Best eBike Lock

Two Locks are Better than One – Best eBike Lock(s)

After recently purchasing a Rad Power Bike (the Rad Rover 5), my thoughts quickly turned to how best to protect the investment. After looking at all the available options, I decided that for the best bike lock, two are better than one.

I tried ordering some of the super heavy duty locks like the Kryptonite New York Fahgettaboudit Chain 1415 & New York Disc Lock and while I could port them around in a basket on the eBike, in reality they’re just way too heavy for practical, day to day use.

I’ve also decided to keep my bike inside at night since it’s just too juicy of a target for thieves. The solution I came up with is for daytime use and addresses:

• Low risk usage around town (i.e, shopping, eating, visiting friends)
• Locking the bike up during the day around my apartment

The orange “reminder” cable comes with the disc brake lock and helps you not damage your disc brake by forgetting the lock is on. For improved security you can not use this cable, making the disc brake lock less noticeable before its alarm is triggered.

The Cable Lock

Recommended: Kryptonite Cable Lock with Mount

No cable lock is going stop a serious bike thief. What I use this for is to keep people from just walking away with the bike in public spaces where the use of cable cutters would stand out and be noticed. First I tried this cable lock from Amazon and found it to be made with noxiously toxic plastic that smells absolutely awful – to the point where I had to it take off my bike and set it outside. Even after several days it was still emitting a sickening chemical smell.

I found a similar product made by Kryptonite that has no odor to it and is slightly better made.

The Disc Brake Lock

Recommended: Disc brake lock for eBikes

The YOHOOLYO Alarm Disc Lock is great because it is made of metal and has a built in vibration alarm. It would be extremely difficult to remove this lock without setting it off.

Check out the video below to see how this lock is activated and what the alarm sounds like.

https://youtu.be/MPzK5i-moic

Compact & Out of the Way

For the best eBike lock solution, I wanted something secure and effective but also not too cumbersome. These two locks together are great because they stow away nicely and are quick to employ. The disc brake lock comes with a black velcro pouch which you can see just to the left of the cable lock:

The disc break lock uses a key. I like the combination of one key lock and one combination lock. It’s just less to fuss with than having three keys: battery key, cable key, dick brake key.

Conclusion

All in all, I’m happy with this setup. It’s quick to engage when I’m traveling around town. It’s lightweight, yet provides more security than just a cable lock alone.

And because the bike is so heavy, there are three things working together. With the Rad Rover 5, I am able to set the battery to the “off” position while going into a store. This prevents use of the motor or removal of the battery from the frame. Together with the disc brake lock which prevents the rear wheel from rolling, this means a thief will have to lift and carry 70 pounds which is not easy.

The one scenario I can think of where this solution would not be effective is if the bike is out of earshot and a prepared thief with a pickup truck sees the bike, is able to cut the cable lock and heave the bike into the back of his truck. In this case, the disc brake alarm would go off, but the thief could still get away with the bike.

I don’t think the disc brake lock could be picked or removed without setting off the alarm. I could leave the bike locked up at night using this lock; however, I’d rather just bring my bike inside than possibly be woken by an alarm in the middle of the night.

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