Average Joe Reviews The Tough Stuff Alarmed D-Lock

Like a lot of people when I needed to buy a lock for my bike I went for a cheapie D – lock. At the time I wasn’t going to be locking up my beloved bikes but the old banger for riding to and from the station every day. Then the new DH bike, like a cuckoo in the nest meant I had no more room for the old banger and my first great love (the 14 year old Orange P7) became my commuting machine. All of a sudden, stopping some chav running off with the Orange became important. The old D-Lock pretty much could have been opened with a Biro. Along came this lock for a long term test and all looked good bearing in mind on the outset it seems not only just a solid lock but has a 100 decibel alarm. A few weeks into the test and generally the findings are positive. The lock is well built and uses a proper laser cut key as opposed to the ‘open me with a biro’ barrel keys. Its got quite a narrow ‘D’ but is long and works better when you are locking the helmet up as well. The alarm is to be frank a little on the quiet side and doesn’t really feel like 100 db but it still does draw attention which is the main idea. The whole setup works on a clever little microchip which sense movement when it is locked and sets off the alarm. To prevent accidental knocking, it is smart enough that if no more movement occurs within half a minute, it switches back to standby. The only irritation is that when you initially use it, the alarm goes off when you pick it up to unlock it (albeit for a few seconds until you can get the key turned) but once you get used to using it, you simply put the key in the lock and turn it before actually moving the lock (or live with a few seconds of noise). All in all an excellent lock, the packaging is non existent and the instructions are a single sheet of A4 but then I hate unnecessary packaging anyway as it all ends up in a landfill one way or another! Maybe the only suggestion of improvement would be to have the fact that the lock is alarmed more clearly marked on it so that it puts people off even trying. If you are looking for a tough lock with the added bonus of frightening the Neds then this is your choice of champions. Price: £39.99 with Free Delivery! www.sglocks.co.uk