I have an old Mountain Bike chained to a fence in the back garden. But recently, in the middle of the night, some toe-rag tried to cut the THICK security cable with what looked like a small pair of snippers. Just the outer plastic and a few strands of wire were damaged.
The bike isn't of much value, but it is useful. I have a more expensive bike, but that is locked inside a garage. So, this made me think. The most obvious deterrent is to keep it chained, this time along with a thick hardened chain and also take the front wheel inside. Even a pig-thick Chav would soon realise he can't cycle the bike down the road with no front wheel.
Then, a bright spark happened. Single Speed it. The bike is a cheap 24 speed Raleigh, with bottom of the range gears. This is the opportunity to convert it to single speed. The rear derailleurs have been unable to correctly change. Countless times I've adjusted them. I have a sneaking suspicion that I might have banged the rear gear hanger and bent it.
So, now my hands are all greased up. The great benefit of single speed is there's virtually no maintenance of the gears, and with the extra weight off the bike should be up to 4 lbs lighter! The downside is that I can't go too fast or up steep hills...Oh well. Photos to follow when I've finished ;-)
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