Kryptonite Evolution Mini Lock - Anyone got one?

seamus

More of an excuse for a mini-rant

Had to buy one of these locks today for locking up my machine at home. Anyone got one of these, had any trouble with it?

Came out this morning to find that some little scrote had clearly tried to steal my bike from outside my front door. There were two marks from cable cutters on either side of the lock - the rubber covering was pierced, but they hadn't cut through even one of the cables, just marked them a bit.

The bike was untouched which leads me to believe that they'll come back tonight or some other night with a proper bolt cutters and just take it off, so I decided I needed something with a bit more beef.

Funnily enough it was a combination lock and recently I'd become a bit paranoid that if someone was watching me "scramble" the combination after closing the lock, they could probably turn the dials back and open it in less than a couple of minutes. So I'd started setting the dials to all one number - all 1's or 4's or whatever. The fact that the dials had been moved when I came out this morning confirmed for me that someone had been messing with my bike - I initially though I had just pinched the cable or something which pierced the rubber covering.

I'm pretty sure I actually saw the little ****ers who tried it too - when I came home last week there were two young fellas who were clearly wandering around scoping out the estate and had watched me come in.

So chalk one up against the gougers for a fairly modest cable lock. The cable lock isn't totally screwed so I think I might leave it in my bag now for locking up if I need to stop in town (I have a chain that I use for work to save me carrying one when commuting).

TinyExplosions

Is this the lock you're referring too? I'm a little confused at the talk of combinations and cable locks.

The Evolution Mini is the U Lock I use, and think it's great -small enough to comfortably fit in the back pocket (great for remonstrating with motorists with), and hard to break, as you can't fit a jack inside to break it.

Top bit of kit

seamus

Yeah, that's the one, cool.

Sorry, the other lock was a cable lock with a combination lock on the end. One of these:
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_231139_langId_-1_CarSelectorCatalogId__CarSelectorGroupId__varient__categoryId_31389_crumb_33980-31270_parentcategoryrn_31389

TinyExplosions

seamus wrote: »

Yeah, that's the one, cool.

Sorry, the other lock was a cable lock with a combination lock on the end. One of these:
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_231139_langId_-1_CarSelectorCatalogId__CarSelectorGroupId__varient__categoryId_31389_crumb_33980-31270_parentcategoryrn_31389

Ahhhh!

In that case, the Halfords one is useless, the Kryptonite is fantasitic (it's the one I'd pimp anyway). You have to be a little careful where you lock your bike (as it's such a small lock), but apart from that it's fairly thieve proof

BostonB

TinyExplosions wrote: »

Ahhhh!

In that case, the Halfords one is useless, the Kryptonite is fantasitic (it's the one I'd pimp anyway). You have to be a little careful where you lock your bike (as it's such a small lock), but apart from that it's fairly thieve proof

The Halfords one saved his bike though....?

Gavin

BostonB wrote: »

The Halfords one saved his bike though....?

Let's face it. They were crap thieves. Any decent bolt cutter will go through a cable lock in no time.

I use a cable lock. It's nice for keeping my bike off the ground when I removed the front wheel. Not much else.

BostonB

At least he still has a bike to buy a better lock for.

Gavin

BostonB wrote: »

At least he still has a bike to buy a better lock for.

True !

72hundred

You should have a look at this:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Kryptonite_New_York_3000D_With_Free_7ft_Kryptoflex_Cable/5360036846/

I think its a better option for tighter security.

You can get a full view of all the locks here:

http://www.kryptonitelock.com/Products/List.aspx?cid=1001

Dunno if any of these locks will stand up to a full night of sustained effort to get them off, but they're probably the best on the market.

72oo

Chris Peak

They were pretty sh** thieves all right. Fkn scumbags.
Probably watched some of those 'how to' vids on metacafe, and thought they'd have a go.

Can you not bring your bike indoors?

seamus

Verb wrote: »

Let's face it. They were crap thieves. Any decent bolt cutter will go through a cable lock in no time.

That's my thought on it
The damage on the lock looks just like someone had a large cable cutters and all of the grip in their two hands

Dunno if any of these locks will stand up to a full night of sustained effort to get them off, but they're probably the best on the market.

I'm happy with the mini. I have it locked right outside my front door - there's a small walkway with handrails and a glass front. Locked it with the mini last night, just about fits so there's very little room to actually get near the lock, and there's no way to move the bike cos it's pinned to the glass.

There's no way they'd get a whole night to work on it - one of the things I was counting on is if you try to move the bike or your hand slips, you make an almightly racket against the glass. In a quiet cul de sac in the middle of the night, you'll wake someone (if not me). I'm thinking this is perhaps why there was so little effort to take it on Tuesday - they knocked off the glass and panicked.

I could bring it indoors and when I first moved in this was the plan, but it turns out that the bike takes up most of the hallway, meaning I can't get access to presses and stuff. There are also cream/beige carpets, so when it rains the bike would destroy the place. So at the moment I only bring it in when I'm going away.

kenmc

I'm trying to decide between the 3000D and the evolution mini. The mini is cheaper in cycleways than on wiggle, but the 3000D and a free 7ft cable on wiggle is catching my eye too - would be getting the cable anyway, need to loop it around something in the toilets of my new place. Would only be during work hours, on the 3rd floor of a building, but with no security in place - i.e. some gougers could walk into the building unchallenged and get to most places, so I need some sort of a deterrant to make it less attractive. Although the 3 levels of stairs might be sufficiently unattractive in itself! I guess I can always take the front wheel into the office with me too!

Caroline_ie

Sorry .. i just saw this lock and it made me laugh ...

For whatever your bike is into ...

niceonetom

kenmc wrote: »

I'm trying to decide between the 3000D and the evolution mini.

the 3000D is the one i have. you saw it when we were picking up the kit from tiny's and you commented on the weight of it. it's a serious lump of steel to lug around, but probably as good as ulocks get really. it weighs more than the frame of my bike :eek:

Chris Peak

Caroline_ie wrote: »

Sorry .. i just saw this lock and it made me laugh ...

For whatever your bike is into ...

I need to lock up my ride with this when I'm not around....:eek:

.................

You could find room to fit this somewhere indoors if the hallway is too narrow.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=10230

You can also get rubberised hooks in hardware stores to hang the frame from. If you are in rented accommodation, just take down a picture and hang it from there.

snollup

Caroline_ie wrote: »

Sorry .. i just saw this lock and it made me laugh ...

For whatever your bike is into ...

ya, seen these before. Class!!!

72hundred

niceonetom wrote: »

the 3000D is the one i have. you saw it when we were picking up the kit from tiny's and you commented on the weight of it. it's a serious lump of steel to lug around, but probably as good as ulocks get really. it weighs more than the frame of my bike :eek:

ek! I'm ordering mine today, and didn't need to hear that!

I guess I'll just take the lighter one when going on long distance, and keep
the heavy/better for short trips onto town.

[rant]
On the note of undesirables, and protecting bikes from them. I was on the bike recently, and was passed my a group of scumbags (deserved term I think) in a car, who thought it would be a good idea to throw a pot of yogurt or something on me, thankfully most of it missed a just a little caught my leg and front fork.

I was annoyed until seconds later when they started doing those stupid "wide/east side" rapper hand signals out the window. Idiot scumbags - wouldn't expect anything better.
[/rant]

72oo

triv88

The Yellow Newyork lock is so worth the extra weight/cost though -because it gives you more piece of mind leaving your bike anywhere