The pen is mightier than the lock.

September 14, 2004 9:44 AM

Use one of those heavy U-locks to secure your bike? You might want to think again. It seems the barrel style lock mechanisms some of them employ can be opened by a Bic pen [.mov movie].
posted by normy (69 comments total)

Use one of those heavy cheap U-locks to secure your bike? You might want to think again.

Do that to my Kryptonite and we'll talk...
posted by Fezboy! at 9:53 AM on September 14, 2004

Did you actually read the link, Fezboy? It's specifically a Kryptonite lock being discussed. (Kryptonite Evolution 2000).

And as bad as your job is, be glad that you do not work for Kryptonite today.
posted by luser at 9:58 AM on September 14, 2004

Um. That link is about breaking into Kryptonite locks. Specifically the Kryptonite Evolution 2000.
posted by eyeballkid at 9:59 AM on September 14, 2004

Here's a dif vid of a dif lock. Same process. same result. Seems to be legit. Sad.
posted by shoepal at 10:00 AM on September 14, 2004

Fezboy, if you follow the linked thread on bikeforums.net, several folks descibe opening Kryptonite locks, including the top of the line New York locks.

I was somewhat skeptical myself, until I read several posts in various mailing lists and forums around the online cycling community, from normally sensible folks who were rather surprised at the ease with which they opened their lock with the barrel of a pen.
posted by normy at 10:02 AM on September 14, 2004

F U U U U U C K

Well, first thought, would be to get a clamp that matches the bike lock's diameter, cover the key hole and put a padlock over it. Does anyone suggest that in the thread? Only read through page one.

Man, second thought is, it's sure good I just paid six bucks YESTERDAY for a double set of kryptonite keys!
posted by Peter H at 10:08 AM on September 14, 2004

As far as the U-locks go, my daughter was able to hang on to her beloved Trek bike for 6 years, using the U-lock, until she moved out of student housing and into a normal appartment in her city, from whence it vanished one day this summer without a trace. I would have to say that U-locks are no guarantee of security either.
posted by Lynsey at 10:09 AM on September 14, 2004

I should have emphasized the my in my Kriptonite. The fucker hardly opens with the key, much less with a bic pen.
posted by Fezboy! at 10:15 AM on September 14, 2004

way to weasle out of that one fezboy, you bloody liar
posted by banished at 10:19 AM on September 14, 2004

I thought I was being paranoid by using a cable lock and a U lock at the same time. Proved I'm not paranoid.
posted by benjh at 10:20 AM on September 14, 2004

On the issue of bike theft, I lose a lot of my common sense and feel sincerely that there should be mandatory jail time.

Bike theft is more insidious than car theft, in my mind, for some reason.
posted by Danf at 10:22 AM on September 14, 2004

I'm curious, if one can go to jail for linking to the DeCSS code, why is linking to this information not considered illegal? I'm not saying it should be, I'm just curious about the whole thing.

Anyway, my bike is safe since I write mostly in pencil.
posted by bondcliff at 10:25 AM on September 14, 2004

Oh, fabulous news - I bought a Kryptonite lock yesterday, having been assured that they're the best available. I wonder how many scallies read cycling fora for info like this. Whatever, looks like benjh's paranoid belt and braces method looks the one to follow.
posted by jack_mo at 10:30 AM on September 14, 2004

Basic rule of bike protection that I learned in the Netherlands: use more than one type of lock.

I use a U-lock alongside a cable lock, my girlfriend uses a cable, a motorcycle chain lock, as well as a dutch style wheel lock. Bike thieves rarely carry more than one tool, either a bolt cutter for cables and chains or a crowbar - the traditional approach to breaking kryptonite locks. They rarely carry both. Bike thieves don't want to risk spending several minutes working their way through multiple locks.

