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If you’re someone who cycles regularly, whether for exercise, leisure or as a way to get around the city, you’ll be all too aware of the risk of leaving your bike unprotected. While we usually recommend the toughest security possible, not every situation requires a large, heavy lock. In fact, there are many scenarios when a compact, lightweight lock can do the job just fine without weighing you down on your ride.
We’ve put together a quick guide for our best light, portable bike locks to take with you on these occasions, along with a unique situation where each of these locks shine. By the end of this article, you should know which lightweight lock is best for you and your cycling lifestyle.
Straplok™ 35/850 – Wearable Bike lock
To the urban commuters out there, this wearable bike lock could be the one for you. If you enjoy a leisurely morning commute dressed in your work or school attire, the protective neoprene outer casing of the Straplok™ 35 poses no risk to your outfit. If your school or work bag is often tight for space, and especially if your bike lacks any storage capacity, you won’t need to worry about how to carry your lock, just wrap it around your waist, adjust the strap and away you go.
This wearable bike lock comes in 5 unique colours, so you can find one that suits your style. At 850mm in length, the Straplok™ 35 is long enough to attach your wheel and bike frame to a secure rack. Rated as Sold Secure Pedal Cycle Silver, the Straplok™ is tough for how easy it is to carry, making it one of the best value lightweight bike locks available.
Example scenario – Running late for work, you don your jacket and bag, wrap your Straplok™ around your waist, and hit the road. You cruise comfortably but quickly to your destination, a secure parking area within your work building. Dismounting from your bike, you remove the lock from your waist with the push of a button. After securing your front wheel and bike frame, you connect the two ends to engage the lock. Later on, you unlock your bike by inserting the key, wrap the Straplok™ around your waist once more, and away you go.
Folda Mini FL/690 – Great Lightweight Lock for Road Cyclists
This sturdy, lightweight bike lock is great for the keen road cyclists out there. If you want to keep your bike as light as possible, but provide it with a little more security than a zip-tie style lock, this could be your best choice. The folding design of the Folda Mini allows this compact lock which fits comfortably in a small bag or pannier to expand into a fairly long 690mm chain. Weighing in at just half a kilogram, the Folda Mini provides a great security-to-weight ratio. All of this makes the Folda Mini one of the best lightweight bike locks for touring.
Example scenario – Out for a ride in the countryside with your partner, you reach the roadside café, ready to recharge and rehydrate before returning home. You spot a bike rack by the front of the café and stand your road bike against it. Reaching into your small bike bag, you unfold the lock. You wrap it around the frame, wheel and rack. Confident that your bike is protected from the average thief, you enjoy your short stay at the café in view of the bikes, before folding the lightweight bike lock away and hitting the road once more.
Retrac Max – A Versatile, Compact Lock, Perfect for Bikepacking Adventures
The Retrac Max is a perfect light bike lock to secure your frame, helmet and bag from the opportunist thief. The ultra-lightweight design and combination wheel makes this lock ideal for bikepacking adventures, as you won’t have to worry about losing keys or taking up too much precious bag space. The 900mm PVC coated steel cable gives the Folda Mini the longest reach of Squire’s café bike lock range, all while retracting into a lock the size of a flip phone while you ride. The Retrac Max’s greatest strength is its versatility; the thin cable can easily weave through helmets, wheels, bag handles and even coat hooks. In short, the Retrac Max is the ultimate lightweight bike lock for securing any detachable items you take on your ride from opportunist thieves.
Example scenario – Halfway into your trail ride, you decide to stop at a small shop to hydrate before carrying on your journey. While the shop isn’t too busy, you think it’s best to make sure nobody will walk off with your belongings while you grab your drink. After wrapping the cable around your bike, helmet, wheel and backpack all at once, you enter the shop. Sitting back outside to enjoy your refreshments, you admire your mountain bike and all the equipment you have with it, wrapped up and secure.
Straplok™ Combi 10 – Convenient, Lightweight, and Deceivingly Tough
The Straplok™ Combi 10 is an affordable, ultra-lightweight café lock ideal for those moments when your bike is in sight, but out of immediate reach. The ultra-lightweight design is perfect for carrying in a small bag or a large pocket. If you prefer not to add another key to your keyring, fear not – the three digit combination wheel is a convenient way to quickly and easily lock and unlock your bike. At 450mm in length, the Combi 10 is long enough to lock most wheels and frames to a standard bike rack. The 10mm stainless steel core makes the Combi 10 a tough little lock for its size, perfect for deterring opportunist thieves who would otherwise wheel your bike away.
Example scenario – A leisurely ride has taken you to a café on a quiet street. You lock your bike frame to a nearby rack, and go into the café to order. While enjoying your drink you have the bike in sight, knowing that your wheels are safe until you return to continue your ride.
Straplok™ 10/400TR
The Straplok™ 10/400TR is a great option for securing helmets, wheels and other accessories while on the go. This is another of Squire’s zip tie style lightweight locks, which includes three separate units, all accessible with a single key. Each tie is 450mm in length, which allows you to attach most bike frames, helmets and wheels to a secure bike rack while you go about your business. Beneath the anti-scratch plastic casing lies the same 10mm stainless steel core as the Combi 10, which the opportunist thief will find very hard to cut through. The main benefit of the 400TR is the fact that it comes as a pack of three, this makes it easy to secure your helmet, two wheels, bike frame, and most importantly your peace of mind. Much like the Combi 10, this lightweight bike lock trio is suited to leaving your bike out of reach, but within sight. If you’re comfortable trading “out of sight” level security with portability and convenience, this is a great option.
Example scenario – You ride into town to run a quick errand, after locking the bike frame, wheels and helmet to a rack outside the building, you head on inside. A minute or two later you come out, use your key to quickly unlock each zip tie and put each one in your bag. You ride on, unencumbered by an unnecessarily heavy lock.
To wrap things up, our range of lightweight bike locks are sure to give you peace of mind for those all too common situations where portability is valued over absolute strength. Hopefully this guide has given you some insight into the world of lightweight bike locks. If any of the situations described in this article resonate with you, you can find your perfect lock in our range of Café locks. Let’s stop opportunist bike theft together, without weighing you down.
