stealing a motorbike

[hacheemaster]

How do you prevent a motorbike from being stolen? I am just curious if there are extra locks that you can put on the engine or something so somebody doesn't take the engine off the bike or some kind of cover that you can lock on the bicycle so nobody gets curious. I am thinking of building a motorbike but it worries me that it might get stolen easily. I want to drive it to work and sometimes it will be unattended for up to 9 hours. What do you guys do to prevent your bikes from being stolen?

 

[Gh0stRider]

Same as preventing theft of a regular bicycle.

You can carry the spark plug with you after you park it, but that isn't going to prevent a crook from picking it up and putting it in a pickup truck.

 

[Happy Valley]

Much will depend on where you park it, how prone to crime is it. Give thieves opportunity and they will often avail themselves of it. 9 hours is a lot of opportunity, particularly if they target your routine. Generally, thieves dislike lights and witnesses.

You can purchase locks of various durability and prices but you've probably heard the old adage: "locks keep honest people out". If a thief wants to steal it they will try.

I was reading over on a motorcycle forum a while back about a guy having a Harley lifted off the street and stolen with a hydraulic boom in the back of a truck.

 

[motorpsycho]

Here are a couple of options:

A. never let the bike out of your site.
B. never let the bike out of your site.
C. never let the bike out of your site.
D. All of the above.

If you ride it to work, why not ask if you can park the bike in the building close to where you work so you can keep your eye on it?
Locks only keep the honest theives away. if a theif wants something bad enough, a cable, lock, alarm, video survelliance camera, OR witnesses will NOT keep them from taking it.

 

[Wheres my dog]

My (semi) proven way of keeping my MB from getting stolen....

Seriously, when riding around town, I try and never let it out of my "sight" for more then one minute, even if locked up!

Granted, there are some pretty serious heavy duty locks on the market, but as stated earlier, if a thief wants IT, he is going to take IT.

The drawback of course is always having to be near or in sight of the MB, but then again.... it would be an awful long walk home if someone stole it!

 

[jadi929]

you could consider this:

vibration activated bicycle alarm

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.21760

 

[cabinfever1977]

I never let mine out of my site unless i lock it up and go into a store for a minute,and i store it in my apartment. If i had a job, i would lock it with muliple locks near the front or back door or near a window,and check on it every 2hrs during break time. Covering the engine with non removal side covers(with vents) and covering the fuel tank and hose will help to disguise that its a motorized bike. Plus a alarm on your bike that you or someone could hear inside your work would help too.

 

[rodar y rodar]

Sheesh! For the "don`t let it out of your sight" crew, what do you use your MABs for? Just joyride around town, then back home and lock them into a vault? I don`t like to sound snarky, but how much of your transportation needs don`t require parking and leaving the area? Do you not use them for shopping, barber shop, movies, night out to dinner, etc?

Hopefully I haven`t ruffled any feathers, since I was kind of wondering the same thing as the OP, but my plans for a future MAB include a lot of situations where I`ll have to lock up and cross my fingers. I`m still in the research stages, and hope to be motoring some time towards the end of this year. Any construction or design tips that I should be keeping in mind to make security a little easier, or just build first, then figure out the details?

 

[professor]

Anything you do is a deterrent.
An ordinary looking bike (better yet- a junk looking bike) with the engine hidden would be a good start. Then the anti-theft measures.
I guess a friction drive with a basket over the engine would be the most easily hidden set-up.
I did that same idea with a push-mower I keep at a house to do the grass- it looks like garbage- apparent oil leaks / dirty/ missing air filter cover. Not something you would want to steal.
You just have to live with the idea that underneath all that crud is a heart of gold.

 

[arkives1]

Here are a couple of options:

A. never let the bike out of your site.
B. never let the bike out of your site.
C. never let the bike out of your site.
D. All of the above.

If you ride it to work, why not ask if you can park the bike in the building close to where you work so you can keep your eye on it?
Locks only keep the honest theives away. if a theif wants something bad enough, a cable, lock, alarm, video survelliance camera, OR witnesses will NOT keep them from taking it.

Here's a pretty much fail safe security idea. Chain a 110 pound Rottweiller to the frame. Not practical of course but you gotta admit ....it would take a very dedicated thief to try it.