And I don't think too many bike theives surf the internet searching for new theft techniques.
posted by zaelic at 10:34 AM on September 14, 2004

And I don't think too many bike theives surf the internet searching for new theft techniques.

if that isn't sarcasm that's got to be the dumbest assumption i've ever read.

(coughs) from the linked bike thread
posted by Peter H at 10:52 AM on September 14, 2004

jack_mo,

see, today is your lucky day. Not only do you have a kryptonite lock for your bike but should you ever lose your key (and it happens to all of us) you'll be able to open it with a ball point pen!
posted by substrate at 10:53 AM on September 14, 2004

And I don't think too many bike theives surf the internet searching for new theft techniques

The person who posted the technique didn't find it on the internet.
posted by eyeballkid at 10:53 AM on September 14, 2004

Damn. I am slow on the post button today. ;)
posted by eyeballkid at 10:54 AM on September 14, 2004

And I don't think too many bike theives surf the internet searching for new theft techniques.

I had the enlightening experience of meeting a guy who used to be a bike thief. Based on his demo at the time he was doing it (college student at a big state school), I think there are probably enough among them that are net-savvy to guarantee that this technique will spread like wildfire.

Then, of course, there are the "prank thefts"... Every high school kid will live in fear now of his "buddies" stealing the bike and dumping in the pool or locking it in the Princple's office.
posted by lodurr at 11:11 AM on September 14, 2004

I just looked at that movie. I never noticed that a full-size U-lock has a hole in the middle of shaft. I've got a mini-U-lock that doesn't. Any idea if I'm safe?
posted by alumshubby at 11:15 AM on September 14, 2004

why is linking to this information not considered illegal?

Because this is about real theft.
posted by yerfatma at 11:28 AM on September 14, 2004

I have mountain equipment coop u-locks. And they dont have a hole in the middle, so they seem to be ok.
Im dissapointed though, I wanted to amaze my family by opening the lock like that....
posted by Iax at 11:43 AM on September 14, 2004

This sucks! And I can see Kryptonite taking a pretty monstrous hit over this. I think I'll go back to using a 130 pound Pit bull to secure my bike, they're much harder to pick.
posted by fenriq at 11:45 AM on September 14, 2004

Note Well: This apparently applies to almost all Kryptonite locks with cylidrical keys, and a number of other locks with cylinder keys.

This attack doesn't work against locks with flat-blade keys.

There's also some reports of Kryptonite locks with cylinder keys that have much smaller keyways. This trick doesn't affect them.

Other than that -- this is a huge comprimise. If you have a cylinder keyed bike lock of any make, you must consider it comprimised. If you have cylinder keyed Kryptonite, it's broken. Don't use it on a bike you want.
posted by eriko at 11:46 AM on September 14, 2004

Bike thieves should be hung, like horse thieves used to be. If I had ever had a car stolen, I might feel the same about car thieves.

But when someone steals someone's bike, there's a good chance the bike's owner is using it for transportation and isn't very wealthy. This leaves the cyclist stranded, broke, and in a position to lose their job, due to a lack of transport.

Besides, bikes become so incredibly personal. If you ride for transport (or even regularly just for fun) there is a lot of sentiment about the bike, as well as a lot of customization and extra accessories that is a pain to replace, cost aside.

----

A 10 dollar carbide-grit hacksaw blade will go through a Kryptonite lock like butter, too. I know because I lost my keys once and had to recover my bike, ages ago. I think back then the carbide-grit blade was about $20, though. I was startled at how easily it cut through the U part of the lock, though. It only took a few minutes.

A friend introduced me to lock picking a couple of months ago. It's disturbingly easy. I made a torsion wrench out of a larger bobby-type hairpin, and a couple of flat picks out of smaller pins, and I have successfully opened a 4 tumbler luggage lock, 5 tumbler Master locks, and a couple of assorted Schlage, Kwikset and Master brand door locks of varying pin counts.

I hear the material to use for home-made picks is metal street sweeping bristles and/or flat (aero) bike spokes.

