How to break the lock on my bike without looking like a theif?

FizzleSticks

This post has been deleted.

uck51js9zml2yt

Get a hi viz printed with "I'm not a bike thief" on the back.

Informing the guards of your plan to break out your own bike is probably a wise course of action.*



* I prefer my first suggestion

Jeff2

Grassey wrote: »

Or stick a bar through the loop and twist for tension. Should pop the lock.

That could actually bent the frame on some bikes.

Funny thread, if you hit those locks be mistake with a hacksaw you could cut it open.

worded

JackieChang wrote: »

My bike lock was tampered with and I can't get the key into it. It's locked up on a very busy street.

Any advice? I don't have any tools that can cut through it. The barrel seems damaged so I don't think a lock smith will get in there either.

It's a cable/wire sort of lock, not too robust. I'd say a good solid fence cutter would get through it.

I'm in Cork city it that matters.

If it’s cable and you can get it ground level an axe will cut it

Fireball XL5

Deleted User wrote: »

The OP is asking for advice on how to get his bike unlocked.

I'd imagine anyone that steals bikes is probably already clued in enough that they won't be surfing Boards in the middle of the night looking for clues.

Why take the chance?

Clearly the forum guidelines in relation to illegality count for nothing.

You can't ask for or give the most modest of medical advice before , you can't give even the most oblique hint of a spoiler but you sure can suggest ways to steal a bike.

Well done mods - highly impressive doublethink there. :mad:

bucketybuck

Fireball XL5 wrote: »

I must admit to being a bit perplexed by the responses on this thread and even more perplexed that the mods consider it a reasonable subject to discuss. You can't give medical advice but you can give advice on how to steal a bike?




Having a look at the guidelines link in the charter I see the following listed as FORBIDDEN -

"How to do illegal things (this ranges from software piracy, to swindling the Revenue Commissioners)"

On that basis surely this thread is completely out of order? Could I start a thread titled "How to steal a bike" ?

Its illegal to cut a chain you own? Its illegal to pick a lock you own? Its illegal to remove a bike you own?

Any chance you could explain your logic here or how anything the OP wants to do is actually illegal?

Fireball XL5

Fireball XL5 wrote: »

Why take the chance?

Clearly the forum guidelines in relation to illegality count for nothing.

You can't ask for or give the most modest of medical advice before , you can't give even the most oblique hint of a spoiler but you sure can suggest ways to steal a bike.

Well done mods - highly impressive doublethink there. :mad:

Medical and legal advice makes sense because if someone does something, like take viagra to help with their high blood pressure, and then they have a heart attack, they can come swinging punches at boards saying 'i was advised on boards that i should do x and y'.

Of course its ludicrous to assume that boards themselves would be responsible and i'd imagine it'd be laughed out of a court room if it ever got that far, but why waste the time and energy with it.


Opening a bike lock is not the same thing. In fact, I could be wrong, but i think there is a forum dedicated to lock picking on boards?

JackieChang

Talked to a couple of guards passing by today. They asked to have a look at the bike, probably "reading" me as I showed them. Anyway they said they'd stand beside me as I broke it off. It's up to me to find the tools, they can't help me with that.

What? You still haven't got it 2 days later? Never mind telling the guards, go down and get it before someone else breaks the lock. :P

JackieChang

Fireball XL5 wrote: »

I must admit to being a bit perplexed by the responses on this thread and even more perplexed that the mods consider it a reasonable subject to discuss. You can't give medical advice but you can give advice on how to steal a bike?




Having a look at the guidelines link in the charter I see the following listed as FORBIDDEN -

"How to do illegal things (this ranges from software piracy, to swindling the Revenue Commissioners)"

On that basis surely this thread is completely out of order? Could I start a thread titled "How to steal a bike" ?

I can't believe you're getting stressed out by this. Smileys and all. Are you serious?

If I really wanted to steal a bike, with a €2 Shop lock, do you think I'd go to boards for advice? To the CYCLING FORUM? LoL :pac:

You're just trying to stir **** is all. Must be a boring night at home there.

By the way, best way to do it is probably go down there at about 4.30am with a massive bolt cutters and scarf wrapped around your face and just take it. I don't want to get in trouble though.

ED E

There are TWO people in the country you need to watch out for. Joe from DLB and the mechanic from 360 Cycles. Nobody else with bother you taking a bike. As both are in Dublin, you could just take it.

Nobody stops bike thieves.

