5 ms·

Why are bikes still getting stolen? So many bikes are stolen that you'd think the market for stolen bikes, and parts, which can't be THAT huge, would be saturat

Why are bikes still getting stolen? So many bikes are stolen that you'd think the market for stolen bikes, and parts, which can't be THAT huge, would be saturated.

johnny99 10y ago
I think it's in part because they are their own getaway vehicles. And they're often parked outside, so you don't have to break in to anything.
miloshadzic 10y ago
people whose bikes get stolen need new ones
- abrax3141 10y ago
  That would only make sense if Schwinn was stealing them.
  - 67726e 10y ago
    I steal your bike, and I sell it to my buddy who himself lost a bike to a thief.
    - abrax3141 10y ago
      That's a pyramid scheme, to which my original point applies specifically.
      - 67726e 10y ago
        How so?
        abrax3141 10y ago
        The bottom of the pyramid should fill up with stolen bikes faster than the bikes rust out. Although I guess with 13M more births than deaths each year, there's 13M more potential outlets for stolen bikes. My guess is that most of those buy new or unstolen used, but with only 1.5M bike thefts a year, I may have just data'ed myself out of my OP! (All data for US 2015)
      - dragonwriter 10y ago
        It's not a pyramid scheme, because people who buy stolen bikes are also subject to having their bikes stolen. Pyramid schemes are acyclic, the market for stolen bikes is not.
slantyyz 10y ago
There was a weird case in Toronto Canada - if your bike was stolen in the city, it probably ended up in the possession of one particular guy. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/world/americas/21iht-canada.4.15521252.html http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/world/americas/21iht-canad...
valueprop 10y ago
There's a demand, so there's a market. The problem is other people buy stolen bikes. I would also call those thieves, even if they don't do the stealing by themselves. As long as one buys something without original papers, they support the guys who do the stealing itself. PS: 2 of my bikes were stolen.
- dpark 10y ago
  I have no papers for the bike I bought brand new at full retail from a bike shop. Who keeps "papers" for a bike?
  - peller 10y ago
    They probably just mean proof of purchase. The other important bit is the serial number (analogous to a car's VIN), often found under the bottom bracket.[0] You can (and should) register it with the local police, and there are a few online registries too. It's not an effective deterrent[1], but it's better than nothing. (I've had a bike returned to me because I registered it. That was before I learned to always use Kryptonite U-locks.) [0] https://bikeindex.org/serials https://bikeindex.org/serials [1] Wrapping your bike in tape, or otherwise making it look like a POS, is the way to go if you live in a theft-heavy location.
    - MagnumOpus 10y ago
      > always use Kryptonite U-locks Don't. My bike was stolen by rapidly sawing (dremeling?) through a Kryptolok in broad daylight in a place with some of the most heavy law enforcement presence in Europe. Their locks are much weaker than their marketing.
      - dpark 10y ago
        What locks are stronger?
      - peller 10y ago
        Sorry to hear that. It's the strongest lock I've come across[0], but yea, once power tools come into play I can't imagine much of anything standing up to metal cut off grinder. What do you use now to secure your ride? [0] http://www.kryptonitelock.com/content/kryt-us/en/products/product-information/current-key/997986.html http://www.kryptonitelock.com/content/kryt-us/en/products/pr...
Lexarius 10y ago
That's like asking "Why are people still manufacturing bikes, you'd think everyone who wants a bike would have one by this point". Bikes generally have shorter lifespans than people, and we're also making new people-who-want-bikes all the time.
- abrax3141 10y ago
  I'm guessing that it's more like people are getting them stolen regularly. What I don't get is why the bottom of the pyramid (cf other branch of this thread) doesn't fill up.
  - dragonwriter 10y ago
    Because people who possess stolen bikes are just as vulnerable to bike thrives as everyone else. If only non-stolen bikes got stolen, the pool of people willing to buy stolen bikes would probably not support any significant level of theft for very long, but that's.not how it works.

Why are bikes still getting stolen? So many bikes are stolen that you'd think the market for stolen bikes, and parts, which can't be THAT huge, would be saturated.

johnny99 10y ago

I think it's in part because they are their own getaway vehicles. And they're often parked outside, so you don't have to break in to anything.

miloshadzic 10y ago

people whose bikes get stolen need new ones

abrax3141 10y ago
That would only make sense if Schwinn was stealing them.
- 67726e 10y ago
  I steal your bike, and I sell it to my buddy who himself lost a bike to a thief.
  - abrax3141 10y ago
    That's a pyramid scheme, to which my original point applies specifically.
    - 67726e 10y ago
      How so?
      - abrax3141 10y ago
        The bottom of the pyramid should fill up with stolen bikes faster than the bikes rust out. Although I guess with 13M more births than deaths each year, there's 13M more potential outlets for stolen bikes. My guess is that most of those buy new or unstolen used, but with only 1.5M bike thefts a year, I may have just data'ed myself out of my OP! (All data for US 2015)
    - dragonwriter 10y ago
      It's not a pyramid scheme, because people who buy stolen bikes are also subject to having their bikes stolen. Pyramid schemes are acyclic, the market for stolen bikes is not.

slantyyz 10y ago

There was a weird case in Toronto Canada - if your bike was stolen in the city, it probably ended up in the possession of one particular guy. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/world/americas/21iht-canada.4.15521252.html http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/world/americas/21iht-canad...

valueprop 10y ago

There's a demand, so there's a market. The problem is other people buy stolen bikes. I would also call those thieves, even if they don't do the stealing by themselves. As long as one buys something without original papers, they support the guys who do the stealing itself. PS: 2 of my bikes were stolen.

dpark 10y ago
I have no papers for the bike I bought brand new at full retail from a bike shop. Who keeps "papers" for a bike?
- peller 10y ago
  They probably just mean proof of purchase. The other important bit is the serial number (analogous to a car's VIN), often found under the bottom bracket.[0] You can (and should) register it with the local police, and there are a few online registries too. It's not an effective deterrent[1], but it's better than nothing. (I've had a bike returned to me because I registered it. That was before I learned to always use Kryptonite U-locks.) [0] https://bikeindex.org/serials https://bikeindex.org/serials [1] Wrapping your bike in tape, or otherwise making it look like a POS, is the way to go if you live in a theft-heavy location.
  - MagnumOpus 10y ago
    > always use Kryptonite U-locks Don't. My bike was stolen by rapidly sawing (dremeling?) through a Kryptolok in broad daylight in a place with some of the most heavy law enforcement presence in Europe. Their locks are much weaker than their marketing.
    - dpark 10y ago
      What locks are stronger?
    - peller 10y ago
      Sorry to hear that. It's the strongest lock I've come across[0], but yea, once power tools come into play I can't imagine much of anything standing up to metal cut off grinder. What do you use now to secure your ride? [0] http://www.kryptonitelock.com/content/kryt-us/en/products/product-information/current-key/997986.html http://www.kryptonitelock.com/content/kryt-us/en/products/pr...

Lexarius 10y ago

That's like asking "Why are people still manufacturing bikes, you'd think everyone who wants a bike would have one by this point". Bikes generally have shorter lifespans than people, and we're also making new people-who-want-bikes all the time.

abrax3141 10y ago
I'm guessing that it's more like people are getting them stolen regularly. What I don't get is why the bottom of the pyramid (cf other branch of this thread) doesn't fill up.
- dragonwriter 10y ago
  Because people who possess stolen bikes are just as vulnerable to bike thrives as everyone else. If only non-stolen bikes got stolen, the pool of people willing to buy stolen bikes would probably not support any significant level of theft for very long, but that's.not how it works.