I can do most padlocks with my eyes closed. The friend who started me on picking opened my cabled "Street Smart" bike lock in under 5 minutes his first time trying it.

Needless to say, he uses the Medco brand high security lock systems at his business, with the key control system and everything. I don't even know where to begin picking those locks, what with the chamfered, beveled set pins and twisty key path and all that.

Security is frequently an illusion. Locks are just slightly complicated mechanical fasteners. Every security device has an exploit. Perhaps it is time for "white hat" lock pickers to start issuing warnings about physical security devices just like white hat hackers do about digital security.

I don't think too many lock companies would be very happy about losing their "security through obscurity" status, and I cringe at the overall cost of an arms race in the physical lock world.
posted by loquacious at 12:02 PM on September 14, 2004

There's a good argument that the powers that be should take bike theft much more seriously, because it's how a lot of younger criminals start out. Catch them young and with the right management and punishment, perhaps you could steer them away from graduating to more serious crime.

As for locking bikes, or anything else, for that matter, there's no such thing as an unpickable or unbreakable lock. I've heard it said that "locks keep honest folk honest". What you're buying is time, the skill required of the thief and a diversion to less well protected desirables. Unfortunately, in the case of these cylinder locks, it seems the time and skill part has just been removed.
posted by normy at 12:21 PM on September 14, 2004

And I don't think too many bike theives surf the internet searching for new theft techniques.

Naw, they surf the Internet looking for great deals on masks, striped shirts, and maybe moustache wax.
posted by keswick at 12:25 PM on September 14, 2004

I used to lock up my bike with a logging chain and a heavy duty padlock. The kind of chain they tow cars with or carry around trees. They couldn't be cut without a blowtorch. The bike and chain combo weighed more than the bike did.

So someone stole the seat. The seat was probably the best thing about the bike. One of those wide ones with lots of padding.
posted by nyxxxx at 12:56 PM on September 14, 2004

Car thieves generally steal cars to sell the parts. What are bike thieves doing with the stolen bikes?

Is there really a market for stolen 10 Speed Dura-Ace components, for example? Are there LBS's that purchase stolen bikes, frames, or components for re-sale? Do they just end up on E-bay? Or are the thieves riding them?
posted by probablysteve at 12:57 PM on September 14, 2004

What are bike thieves doing with the stolen bikes?

Years ago in my bike messenger days, there were a couple of guys known to many of us who would take an order for specific parts, or even a complete bike to your spec, and get what you asked for at prices way cheaper than you'd find in any shop - cash only and you didn't ask where the stuff came from, of course. Never used their service myself, but knew many who did.
posted by normy at 1:10 PM on September 14, 2004

my friend and I were standing outside of the atlanta international hostel last week talking to a hosteller when a man walked up to us with a shiny new yellow mountain bike. "wanna buy a bike?" he asked. "you sure?"
posted by register at 1:12 PM on September 14, 2004

And I don't think too many bike theives surf the internet searching for new theft techniques

No, but a lot of moronic assholes looking for their next thrill are soon to become bike thieves now that they know how.

Inasmuch as Kryptonite is to blame for producing a defective product, the chumps who post these videos on the web aren't helping. A lot of people are going to see their bikes vanish because of this. In the spirit of those hackers who crack a company's system and then tell the company about it, so the hole can be fixed, I wish these dunces had simply contacted Kryptonite, or otherwise publicized this in a way that doesn't TEACH PEOPLE HOW TO DO IT. Assholes!

The only good outcome is that Kryptonite issues a recall. But how many bikes will disappear in the meantime?
posted by scarabic at 1:12 PM on September 14, 2004

What are bike thieves doing with the stolen bikes?

At least twice a week, I'll see someone riding through Minneapolis on an extremely nice mountain bike with the seat jacked down to the frame and with cheap-ass platform pedals; and I always assume that's what happens to the stolen bikes.
posted by COBRA! at 1:13 PM on September 14, 2004

why is linking to this information not considered illegal?