Fireball XL5

Just to explain my thinking on this -

firstly there is a clear assumption on the part of the posters that the OP actually owns the bike. How do any of the posters , or the mods know this to be the case? He may or may not be the owner but nobody knows. Asking people on a public forum how to break a lock or identify the weak point of a lock knowing you will get answers seems to me to be a great idea for an enterprising individual.

secondly there also appears to be an assumption that only scumbags who can't read steal bikes and that boards.ie readers do not or are not capable of considering the theft a bike

thirdly there is an assumption that the bike thief will always get through no matter what - this may well be true but is it appropriate to encourage and help them?

fourthly there is a comprehensive thread here on which many people whose bikes have been stolen have expressed their anger/ rage/ frustration at their belongings having been stolen - providing information to potential thieves seems unlikely to provide those people with much comfort. I have been the victim of bike theft myself in the past and seeing this kind of information on a public forum really irritates me.

fifthly and most importantly to my mind is the clear breach of boards.e own guidelines. I have seen many posters being put down in in a most direct and blunt way for asking innocent questions or making relatively innocent statements. It is this doublethink in particular that really gets my goat.

If boards wants to publish information which facilitates theft (real or potential) and this information contradicts its own guidelines then good luck to them - but that being the case then spare me the moralising tone and comments from the mods when they see something that they don't like - I can't stand that kind of hypocrisy. For hypocrisy it clearly is.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Arcade_Tryer wrote: »

Wear a suit.

Sure if you're going to wear a suit you may as well rob the country, like the last shower did

bucketybuck

Fireball XL5 wrote: »

but that being the case then spare me the moralising tone

Indeed.

Can you please clarify what illegal action the OP was requesting advice for?

Fireball XL5

bucketybuck wrote: »

Indeed.

Can you please clarify what illegal action the OP was requesting advice for?

Please read my posts a little more carefully. You might wish to reconsider your question when you do.

bucketybuck

Fireball XL5 wrote: »

Please read my posts a little more carefully. You might wish to reconsider your question when you do.

Its such a simple question, and yet still unanswered.

magicbastarder

Fireball XL5 wrote: »

Clearly the forum guidelines in relation to illegality count for nothing.

there is nothing illegal about destroying your own lock?

conflating this with the rules on medical advice seems wrong-headed IMHO. the issue of legality is not relevant in the latter situation; that's about being qualified to give advice which should only be given by qualified people.

i'm happy enough to take the OP at his word. as others have pointed out, it'd be a strange bike thief who comes online to ask how to destroy a cheap lock.
this is not like (for example) asking how to clock a car - an act which in and of itself, is illegal. in this situation, it's the context which would make it illegal and there's no suggestion that's the context in which the question is being asked.

Fireball XL5

magicbastarder wrote: »

there is nothing illegal about destroying your own lock?

How do you know it his his own lock or did you not read my post either?

Fact is you do not know and are making assumptions.

As the old saying goes - assumption is the mother of all f**k ups.

Type 17

Definitely a case of "locks only keep honest people out" - the OP isn't sure of how to open a €2 lock, and is asking on here, so it's pretty unlikely that he's a bike thief.

Actual bike thieves already know how to open locks, so any information discussed here will only be news to those who have no intention of using it.

I've been asked many times to remove locks for customers who've lost their keys, or whose lock has been damaged by failed theft attempts, and if we don't know them too well, we ask them to nip over to the Garda station (conveniently across the road) and let them know what's going to be happening, and where - no one has ever declined to go over and do it, or disappeared (real thieves would never involve us), but we do like to cover ourselves in case someone tries to report us "in the act", but no one ever has - no one cares: Our method involves lots of noise and showers of sparks , and I've done it on a few occasions outside the row of shops in the local area, and no one has said anything...

JackieChang

Type 17 wrote: »

Definitely a case of "locks only keep honest people out" - the OP isn't sure of how to open a €2 lock, and is asking on here, so it's pretty unlikely that he's a bike thief.

Actual bike thieves already know how to open locks, so any information discussed here will only be news to those who have no intention of using it.

I've been asked many times to remove locks for customers who've lost their keys, or whose lock has been damaged by failed theft attempts, and if we don't know them too well, we ask them to nip over to the Garda station (conveniently across the road) and let them know what's going to be happening, and where - no one has ever declined to go over and do it, or disappeared (real thieves would never involve us), but we do like to cover ourselves in case someone tries to report us "in the act", but no one ever has - no one cares: Our method involves lots of noise and showers of sparks , and I've done it on a few occasions outside the row of shops in the local area, and no one has said anything...

OP here, you work in a hardware shop I guess? How much do you charge?

Type 17

JackieChang wrote: »

OP here, you work in a hardware shop I guess? How much do you charge?

I work in a bike shop (in Dublin - sorry, no good to you in Cork). We don't charge if the person is buying a replacement lock, and their bike is close by. If we have to travel, or they have a lock already bought, we would agree a price in advance, based on time taken for the job.

uck51js9zml2yt

JackieChang wrote: »

OP here, you work in a hardware shop I guess? How much do you charge?

So 4 days on... what's did you do?

