Title (Qty)	Price

Your Basket is empty.

Sub Total	£0.00
Shipping Total	£0.00
Discount	£0.00

Total	£0.00

security

Spring Bike Security!

April 18, 2018

Hey, everyone! Spring is upon us and many of us are either getting the bikes out or looking to buy a new one. It sucks but bike theft is ever on the rise and they too know that there’s going to me more bikes out there for the taking. So, I hope you’re all properly securing your pride and joy, every other post I see on my Facebook feed is a post for help finding a stolen bike and making them. So I thought I’d make yet another blog entry about some security options we have here at Ghostbikes. Motorcycle locks and chains and such.

I’ve told this story before- but I’ll tell it again;
When I was little my parents got me a new mountain bike. It’s was one of the best bikes out there at the time and it was all I wanted- my first pedal bike with gears and suspension. After riding it to school for a few days, I’d forgotten to chain it up to the other bikes in the shed. It was just a wooden garden shed with a number lock on it and all the bikes lived in there chained together.

One day I got up for school, I approached the shed and noticed the latch had been broken clean off. My bike was gone but the other bikes were still in there. I was devastated and it clearly had a lasting effect on me because now, 20 years later, I’m too paranoid to leave my motorbike anywhere without it being chained. It was a valuable lesson though and it was learned the hard way.

Don’t be like little-me, guys. Make sure you lock your bike securely whether it’s parked out side of work or even inside the garage at home. At Ghostbikes we have a whole selection of motorcycle security options for you to choose from.

At home, maybe even consider using two chains as I’ve seen bike thieves not even phased by the site of just one. But when they saw the second chain on the back wheel while trying to cut through the first- they decided it wasn’t worth the limited time they had until police arrived.

If you’re out and you’d really prefer something a bit lighter. Maybe you don’t plan on leaving your bike for long or you don’t have room under your seat for a chain. For you, we have lots of compact Disc locks that could be exactly what you need. From small lightweight locks for smaller bikes to beefy devices complete with alarms that’ll scream 100 decibels into the ears of anyone trying to tamper with it. They’re at the very least better than leaving your bike unlocked at all if you can’t lock your bike -to- something.

If you want something to lock your ride to at home but don’t have anything solid- you can put in your own permanent point to secure your bikes to. From a simple hoop to brackets and folding shackles- there’s loads to choose from when it comes to keeping your bike safe.

Getting to keep your bike isn’t the only benefit of keeping your bike securely locked too. Many insurance companies recognise Thatcham approved security products and using them to keep your bike from getting pinched can possibly help to save you a bit of money on your insurance bills as well. So it’s really is worth buying the best you can, I had a cheeky look at some quotes, adding just the Oxford Big Boss lock to the security section on the quotes form and I got quotes up to £100 cheaper than last year with the same amount of cover! I’ll certainly be letting my insurance provider know about that when it’s renewal time.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Until next time!

-Matt at Ghostbikes
Visit GhostBikes.com for all your Motorcycle Gear and the biggest selection of Motocross Gear in the North West

Keep Your Bike Safe – Locks and Accessories

January 25, 2018

Hey, everyone! I hope you’ve all had a great New Year and I hope everyone’s looking forward to the warmer season to get out on their two wheels. More-so, I hope you’re all properly securing your pride and joy until that time comes. It’s a downer but every other post I see on my Facebook is a plea for help finding a stolen bike and making them “too hot to handle”. So I thought I’d make a blog entry about some security options we have here at Ghostbikes. Motorcycle locks and chains and such.

I’m sure I’ve told this story before- but I’ll tell it again;
When I was little my parents got me a new mountain bike as a present. It’s was one of the best bikes out there at the time and it was all I wanted- my first bike with gears, suspension- riding to school every day was going to be so much better. And it was, for the short while that I had it. After riding it to school for a few days, I’d maybe had it for a week, I must have forgotten to chain it up to the other bikes in the shed. It was just a wooden garden shed with a number lock on it and all the bikes lived in there chained together.

One day I got up for school, business as usual until it was time to leave and I approached the shed- noticing the latch had been broken clean off. My bike was gone but the other bikes were still in there. I was devastated and it clearly had a lasting effect on me because now, 20 years later, I’m too paranoid to leave my motorbike anywhere without it being chained. It was a valuable lesson though and it was learned the hard way.

I’ll always recommend that you secure your bike to something fixed in place that a thief has no hope of going through like a lamp post, a ground anchor or a bike parking space with a metal rack put there for that reason. This is best accomplished with a good motorcycle chain and lock. The bigger the better if you’re using it to store your bike at home but for on-the-go there are lots of strong chains that can coil up and fit neatly under a bike seat. From Oxford, Bike It and Abus there’s loads to choose from.