Because, unlike the RIAA, bike riders don't [donate hundreds of thousands of dollars to | buy] politicians.
posted by callmejay at 1:14 PM on September 14, 2004

so what *IS* the best way to secure a bike, wrote zippitybuddha, owner of a kryptonite lock...
posted by ZippityBuddha at 1:18 PM on September 14, 2004

from a lockpicking site...

How do I open a Kryptonite lock?

Easiest: If you registered your lock, call or write Kryptonite
for a new key. Or call a local locksmith, they should be able to
pick and re-key the lock for you.

Easy: Get a car jack and jack it apart. Careful, otherwise it is
very possible that you'll damage the bike.

Easy: Use a cut-off wheel in a Dremel tool to cut the lock at
the hole in the shackle (where there is the least to cut.)

Harder: If it doesn't have the newer brass jacket, peel back
the plastic coating on the key end, drill out the pin that
holds in the cylinder, remove the cylinder, open.

Hardest: Chill the metal of the "U" with liquid Nitrogen or
Freon, smash with hammer. While this is a "well known" method,
it may be an urban legend.
posted by ZippityBuddha at 1:21 PM on September 14, 2004

I think it's good that they've put out the video. Question: how long have K locks been amenable to this technique?
posted by ParisParamus at 1:24 PM on September 14, 2004

scarabic, users in the bike forum contacted kryptonite yesterday. the theory is that if more people know about it, fewer bikes will be stolen. as the news spreads, kryptonite has a larger incentive to take the flaw seriously and informed bike owners know to seek alternative security measures.

zippity, lockpickgeek posted practical notes about bikes locks and a link to the NY bike messenger association lock recommendations page off their FAQ.

paris, shecky mentioned that the bic pen picked a 15yo kryptonite lock.
posted by register at 1:31 PM on September 14, 2004

"In the year 2000, Kryptonite had sales of approximately $27 million and caught the attention of industry giant Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR). Acquired in August, 2001, Kryptonite became a flagship brand in IR’s Security and Safety Americas Sector, portable security business unit."

I'll second ZippityBuddha's question of "what *IS* the best way to secure a bike?"
posted by shoepal at 1:32 PM on September 14, 2004

Thanks register!
posted by shoepal at 1:38 PM on September 14, 2004

I just tried this on an Evolution 2000. It works. The same vulnerability was announced for Kensington laptop locks, which employ a similar mechanism, a week or two ago.
posted by darksquirrel at 1:39 PM on September 14, 2004

scarabic: I don't really think that lots of thieves are going to go to Thief seminars and learn this new method overnight. Unfortunately, I'm on a guest computer that can't view the video.

Nevertheless, I work about two months a year in Holland, where I always rent or borrow a bike. The thieves are usually 90% junkies who try to sell the bikes within minutes of stealing them ( they ride around Dutch downtowns and ask you "fietsers?") or else pros who chop them for parts. They are in it for the easy cash, and they don't like risk. It's the same everywhere, but the Dutch know the game inside out.

So you shouldn't ditch your kryptonite locks - just add a cable and a chain if you must. More is better. It takes about a minute to lock it all up, but it takes a thief five or ten minutes minutes to get through all those locks. They'll pass your bike by.

The Dutch use a circular "round the wheel" bike lock on the back wheel under the bike seat. You can't get bike insurance without one. If you know anybody traveling to the Netherlands, these things cost between 7 and 20 Euros. I brought five home with me for all my friends (in Hungary) on my last trip. Thieves simply don't know how to deal with them.
posted by zaelic at 1:44 PM on September 14, 2004

