bikes are too dismantle-able, allan key and an adjustable spanner and all manner of bits
can be nicked

Adrian

---------------------------------------------------------------
Adrian Tritschler "][email hidden] Latitude 38°S, Longitude 145°E,
Altitude 50m, Shoe size 44
---------------------------------------------------------------

"Cody" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I don't remove my saddle myself but the only person I know who does

says he

Quoted message said:

does it to make the bike more inconvenient to ride away. He takes the

normal

Quoted message said:

precautions of a lock etc.

If my bike is not locked but in my view I will often "adjust" the brake calipers so that the pads
are locked on to the wheel. This will make a quick getaway that little bit more difficult.

hippy

hippy <[email hidden]> wrote:
: "Cody" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
:> I don't remove my saddle myself but the only person I know who does
: says he
:> does it to make the bike more inconvenient to ride away. He takes the
: normal
:> precautions of a lock etc.

: If my bike is not locked but in my view I will often "adjust" the brake calipers so that the pads
: are locked on to the wheel. This will make a quick getaway that little bit more difficult.

It occurs to me that putting the seat up the full extent of the post would be pretty discouraging
too - unless, of course, you happened to fall prey to a bike stealing giraffe.

Cheerz, Lynzz

In article said:

It occurs to me that putting the seat up the full extent of the post would be pretty discouraging
too - unless, of course, you happened to fall prey to a bike stealing giraffe.

In my case I have a 23" frame and the saddle is generally up fairly high to compensate for my
height. I just hope there aren't all that many tall bicycle thieves out there! OTOH I think the
professional bicycle thief probably uses a truck.

--
Jeremy Lunn Melbourne, Australia Homepage: austux.netaustux.netOpen ↗ jabber.org.aujabber.org.auOpen ↗ - the
next generation of Instant Messaging.

I was given a great suggestion, Fill the allen key holes with putty and then paint them over with
model paint. It means taking a little more time when servicing your bike but slows down the thief
considerably.

Adrian Tritschler said:

Luther Blissett said:

Sometimes I see cyclists remove their saddles when locking up their bikes. I don't know of
anybody who has had their saddle stolen, and was wondering how often it happens. Has anybody any
first-hand experience of saddle theft?

On a Great Vic bike ride about nine years ago there was a great moaning and whinging at breakfast
time --- around 30 seats had been stolen during the night as someone's idea of a jokje. Pedals
also dissappear at times. I didn't lose either, but on another Great Vic had my complete bike
stolen :-(

I have had bar ends stolen off my bike during the 45minutes it was locked to the fence outside a
friend's house!

Bikes are too dismantle-able, allan key and an adjustable spanner and all manner of bits can
be nicked

Adrian

---------------------------------------------------------------
Adrian Tritschler "][email hidden] Latitude 38°S, Longitude 145°E,
Altitude 50m, Shoe size 44
---------------------------------------------------------------

On the subject of strange security measures...

I covered my frame in black gaffa tape not just to prevent it from scrathcing but also to obscure
the expensive brand name hence make it less attractive to theives. O an number of occasions I have
had people look at the tape and say "Wow! A carbon fibre frame! Was that expensive?" If only I had
my title deeds to the Harbour Bridge handy ...

I know of one occasion of a low life stealing a saddle. Face it - there are people about that will
steal anything they can.

Working on the idea to make my bike harder than the bikes around me, I use a 5 sided allen key on
the saddle post bolt, and use a D-lock an cable lock - to keep the wheels attached on my
commutter bike.

Its just too much hassle to get back and find no seat or no wheels...

Megan

Luther Blissett <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Sometimes I see cyclists remove their saddles when locking up their bikes. I don't know of anybody
who has had their saddle stolen, and was wondering how often it happens. Has anybody any
first-hand experience of saddle theft?

Megan Webb:

Quoted message said:

I know of one occasion of a low life stealing a saddle. Face it - there are people about that will
steal anything they can.

Working on the idea to make my bike harder than the bikes around me, I use a 5 sided allen key on
the saddle post bolt, and use a D-lock an cable lock - to keep the wheels attached on my
commutter bike.

Its just too much hassle to get back and find no seat or no wheels...

What do you do with the saddle rail plate bolt right under the saddle?

There are keyed bolts sold by Kryptonite and Pitlock which replace bolts on various removables on
your bike. Pitlock's bolts have a maximum limit torque of 10Nm, which is fine for stems, seatposts,
saddle rails, brake mounts and headset caps, but seems too low for skewers. Coupled with cable and
D-locks though, I'm sure these are more than just a bother to opportunity thieves.

Megan Webb said:

Working on the idea to make my bike harder than the bikes around me, I use a 5 sided allen key on
the saddle post bolt ...

I've never heard of these before - where do you get them from please?

&roo

Bike shop... In Sydney I use Cheeky Monkey. www.cheekymonkey.com Have seen them in other shops also.
Look also for the Pitlock gear.

Megan

Andrew Swan <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Megan Webb said:

Working on the idea to make my bike harder than the bikes around me, I use a 5 sided allen key
on the saddle post bolt ...

I've never heard of these before - where do you get them from please?

&roo

Jose Rizal <_@_._> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Megan Webb:

Quoted message said:

I know of one occasion of a low life stealing a saddle. Face it - there are people about that
will steal anything they can.

Working on the idea to make my bike harder than the bikes around me, I use a 5 sided allen key
on the saddle post bolt, and use a D-lock an cable lock - to keep the wheels attached on my
commutter bike.

Its just too much hassle to get back and find no seat or no wheels...

What do you do with the saddle rail plate bolt right under the saddle?

Fill it with glue or not worry about it.

I work on the idea that I want to make my bike harder to steal/vandalise than the bikes around me. I
also figure that most theft is based on easy and opertunity - so you can make it increasingly harder
to steal. If someone wants your bike, a petrol powered cutting tool will liberate it from what ever
you chain it to, then they can carry it off and remove bits at their leasure.(I have heard of
professional rackets with powertools and a van doing just this.)

Vandals will wreck anything the mood takes them. Location of locking your bike can help though.
There are places that I would not lock up my bike. eg here in Sydney, outside Redfern Station. Seen
too many bikes there chained up with all the bits still on them, and the wheels bent, or frame
bent. Chaining up a block away would be way safer.. Getting secure bike lockers would be another
good idea...

So at the end of the day, if you have a very expensive bike, you need to think about how to keep it
and all the parts on it. One of my bikes, I never chain it up, it has no anti theft components at
all. I always take it inside with me. Aren't folders great :-)

Megan

Quoted message said:

There are keyed bolts sold by Kryptonite and Pitlock which replace bolts on various removables on
your bike. Pitlock's bolts have a maximum limit torque of 10Nm, which is fine for stems,
seatposts, saddle rails, brake mounts and headset caps, but seems too low for skewers. Coupled
with cable and D-locks though, I'm sure these are more than just a bother to opportunity thieves.

in 20 years.. bikes only been in chains for about 15 min. It usually comes with me, park in the office, spare room or just wear it as wrap. I've seen too many severed poles !