If you’re out and you’d really prefer something a bit lighter. Maybe you don’t plan on leaving your bike for long or you don’t have room under your seat for a chain. For you, we have lots of Disc locks that could be exactly what you need. From small lightweight locks for smaller bikes to beefy devices complete with alarms that’ll scream 100 decibels into the ears of anyone trying to tamper with it. They’re at the very least better than leaving your bike unlocked at all if you can’t lock your bike -to- something.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Until next time!

-Matt at Ghostbikes
Visit GhostBikes.com for all your Motorcycle Gear and the biggest selection of Motocross Gear in the North West

Secure Your Ride

August 21, 2017

Hey, everyone! I’m noticing that bike thefts are on the rise this year so I thought I’d make a blog entry that goes a bit more in depth on how to keep your bike secure. I’ve never had my motorcycle stolen before but part of me is always ready for it. When I was much younger I rode a bicycle to school every day and one Christmas I got a really, really cool new one. It was awesome, was a proper mountain bike with gears and suspension and everything. But not long after I’d gotten it and rode it to school for the first time, it had been stolen from the locked shed and it had a lock on the wheel too. I’ll never forget walking up to the shed that morning, seeing the lock broken off the door and opening it up to see my bike was nowhere in sight.

It was a valuable lesson though and now that I’m all grown all up and have a ride that’s more than ten times the value- I’m extra careful. It’s easy to become complacent and it’s that complacency that thieves are waiting for. So here’s a number of ways to keep your bike secure without anything as invasive as installing internal alarms or trackers [Which I highly advise if you can afford it anyway.]

1- Where are You Keeping It?
It’s pretty obvious that you should keep your bike stored somewhere secure to begin with. A locked garage with strong walls and doors is ideal but not everyone has a garage. However, if you have a garden that you can get your bike in to and enough space, treat your bike to a well made shed. If you can spare the cash and time- go for a really tough one built from the ground up with a solid foundation and brick walls with a heavy duty door and lock. Shed kits and Yardmasters from Homebase are okay if you can’t get anything else but they’re quite easy to break into. I’ve had a few where people have literally just removed the roof to get in or bent the metal. But at least they provided an extra obstacle to thieves to get through.

2- Under Cover
It may seem silly if you already have a shed or garage to store your bike in but if it has windows- a bike cover may be a good idea. Most thieves will work in the dark hours of the night and might even look through the windows to see what you’ve got that’s worth taking. But a good cover and a shadowy corner might just work in your favour and make thieves believe there’s either nothing in there or think twice about the risk before breaking in. We have a number of Motorcycle Covers that you can choose from at Ghostbikes.com that can help with this. Plus it helps to keep the dust from settling on your pride and joy.3- Lock It Down
You should really get a good lock and chain for your bike- the bigger and meaner you’re willing to go the better. Most thieves will be deterred by a lock and chain that look as though it’s going to make moving your bike more trouble than it’s worth. It has to be thicker chain with a big lock as well, otherwise a pair of bolt cutters is all it will take to cut it off. We’ve got plenty in our range of Oxford Locks for you to choose from, all heavy duty and designed to resist being cut or otherwise messed with.

4- Lock It Down Harder
If you’re going to put a chain and lock on your bike, its a good idea to go that one step further if you can. If a thief really wants your bike- they’re going to have help and two strong guys can easily haul a big bike into a van and speed off in seconds- believe me, I’ve seen it, there’s Youtube videos all over the place of it happening. So you should lock your bike to something more than just it’s self. A Ground Anchor is a perfect addition to any shed and gives you that little bit more piece of mind- if anyone else has their eye on your bike, you’re going to make them work for it. Lock the bike down and they can’t simply carry it off, they have no choice but to deal with the lock and chain.
5- Make Some Noise
If your garage has been broken in to and the thieves are working on getting through your chain- give your bike the means to call for help. You don’t need to go ripping your bike to bits to wire in a whole alarm system to still have an alarm on your bike. You can put an alarm on your bike for just £34.99 with the Oxford Screamer Alarmed Disc Lock. If your bike is tampered with and otherwise jostled while the disc lock is armed, a 100db alarm will sound to alert you that someone is touching your bike who shouldn’t be. Plus it’s one more lock that the thieves have to get though before being able to wheel your bike away. It also means you’ve got yourself a nice loud lock that you can use on your bike while it’s not at home if you commute to work or you’re popping into a service station for a coffee.

And those are just a few of the things you can do to make your bike a bit more secure. At least without wiring in trackers and alarms to your bike. A good tracker is recommended though- a decent tracker in a nicely disguised spot in your bike could mean the difference between a happy reunion or never seeing your bike again should anyone who wants to take your bike be professional and prepared enough to take it.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Until next time!