Best ways to secure your bike:

i) Don't let it out of your sight and within arms length.
ii) If you must leave it, lock it up indoors, somewhere where few people have a key (your home is a good choice).
ii) If you must leave it outdoors, lock it to something immovable. Signs, parking meters, railings, lamp-posts, etc sunk into cement are good. Make sure it's something the bike can't be lifted off or over (this disqualifies many signposts).
iii) Use more than one lock and of different types - like a cable lock and a U-lock (one with a flat key). Many theives carry bolt croppers (good for cables) or a crowbar (good for U-locks), but few carry both.
iv) Lock your bike somewhere visible, busy and public, in the (probably worthless) hope that someone might interrupt the thief, if noticed.
v) Lock you bike close to other bikes that are cleaner and nicer than yours, but that are less securely locked than yours.
vi) Remove and take with you, or lock, any part that has a quick release fitting (wheels, seats).
vii) Ride a fixed gear bike. With luck, the ignorant thief will fall off it and severely injure themselves before getting very far.
posted by normy at 1:48 PM on September 14, 2004

I'm a big fan of #7 on the above list, although in my neighborhood fixie rear wheels are gettting stolen a lot. There is the (prolly urban legend) of the guy who had his fixie stolen only to find it a block away with blood on it. lol. Fixies are cheaper, too. That said, I'm freaked. I use a Krypto evo2000 for short-term, daylight lockup only, but I can imagine someone fashioning something that *looks* like a key out of a bic and stealing a bike with people watching him being none the wiser. damn. what a screwup.
posted by n9 at 2:06 PM on September 14, 2004

Quick release wheels are too useful to lose, so you pull your front wheel, and put it next to the back wheel, if you feel you need to lockup your front wheel. Of course, if you use a cheaper front wheel, thieves may not steal it.

Quick release seatpost clamps are stupid. Remove yours, replace it with a regular allen bolt like reasonable bikes have, and suddenly, nobody will steal your saddle. This wasn't a problem until QR seatposts happened.

And, of course, spending $2000 on a go fast bike to save two pounds, then bolting a U-lock and chain to it, is stupid as well. The only time your go-fast should be out in the real world is when you're on it.

Get a cheaper bike for commuting and such. Ugly it up. Get 400 grit sandpaper and, as much as possible, remove the words "Shimano" and "Campagolono" from your components.

And, of course, don't use a Kryptonite with a circular key. :)
posted by eriko at 2:08 PM on September 14, 2004

i have a krypto 2000 and it doesn't look like the one in the video. mine doesn't have a hole. i'm confused.
posted by ZippityBuddha at 2:12 PM on September 14, 2004

I second the "keep it in sight at all times" method for protecting a bike. I keep mine indoors.

However, I've never had a locked bike stolen. I've had several unlocked bikes stolen, but not a locked one. And yeah, I failed the "keep it in sight" rule on all stolen bike incidents. Once I fell asleep at the beach with my bike right next to me, and I not only lost a fairly new and nice Nishiki mountain bike, but I also lost all the money I had (in my wallet, in my backpack) and my walkman. What sucked most is I was homeless and/or couch surfing at the time, and my available couches were 40-odd miles apart.

I did have a known attempt at a locked bike on a University campus after leaving it locked in a rack for too long and not moving it. Some fool tried to cut a cable lock with something too small, probably wire cutters, and only managed to nick the plastic sheath and a few strands of cable.

Why is a fixed gear bike less attractive to steal or more dangerous to a thief? Are you talking about bikes that don't have a freewheel/freehub/coaster brake that requires you pedal constantly without coasting, like an indoor velodrome style drivetrain? Where the rider gets bucked off or shin-bit the instant they try to stop pedalling and coast?
posted by loquacious at 2:23 PM on September 14, 2004

loq-- yup. A fixie is a single gear bike without a freewheel upon which you cannot coast.

The reason they might get stolen less is that if you don't know how to ride one it is, er, very unpleasant and difficult to do. And you could hurt yourself pretty badly, actually.
posted by n9 at 2:38 PM on September 14, 2004

On the issue of bike theft, I lose a lot of my common sense and feel sincerely that there should be mandatory jail time.

