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What is "Café Lock"?
“No thin, lightweight locks!"
Let’s recognize bicycle locks properly and understand how to use them.
There is a reason why they are "thin"!
We will answer questions such as the following.
“I'm worried about the security aspect of thin locks, but how do I use them?"
“I saw an article on the Internet that said thin keys are not recommended..."
Use Cafe Lock to your advantage! Thick lock or thin lock?
Recommended lock selection (How to select a lock) Summary.
Origin of Cafe Lock
カフェロックを使いこなす
Cafe lock
The origin of the name "Café Lock." is derived from the fact that drinking coffee in a café while looking at your bicycle is a wonderful moment.
However, a luxury bicycle is always next to danger.It is common to hear of bicycles being stolen at a moment because they were not locked.An unlocked bicycle is always a target...
You can prevent theft by parking your bicycle where you can see it as much as possible and locking it with a café lock.
You can protect your bicycle by doing the same in other situations. It is important to be cautious about your bicycle and understand the performance of the lock.
・ Definition of a café lock
A 3mm or 4mm wire lock that is small enough to fit in a pocket or tool case.
There are coil locks, like telephone cords, and straight locks with no twists.
Image: CP-SPD04-BR "Q-BIRO"
180cm cable lock that specializes in portability and can be locked with plenty of space
Which is better, thick or thin locks?
太い鍵、細い鍵
The thickness of the lock is effective when the appropriate one is used for the situation.
You may see it on blogs and word-of-mouth, such as “Thin lock can be cut," "I'm worried about security of the thin lock..." and so on. This is both a correct and incorrect answer.
◆What kind of people are recommended to use Café Lock?
To use Café Lock?
Because of its portability, Café Lock is perfect for road bikes and other sport bicycles. "A road bike is a luxury bicycle, so why the thin Café Lock?" The question arises.
The answer is that the more expensive the bicycles are, the less likely they are to be parked outdoors.
If the bicycle is parked outdoors, even if the bicycle itself is not stolen, parts such as wheels and cycle computer may be stolen or destroyed by thieves.
So, most road bike owners do not park their bicycles outdoors, but keep them stored indoors or locked up on their property.
The most expensive road bikes can easily cost over a million yen, and no matter how sturdy the lock is, you don't want to park it outdoors...
◆When you have to park even your road bike?
I don't park my bike! Even if you think that, when riding alone, there will inevitably be moments when you need to take your eyes off your bicycle for a moment to stop at a convenience store or take a restroom break, etc. The Café Lock is useful in these situations.
For example, suppose you park your bicycle for a few minutes and 10 people pass in front of it.
If the bike is unlocked, all of them can steal it, whereas if it is locked with Café Lock, you will need at least a tool to cut it off, and are there any of the 10 people with tools? This means that the probability of theft is reduced.
The percentage of passersby who carry tools is unknown, but even if a thief did happen to have a cutting tool, it is unlikely that he would commit theft on the spot, in a popular place, and at the risk of being seen by the owner.
Using a lock that is thicker than Café Lock will make it more effective against theft, but the thicker the key, the heavier and larger it will naturally be.
For road racers who ride with minimal equipment, they want to reduce their luggage as much as possible, so thicker and heavier locks are basically not an option. For those who ride light, compact Café Lock is the natural choice, considering the amount of luggage they can carry.
[Choose the key size according to your style and scene! ]
Choose the size of lock based on style and scene!
シーン別
Recommended Cafe Lock
See more details
Q-BIRO
Product code: SPD04-BR
CROPS' proprietary BIRO cable manufacturing method significantly reduces wire stretch due to over-pulling, and is useful when locking multiple bicycles at the same time or in situations where there is a distance between locking objects. 180cm long type and 90cm Q-BIRO MINI type.
Summary.
まとめ
The basic premise of a lock is that the heavier the lock, the stronger and more secure it is.
If it is light, it will be physically less strong, so if you can carry a lot of luggage when you ride your bike, we definitely recommend a heavier, stronger lock.
Some percentage of people who ride bicycles may have limited luggage, for example, training or expeditions with a road bike or cross bike.
In these styles, you just can't ride a bike with heavy and strong locks, so this means that compact locks like Café Lock will come into play in some situations.
You might say, "I shouldn't buy a thin lock because it's not secure enough!" This may not be wrong, depending on the situation. However, there is a reason why Café Lock is actually favored all over the world.
Because we are lock manufacturer, we can't just say, "This lock comes highly recommended!" Because we are lock manufacturer, we can't just say, "This lock comes highly recommended!" but rather, we believe it is important to propose something that suits the actual use based on advantages and disadvantages.
We believe that the most effective way of security to protect your valuable bicycles is not only the strength of the locks, but also a constant sense of danger.
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