Lock your bike. It’s one of the most crucial lessons you learn when you get your first push-bike; lock it up wherever you leave it because if you don’t, it might not be there when you get back. However, that ‘might’ from 20 years ago has become ‘likely’ today. Motorcycle crime is rampant and we have to take security seriously if we want to keep hold of our bikes.
As a lock and chain are top of the list for cyclists, so it is for motorcyclists — just on a larger scale. The theory is simple: if your bike is locked to a solid object with a meaty lock and chain, hopefully, it will deter thieves or make them move on to the next bike with a smaller, or indeed no, chain.
We have gathered a selection of locks and chains from the big players in the market to see what sort of protection they offer, combined with their usability and portability. Clearly, the larger the chain, the greater the protection it will offer but conversely, the less easy to use it is and as for portability — well, look at some of the weights and you’ll get an idea of how that works.
The best motorcycle locks:
Kovix KS6 Alarmed Disc Lock
Kovix KS6 Alarmed Disc Lock
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Tested by MCN - Quality 3/4, Value 4/5
Tiny disc lock packing a 120dB alarm, the KS6 is small and light (just 263g), making it more likely you’ll take it with you. The 5.5mm steel pin goes through a brake disc’s ventilation hole, rather than between the disc and the carrier, but it’s easy to fit and remove — press the pin down once (one beep) to arm or halfway (two beeps) to disarm the siren.
The only faff is recharging – quite a palaver to get to the MicroUSB socket. At least it only needs doing every month or two. A portable, affordable and convenient first line of defence.
Milenco Snaefell 1m
Milenco Snaefell 1m
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Tested by Emma Franklin****, three months - Quality 4/5, Value 4/5
"This is one of only three lock and chain combos that meet the tough new Sold Secure Diamond standard. With its 22mm diameter links, the Snaefell is seriously impressive. I’ve seen it attacked in lab conditions by an expert using a 12v angle grinder and it took over a minute-and-a-half to cut through just one side of the link.
"The circular lock is also engineered to be attack resistant. Due to its size and 15kg weight, the Snaefell is best suited for home/work use. It comes in 1m, 2m and 4m lengths but the size of the links means that it needs to be used with Milenco’s Snaefell ground anchor (£129.99) because you may not be able to fit the links inside regular anchors. The chunky links also make it fairly cumbersome to get around swingarms and through wheels."
Milenco Dundrod
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Meets the Sold Secure Gold standard; has a 12mm chain and 14mm U lock. It's quite heavy: the lock and chain together weigh about 8.5kg; comes with three keys.
Chains tested to destruction by RiDE Magazine
Pragmasis Protector 19mm Chain 2.5m
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The chain itself was horrible to cut u2014 which is a good thing. The disk chattered all over the hardened surface and it was very difficult to bite initially. It felt like the hardness penetrated further into the link than other chains. We didnu2019t try the lock.
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Certification | Sold Secure Gold (chain) |
| Link shape | Circular |
| Link size | 19mm |
| Chain length | 2.5m (various lengths available) |
| Weight | 7kg per metre |
| Material | Hardened boron steel |
| Lock | RoundLock through link |
| Keys | 3 |
| Test result | Overall score |
|---|---|
| Link cut 1: 28.8s | Protection: 14/20 |
| Link cut 2: 41.4s | Ease of use: 5/10 |
| Combined time: 1m10.2s | Portability: 6/10 |
| Lock cut: N/A | Total: 25/40 |
Oxford Nemesis Chain
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Oxfordu2019s 16mm chain and D-lock is a hefty product that looked like it should do well. Like its smaller cousin, the Nemesis combination can be used with the lock on its own as a disclock. The silver chain is reassuringly heavy but its size meant it only went through the larger of the two ground anchors. Going at it with the angle grinder, it was very easy to feel the harder outer skin give way to the softer, more pliable inner section before encountering the harder section again. We attacked the lock but unlike the smaller Oxford, we had to go through both sides, as it wasnu2019t possible to get the chain off with just one cut. Semi-circular keys also make picking almost impossible.
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Certification | Sold Secure Gold |
| Link shape | Circular |
| Link size | 16mm |
| Chain length | 1.5m |
| Weight | 8kg |
| Material | Hardened Chrome-Moly steel |
| Lock | D lock |
| Keys | 3 |
| Test result | Overall score |
|---|---|
| Link cut 1: 28.6s | Protection: 12/20 |
| Link cut 2: 26.7s | Ease of use: 7/10 |
| Combined time: 55.3s | Portability: 7/10 |
| Lock cut: 54s | Total: 26/40 |
Oxford HD Chain Lock
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Oxfordu2019s smaller chain combination comes with a separate D-lock that can be used on its own as a disc lock u2013 handy. However, the plastic cover on the lock looks and feels cheap. It is, however, Sold Secure approved at Silver level for scooters, offering some reassurance. It fitted through both ground anchors, wasnu2019t overly heavy and was very easy to use. The cutting disc went through the chain in just over 30s for both sides but as the lock shackle was exposed, we attacked that as well. It took 28 seconds to go through one side but once cut, we could twist the shackle enough to get the chain off without cutting the other side.
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Certification | Sold Secure Silver |
| Link shape | Square |
| Link size | 9.5mm |
| Chain length | 2m |
| Weight | 4.6kg |
| Material | Hardened steel |
| Lock | D lock |
| Keys | 3 |
| Test result | Overall score |
|---|---|
| Link cut 1: 14.2s | Protection: 7/20 |
| Link cut 2: 16.3s | Ease of use: 8/10 |
| Combined time: 30.5s | Portability: 8/10 |
| Lock cut: 28s | Total: 23/40 |