#Pick kryptonite bike lock full#
#Pick kryptonite bike lock pro#

Rating is stated in the bottom of the badge. Right? Rankings are easy to understand – ART uses a scale of 1-5 stars where 5 stars are the most secure, 2 star rating is supposed to be sufficient protection for bicycles (we agree only partly, but later about that). (Although with today’s commerce the borders do not really exist anymore. Sold Secure is a British non-for-profit for a change, and is more focused on British and North American market.

#Pick kryptonite bike lock full#

The best known are Stichting ART and Sold Secure.ĪRT is a Dutch organization and European market is full of locks tested by them. Luckily, you don’t have to do that, there are organizations doing this work for us. Simplifications aside, given all the possibilities (materials, thickness, lock types) and all ways to destroy a lock, the best way to check the real security level of a lock would be to buy them all, test them in a laboratory setting, and compare the results.

#Pick kryptonite bike lock pro#

Sweet spot is 15 mm and more – thieves already need pro tools to break such locks, which means they will make quite some commotion that attracts attention. You should always aim aim for is somewhere above 13 mm – locks of that size are already very hard to beat by bolt cutters. Keeping this in mind, to get at least some level of security the question to ask is: would your lock resist a bolt cutter attack? There are couple factors to the answer (bolt cutters size, material of the lock, shape of the critical part etc), but by the rule of thumb, you can say the thickness is the key. By now the choice is now quite narrow, so it’s time to pick your favourite one.ĮVERY lock can be beaten, although the difficulty matters. This way you do not compromise on your bike’s security, but also don’t pay more than needed. There are more things to consider, such as price or convenience, and those usually offset one another, so let’s do that next.

Choose the type of the lock that suits your budget and needs.

That’s what you need – to secure your bike – right? So let’s decide on this one first.

Choose the minimum security level you will need.

We’ll help you battle the task down into simpler steps. But then, how are you supposed to choose? Should you look for some specific brand? Or type of lock? How much should you invest? Add all individual circumstances (cheap vs expensive bike, place of parking the bike etc) and it gets quite overwhelming. There’s always a possibility of “just buying something and see”, but 400.000 Dutch bikers losing their rides each year would probably advise you otherwise. Questions are: How secure do you really need your lock to be? Where is the borderline between secure and practical? And how much should you pay for such a piece?Ĭhoosing the right lock gets surprisingly confusing, once you decide to make it a conscientious choice. First of all: with enough time and the right tools, ALL bike locks can be beaten.