# How Do You Keep Your Computers and Lights From Getting Stolen?



## TomBrooklyn (Mar 15, 2008)

For city commuters and errand runners who routinely park on the sidewalks...

how do you keep your cycle computers from getting stolen? 

On a related note, how do you keep your lights from getting stolen? 

I had a Blackburn rear clip on light stolen the other day. I wonder if there are any lights that screw on so they won't be so easy to just lift off.


----------



## dustyrider (Aug 10, 2007)

You want to them to be easy to "lift off" so you can take them inside with you!


----------



## StageHand (Dec 27, 2002)

TomBrooklyn said:


> For city commuters and errand runners who routinely park on the sidewalks...
> 
> how do you keep your cycle computers from getting stolen?


Computer? Hmmm, I guess I have one, and it has a quick release.



TomBrooklyn said:


> On a related note, how do you keep your lights from getting stolen?
> 
> I had a Blackburn rear clip on light stolen the other day. I wonder if there are any lights that screw on so they won't be so easy to just lift off.


If they're so easy to lift off, lift them off yourself. All my lights are either attached to my bags or quick release.

Honestly, most lights and computers do have some sort of quick release. Not all of them, and some of them are annoying, but this is why they exist.


----------



## Opus51569 (Jul 21, 2009)

dustyrider said:


> You want to them to be easy to "lift off" so you can take them inside with you!


+1 My computer and light clip onto their brackets. I just unclip them and take them with me. I modified my tail light so that it bolts to the rear rack. It's not theft proof, but it will slow them down a bit.


----------



## Art853 (May 30, 2003)

My commuter bikes are old and well worn so they are not attractive targets. They also don't have computers. The rear blinky is on my bag and the front I take off.


----------



## Scott B (Dec 1, 2004)

Battery powered lights come with me. On the winter commuter that's just a front light, other lights are on the helmet and bag. I'd consider moving lights to your helmet or bag if you don't want to take them off. 

With the summer commuter battery lights come with, the generator light stays bolted on to the fork. So far it hasn't been a problem. Pitlock makes a locking bolt for generator lights I might spring for eventually.

No computer on the commuter, but that comes with too when parking other bikes.


----------



## JWRB (Nov 29, 2005)

I commute year round in Baltimore MD. My headlight is a Dinotte and stays attached to my helmet. I have two rear blinkies, a L&M Vis 180 and Planet Bike Superflash, both are easily removed and come up to my office with me. I do not use a computer on my commute.


----------



## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

Commuting, I remove them. Errands, I leave them on.

The difference is how long it's parked, and where. Parked for 8 hours on the rack at the public library, you bet I clear them off. Stopped for a few minutes at the bank or utility company office to pay the bill, or when shopping, I don't bother. 

It's one side-benefit of there being no "bike culture" here. Bikes and their accessories are way off the radar.


----------



## FinanceGuy (Sep 23, 2008)

I just had a rear clip on light stolen while I was getting some food at a rest stop on an organized ride! Who does that? So, I found this post interesting. I think I will look for a mount that at least makes them work a little bit. The stolen one was a clip on attached to the bike bag....very easy to remove.


----------



## WaynefromOrlando (Mar 3, 2010)

Both my lights and my computer can be removed from my bike by simply pressing a lever and sliding them off their mounts. I take them with me when ever I park my bike. I also remove my panniers when locking the bike up anywhere I am not able to maintain visual contact with my bike. 

On my organized rides so far, I have never parked my bike more than 5 yds from where I picked up food or drinks, and usually was with a group who all watched out for each others bikes. That might change with my next big group ride, the Gran Fondo Miami. I am the only one from my cohort who is riding in that event, the rest were cheapskates who did not want to pay $110 for a 116 mile ride. Me, I see getting a quality Italian jersey, a medal framed in a bike chain, and one of the best post ride feeds around as worht that. Of course being led out of downtown Miami by a stable of Ferraris and Lambourginis is also way cool!


----------



## PdxMark (Feb 3, 2004)

FinanceGuy said:


> I just had a rear clip on light stolen while I was getting some food at a rest stop on an organized ride! Who does that? So, I found this post interesting. I think I will look for a mount that at least makes them work a little bit. The stolen one was a clip on attached to the bike bag....very easy to remove.


In my experience it would be shockingly uncommon for a rear light to be swiped at a rest stop on an organized ride. Could the light have been gone before you got to the stop? Did you see the light on the bike when you stopped?


----------



## tarwheel2 (Jul 7, 2005)

I keep my bike in my office, so theft is not an issue. However, our office is moving to a new location in the fall and I will have to park my bike outside there. I plan to remove my lights and seat bag (and of course lock up my bike) when parking at the new location. Not sure about the computer. Why would someone steal a computer unless they also had the mount? Of course that assumes that a thief would have any common sense or know better.


----------



## Carbon Cow (Apr 24, 2009)

I hire ninjas to watch over my bike when I leave it. 


I can hook you up with a rental ninja.


----------



## Scot_Gore (Jan 25, 2002)

TomBrooklyn said:


> For city commuters and errand runners who routinely park on the sidewalks...
> 
> how do you keep your cycle computers from getting stolen?
> 
> ...


I know you said sidewalk, but this bank of lockers is on the sidewalk (in a municipal ramp). My bike goes in here:


----------



## Guest (Aug 12, 2011)

I take all my lights, bags, and computers with me. Every time. Where I commute loose components-- things like quick release saddles and wheels, lights etc. are stolen frequently. I've had all my lights stolen before when I forgot to take them with me once. 

One time, when I DID take all my loose components with me (and properly lock everything else) I had someone actually steal my _pedals_. I'm not sure if that was an attempt to disable the bike so they could come with tools to steal the bike itself, or if the thief was just being a dick...

Anyway, I actually use regular flashlights, combined with custom diffusers I made myself, rather than purpose-built bike lights. (actual bike light that are comparable in output and color quality to what I made are EXTREMELY expensive... more than my entire commuter bike) I do most of my commuting at night, on un-lit roads, so I needed something that allow me to actually see the road. I actually carry an identical spare set of the lights in my pannier bag in case something breaks or a battery dies. 

I use the following:

dealextreme 
.com/
p/universal-nylon-mount-for-flashlights-and-lasers-12000

to hold a white flashlight on the handlebar stem, and a red flashlight on my seatpost (aimed up toward a reflector/diffuser I leave attached to my seatpost.) The velcro makes it easy to remove these and take them with me.


----------



## yourrealdad (Jul 15, 2011)

My rear light is bolted on to my rack. I take my front light and computer off and take it with me. They are small, shouldn't be an issue.


----------



## Trevor Ash (May 19, 2005)

I'm sure someone said it, but don't use computers or lights unless you really need them. Lights, if needed, should be easily removable.


----------



## twodownzero (Oct 9, 2011)

I got a bike stolen and thus refuse to leave my bike outside, ever.


----------



## MUKAMOmember (Sep 24, 2011)

Where I park my bikes that I use for commuting to work, it really isn't a high crime area. Plus, there is an added security by having some plain clothes guards patrol the parking lots every once in a while.


----------