It troubles me that anyone thinks locking up thieves is a departure from common sense. I would vote for a combination of public flogging and jail time. Let he who's had his bike stolen administer the flogging.
posted by Kwantsar at 2:42 PM on September 14, 2004

Dag, what is the use of a fixie then? Exercise? How could you bike without coasting?
posted by Peter H at 2:44 PM on September 14, 2004

Previously on MetaFilter: Fixed Gear.
See also, sheldonbrown.com.
posted by normy at 2:51 PM on September 14, 2004

What you want, I reckon, is a fixie with these pedals.
posted by bonehead at 3:42 PM on September 14, 2004

(reads fixie thread)

Damn, fuck no way to that! Living in Austin, it's hill crazy, the whole city is on a slant. I need my twenty gears to get up some (aburptly steep) hills and sure as hell need my coasting and brakes to go down the same stuff. My knees would break off.
posted by Peter H at 3:56 PM on September 14, 2004

I made the dumb mistake of trusting my recumbent to a kryptonite cable lock. Snip. Bye!

p.s. if you stole a recumbent in Louisville about two years ago or so, please give it back.
posted by mecran01 at 4:52 PM on September 14, 2004

Thanks normy. That was a great thread.
posted by shoepal at 5:49 PM on September 14, 2004

This thread is a great public service--thank you.

I don't quite understand what the pen is doing, probably because my bike lock is at least 10 years old--Gorilla, I think is the brand--and keys on the end, with a key that is a circle/cylinder of metal that inserts into a circular "slot." What does the key on an Evolution look like.

Also, wonder if there's any legal recourse for what appears to be incredible incompetence chez Kryptonite....
posted by ParisParamus at 6:06 PM on September 14, 2004

Kryptonite claims to carry an insurance policy. Bike locked with a Kryptonite lock, then stolen? Write in and they pay for the bike. It's not clear that you can really collect on this, I think you're supposed to send in a shattered lock as proof or something. But if it really is this easy to open and a bunch of bikes are stolen, it could put the company out of business.
posted by Nelson at 6:07 PM on September 14, 2004

parisparamus: ianal, but unless

1.there's a legal standard imposed by law
2.and enforced by government to which the manufacturer claims (written claim) their lock comforms to
3. and the lock doesn't really conform to the standard
4. and that's the reason behind the theft

I'll guess you'll never have a chance for a legal recourse that isn't tortuous and expensive. I seriously doubt "incompetence" is seriously considered a crime, otherwise half of the planet would probably be in jail.

Or maybe a consumer union may try to setup a class lawsuit if enough people agree to do so ; the company will be scared enough to bail out if the media picks it up and start reporting the u-shit lock can be opened with a pen.

I doubt they will in fear of 1. losing advertisement money 2. face some kind of defamation lawsuit..probably reason #1 being the most important.

Point is if a lock can be opened, it will be opened so if you don't want something to be stolen, don't leave it on the street OR build yourself your own lock.

on preview, nelson: uh I seriously doubt they'll honor the contract..most likely they'll find some way out of it,expecially if the claim is for hundred dollars chinese rebranded bikes. You may want to consult a consumer union.
posted by elpapacito at 7:18 PM on September 14, 2004

This is the standard back-wheel lock on all Dutch bikes. The keys stay on while it is open, BTW.

I use this as the second lock in Amsterdam, bike theft capital of the world.

Apparently no part of the above assemblies can be cut without the help of power tools. It is highly unlikely that a bike thief will pick a lock, at least in this city. Well at least till now.

/Funniest thing read today while putting together this post: *heavy-duty* cable locks. Get real: cable offers no protection when anyone can carry this around.
posted by magullo at 5:22 AM on September 15, 2004

Magullo, I'm going to try to adopt your locking system, which seems like the way to go. Not like my bike is super expensive -- but I just can't aford to have to buy a new one.

