It’s not just to get a lock for your Onewheel, in this article, we will go through some of the best locks for your Onewheel and how to make your board harder to steal. When it comes to leaving your board locked somewhere it comes down to the saying.
“If you can’t afford to lose it don’t let it out of your sight”
In short, don’t leave it anywhere unsupervised because it isn’t a cheap bike, it’s far too expensive and more comparable with a high-end electric bike. With electric bikes, you usually are forced to have two locks and take the battery with you when leaving it outside. There is always the risk of theft.
If you need to lock it to something don’t use a cable lock, they can easily be cut open with a hand cutter. Use a U-lock that is well-rated, like the Kryptonite Evolution Lite Mini-6, or a hardened chain like the Kryptonite New York Cinch Ring Security Chain. If weight and convenience are important a good alternative is the TiGr.
IMPORTANT, an angle grinder can make it through kryptonite U-locks in less than 30 seconds. Almost no lock stands a chance against a diamond cut-off wheel. The lock is to make it harder for the thief to take it at the moment. If there is time and no one is around, with the right tools it’s scary crazy how insecure “tough hardened” locks are.
”a lock is only good as a deterrent and delaying mechanism”
Pick resistance is not the biggest factor in your locks despite what the seller says. The common thief will not pick your lock, they carry tools like bolt cutters, aviation snips, and hydraulic cutters. The only real protection against those tools is hardening and diameter.
As you can read in my 1-year review of the Pint, the Onewheel is a fantastic way to get around and commute to work. It’s small enough for me to carry into my office and keep under my desk. At my work, I’m not afraid of anyone taking the board and walking out, if this is a concern for you, then I heavily recommend getting a lock for your device.
I never leave it unattended in the park or outside places like the grocery store, even for only a few minutes. If you want to do this you will need to get a lock for your board. Here are the best options and what to think of for locking your Onewheel.
Picking the lock – Security vs Convenience
When considering the lock for your Onewheel there are two key parameters if we are excluding the price point. As the Onewheel is costly you should not skim on the lock to save a couple of bucks. The two parameters are protection, how secure the lock and the other is convenience.
These two parameters don’t go hand in hand. If your priorities are security it will come with the price of a heavier and bigger lock compared to a more convenient one. And vice versa, for a more convenient lock it will be a loss in security as it is smaller, and thinner to reduce the weight and make it easier to carry around and lock your Onewheel.
I have narrowed down three security locks that offer different benefits and one that you should never use. They all have their weaknesses and strengths so it’s up to you to decide what’s the right fit for your use case. It will also depend on what board you have. The locks in short are as follows:
Kryptonite Evolution Lite Mini-6 (Onewheel XR)
If you have an Onewheel XR this is the lock for you. This lock will fit between the rails of the XR and is the go-to lock in the Onweheel community. Most other U-locks are too big and will not slide between the rail and the wheel.
The key feature of the Evolution Lite is the 11mm hard-ended steel. This makes it hold up to most normal brute-force attacks.
Weight: 1.60 lbs (.73 kgs)
TiGr (Onewheel Pint / Pint X)
The TiGr lock is made from Titanium making it one of the lightest and best locks when compared to weight to performance. The design makes it perfect for all Onewheels and it works for the Onewheel Pint and Onewheel Pint X.
It’s an expensive lock, but with the price you get a very strong and resistant lock for most common forms of attacks and to the tools normally used by bike thieves.
Weight: 15oz/431g
Kryptonite New York Cinch Ring Security Chain
If you want more options on how to lock your Onewheel Pint check out the security chain from Kryptonite. It’s a secure chain lock with 12mm chain links made of hardened steel for maximum security. The chain will give you more options to where you can secure the board compared to the U-lock and TiGr options.
The downside is the weight of the lock, it’s not something you want to carry all day long.
Weight: 10.55 lbs (4.79 kg)
Cable lock – NEVER
In short, never use a cable lock if you need to go away from your Onehweel. A standard cable lock is easily cut with a pair of pliers, a bolt cutter, or a portable Dremel tool.
The only place you might want to consider using it is at work to stop your colleagues from trying your board when you are not around. Else look into the Kryptonite U-lock, Security chain, or the options from TiGr.
How to recover a stolen Onewheel?
It’s good to get hold of your serial number and receipt of purchase when you are talking to the authorities.
The next step will be to look at common sites like Facebook Market and Craigslist if you are located in the US. Every country has its second-hand marketplaces even if Facebook Market and online Facebook groups have grown in popularity during the past years.
If you haven’t joined the different Facebook groups people are reporting suspicious sellers that are trying to sell suspicious boards or listings of boards without a charger. If you find a board that looks like yours contact the authorities and you can use your serial number to prove ownership,
- As always, notify the authorities if the board is stolen and contact your insurance company.
- Find your receipt and serial number of your board
- Look out on places like Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist for your board.
- Join Onewheel groups on Facebook and post about your stolen board, the time date, and in what city it was taken.
Sadly not many boards resurface, that’s why a good lock is needed if you ever plan to walk away from your board.
Conclusion:
If you ever plan to leave your board in an open location and walk away you need a lock, a good lock. Not leaving your board is the best anti-theft, a lock is the second. The Onewheel is extremely expensive because of the technology inside them and getting a good lock is money well spent. The options depend on the use case, where are you going to secure the board, and how lightweight you need the lock to be.
If you have an Onewheel GT or GT S-Series head out to your local shop and try, a security chain will most likely work, but it’s still better to try.
Keep your board safe, and float on!