JackieChang

So..... after all this hassle, including the bickering in this thread about whether it's right or wrong to give me advice in public, let me tell you what I did.

I was telling my friend about this over a pint and he asked me if I was drinking when I locked it up.

I said yes. It was a work night out. A fairly mad one.

Were you drunk? Do you remember the whole night?

Extremely. No.

Was there any chance at all that you actually broke your key off inside the lock trying to cycle home? And then forgot about it? (I had told him that it looked like there was something stuck inside, perhaps a lock picking tool.)

I said hmm.... I won't rule it out, but I'm pretty sure it was a thief, because my rear light was stolen off the bike too.

Anyway, I went down the the bike the next day and did a closer inspection. I couldn't tell if it was my broken key inside the lock or not. I did a bit of CSI around the ground and after about 10 seconds I found... a key that looked exactly like mine, but snapped in half.

Here it is beside my spare key. Very crappy quality if I could bend it in half like that.




So... I'm guessing I almost did a Wolf of Wall Street on it and tried to get on my bike in a horrific state, snapped the key off inside the lock, threw the broken key to the ground and stumbled home. Kind of scary. I don't usually get in that state. I'd love to see the CCTV.



It was a very heavy work night out. Dinner was a fancy one. The type of dinner where you get one scallop with a coriander leaf on top and a skidmark of brown liquid. So I was drinking on an empty stomach. Must be more careful in future.

Now I might not need to get an angle grinder for the thing. If I can get a locksmith to yank the broken key out perhaps, I could save the lock, and use my spare to unlock it. They probably have tools for that.

Anyway that's what I'll be trying tomorrow.

By the way the reason it's taking so long is because I was away for the Christmas season, I'm from "up the country".

Type 17

Wow, your bike is still there...

JackieChang

Type 17 wrote: »

Wow, your bike is still there...

Yep, it's a piece of junk. Not worth stealing, and not worth paying anything over €20 to remove it. Hopefully the locksmith will do it for cheap.

magentis

JackieChang wrote: »

So..... after all this hassle, including the bickering in this thread about whether it's right or wrong to give me advice in public, let me tell you what I did.

I was telling my friend about this over a pint and he asked me if I was drinking when I locked it up.

I said yes. It was a work night out. A fairly mad one.

Were you drunk? Do you remember the whole night?

Extremely. No.

Was there any chance at all that you actually broke your key off inside the lock trying to cycle home? And then forgot about it? (I had told him that it looked like there was something stuck inside, perhaps a lock picking tool.)

I said hmm.... I won't rule it out, but I'm pretty sure it was a thief, because my rear light was stolen off the bike too.

Anyway, I went down the the bike the next day and did a closer inspection. I couldn't tell if it was my broken key inside the lock or not. I did a bit of CSI around the ground and after about 10 seconds I found... a key that looked exactly like mine, but snapped in half.

Here it is beside my spare key. Very crappy quality if I could bend it in half like that.




So... I'm guessing I almost did a Wolf of Wall Street on it and tried to get on my bike in a horrific state, snapped the key off inside the lock, threw the broken key to the ground and stumbled home. Kind of scary. I don't usually get in that state. I'd love to see the CCTV.



It was a very heavy work night out. Dinner was a fancy one. The type of dinner where you get one scallop with a coriander leaf on top and a skidmark of brown liquid. So I was drinking on an empty stomach. Must be more careful in future.

Now I might not need to get an angle grinder for the thing. If I can get a locksmith to yank the broken key out perhaps, I could save the lock, and use my spare to unlock it. They probably have tools for that.

Anyway that's what I'll be trying tomorrow.

By the way the reason it's taking so long is because I was away for the Christmas season, I'm from "up the country".

Prob not a very high quality lock looking at the key,is it a cable lock?If so you could try and hire a decent bolt cutters or battery grinder from a tool hire place.Careys tool hire there in Cork City might be able to sort ya.

Eamonnator

Quote: "very crappy quality if I could bend it in half like that."

It can't be that crappy if the bike is still there since before Christmas.

magentis

Take a pic of the lock and bring it with ya to the tool hire place.They should know what will be needed.If you have the snapped key and good one with ya when doing the job,the gardai would be ok with it I reckon.Maybe give them a ring
just before you go cutting!

Effects

ED E wrote: »

There are TWO people in the country you need to watch out for. Joe from DLB and the mechanic from 360 Cycles. Nobody else with bother you taking a bike. As both are in Dublin, you could just take it.

Nobody stops bike thieves.

I often stop bikes thieves too! It means I put myself in danger but the anger at the time stops me from just passing by.

Last year I also cut a lock off a bike with an angle grinder, 150m from Store St. Garda Station. No one gave me any hassle at all.

JackieChang

Got through it with a hacksaw in the end.