Anyone know where one can get those type of bike locks in the U.S.?
posted by josh at 6:49 AM on September 15, 2004

Ostensibly they're available from Momovelo, but they're shutting down their online sales, in no small part due to complaints about unreliable mailorder service (e.g. merchandise never shipped, or shipping really late). It's one guy's side-project, so maybe it's all to be expected, but he seems to promise more than he can deliver, literally.

So -- I'm interested in a source, too.
posted by Utilitaritron at 8:30 AM on September 15, 2004

News certainly travels fast: locking my bike this morning with a Kryptonite, the bloke locking his up next to mine said, 'Did you hear those can be unlocked with a biro?'

I'm a bit gutted that those Dutch things would probably foul the frame on my Brompton when folded, though - they look excellent. (The disadvantage of a folder seems to be that, when you're used to safely carrying it indoors with you, leaving it in the open gets you extra paranoid!)

Oh, and substrate - good point ; )
posted by jack_mo at 9:09 AM on September 15, 2004

some Dutch ebay'ers can do well right now i'd say.
posted by th3ph17 at 10:06 AM on September 15, 2004

scarabic: I don't really think that lots of thieves are going to go to Thief seminars and learn this new method overnight.

I'm not worried that career thieves will now have yet another technique available, I'm just worried that your average stupid netsurfing yahoo will go out and try this for fun, wanting to duplicate the results of the video. Locks have never been able to deter committed thieves, but they have been known to thwart drunken louts who don't feel like walking all the way home. Hopefully, the folks who get excited buy this video and want to try it will experiment on their own shit just for fun.

Anyway, I was in the Missing Link store in Berkeley today and while they've posted an advisory on their display that says "please wait to hear from Kryptonite about a potential issue with these locks," the guy in the shop says that no one there has been able to reproduce the results, nor has anyone met anyone who can, nor has anyone seen an uptick in the number of Kryptonite-secured bikes being stolen.

He also pointed out that it's one thing to learn how to do the same lock over and over when you've got it in your lap, but jacking different locks that are attached to bikes, at the risk of being caught, is something else.

So I guess it's all to the good. Still, a how-to video seems unecessary. There are better ways of notifying the owners.
posted by scarabic at 10:18 PM on September 15, 2004

Followup: Bike industry press reaction, including a statement from Kryptonite.
posted by normy at 10:37 AM on September 16, 2004

I'm confused a bit by this. My 10-year old big black Kryptonite U-lock has a cylinder key, and it's exactly the same keying style as my Kensington notebook look. So I was a bit worried by that similarity since I value my notebook more than my bike. But I tried messing with a Bic pen, and the pen barrel wasn't even close to the right diameter to fit in the hole on the lock. Not big enough, so I couldn't even touch the pins.

Did Kensington change to a new style at some point? Or was I doing it wrong?
posted by smackfu at 8:54 AM on September 17, 2004

Has anyone managed to repeat this themselves? I have not been able to find a pen of the correct diameter.
posted by asok at 11:48 AM on September 17, 2004

I did it in about 8 minutes with a 5 yr old Kryptonite evo 2000 that I *used* to use. grrr...
posted by shoepal at 9:26 PM on September 18, 2004

follow up:

Dear Kryptonite Customer:

Thank you for registering for the Kryptonite Lock Exchange Program.

You will soon receive an e-mail with instructions about how and where to return your current lock and at least one working key for the lock. A Postage Paid Label will be included in this e-mail.

Once we have received your tubular cylinder lock and key(s), and stock is available, your replacement lock will be shipped. We are expecting to begin shipping out non-tubular cylinder locks beginning Mid October.

We are working day and night to get the new non-tubular cylinder Kryptonite locks manufactured and available to ship to you. If you have any questions, please call Customer Service at [phone].

Your security is our priority. Thank you for your patience.

Kryptonite Customer Service
posted by shoepal at 12:29 PM on September 30, 2004