-MattW at Ghostbikes.com

Road Trip Part 3 – Security

May 9, 2017

Hey there! Welcome to Part 3 of my Road Trip Blog Series where I reveal my plans for a future trip of my own and how I’m going to solve the questions I’ve been asking myself about it. In this part I’ll be covering third thing that I think [worry] about- Security.

While bikers going out on a proper tour likely won’t leave their bike alone for long except to sleep- I’ll be entrusting the security of my bike to the hotel’s car park. That is to say I do not trust the hotel’s car park. At all. Not that I don’t expect they haven’t taken as many security measures as they can, it’s just never going to be enough on it’s own for me to peacefully sleep at night. While I’m out and about all day and while I sleep my bike will be unattended, in unfamiliar territory and I won’t be able to keep an eye on it for many hours of the day for five days. Yes- I have thought about this way too much. So I have to take precautions so that I can feel as though I have done as much as I can and will be able to sleep without keeping an ear open. All so I’m able to enjoy the time off. So what can I do?

Tactic 1 – Get your hands on the biggest, meanest chain and lock you can find like the Oxford Hardcore 1.5m XL Motorbike Chain and Lock. More often than not- the sight of a fat chain and hefty padlock will be enough to deter any wannabe thieves. Most of them want it to be easy- a quick snatch with little hassle, so a chain that looks like it means business will usually put most of them off. However- the chain alone will not do. You need to be able to use that chain to secure the bike to something else like a lamp post, a rail or a friend’s bike if nothing else. Otherwise all it takes is two people [maybe just one for a small bike] and they can just throw it in the back of a van and drive off in a matter of seconds. So it’s all about making things difficult for them to the point it no longer becomes worth their time.

Tactic 2 – Opt for a locking method that’ll make a lot of noise, like the Oxford Screamer Alarmed Disc Lock. People who will want to steal your bike don’t really want attention, so something that makes a lot of noise and gives them more than they bargained for will hopefully cause them to give up pretty quickly. Or if you’re like me and you’re going to use the big chain -and- the loud disc lock together, you’ve got a backup just in case they figure a way around your first line of defense. Just don’t forget you put it on your bike before you go trying to ride off.

Tactic 3 – If your bike doesn’t have one of it’s own, maybe consider getting an alarm system for the bike it’s self. Not only will it give you a little peace of mind knowing your bike has an in built theft deterrent but your insurance costs may even go down a little bit if you’re using an approved and tested brand of theft protection.

Tactic 4 – Another one that I’ll be using when I go on my trip. It’s simple and won’t cost you anything extra unless you have to pay to park wherever you are; park the bike under a camera. If you’re leaving your bike in a car park like I will be, chances are there’s going to be a camera somewhere. So even if the worst does happen, your first two or three precautions fail and your bike is taken, you’ve a better chance of the police finding who did it and catching them.

Beyond that there’s little more you can do. You’ve taken all of the precautions you can and at that point there’s no point in worrying anymore. Might as well enjoy your time, relax and hope you get a room that has a window with a view.. Of your bike.

Thanks for reading Part 3 of my Road Trip Blog Series everybody! In the next part, on a less worrying and stressful theme, I’ll be talking about gear. Specifically worn gear and what to look for in what you want to wear.

Until next time!

– MattW at Ghostbikes.com

Keep your bike protected!

October 5, 2010

I think we all have had a bike stolen or know someone who has. Since the days are getting shorter by a whopping 14 minutes a day and the nights are longer you need to be thinking about keeping your bike your’s and not some thieving scumbag’s.

The best defence is to keep your bike out of sight. If they can’t see it they can’t nick it. This isn’t really a problem if you have access to a garage or similar lock up. If you do have a garage then consider putting in a decent ground anchor or an intruder area alarm system.

I am a big fan of security products that are alarmed. Thieves can spend a good hour working on getting your chain off and as long as they can do it quietly they don’t care. If there is a 110 Db alarm going off then they tend to run off and you get to keep your bike.

Following the vein of keeping your bike out of sight, if you don’t have access to a garage and you have to keep your bike in your garden or out on the front then get it covered up with a motorcycle cover, keeps the rain off and deters opportunistic thieves and vandals. At this point it is still advisable to secure your bike with a good quality chain or similar. Again if you can get it to make noise then all the better, a decent disc lock alarm is always a good idea for this as it immobilises your bike and alarms it. Additionally it fits under your seat when travelling too! A lot of the time the cost of such equipment can be offset by reductions in your insurance premium particularly THATCHAM APPROVED SYSTEMS.

HBW.

Title (Qty)

Price

Total

£0.00

Specification