5 ms·

Use the most commonly used lock on the outside of the locker. You don't want your locker to stand out. Shrouded padlocks are more secure, but they also tell p

Use the most commonly used lock on the outside of the locker. You don't want your locker to stand out. Shrouded padlocks are more secure, but they also tell potential thieves that your locker may actually be worth breaking into. In any case, the gym management often restricts your choice, because they need to be able to cut locks off. I'd save the serious security for the inside of the locker. Get a locking hard case designed for handguns, with a cable lock slot built in, and use a cable lock to secure it to the inside of the locker. Put your valuables in it and pile your clothes on top. Consider changing to a gym that has separate locker and changing areas, so that cameras can be used to detect locker break-ins and catch the culprits. The individual padlock is, at best, a delaying tactic, which is useless if someone has unlimited time in which to break security. If someone is in my locker room popping locks with a shim, I want someone to notice that and detain them, or at least identify them from the video footage.

giardini 10y ago
The thieves break into the most commonly-used locks. FWIW there are hacks for most locks on Youtube! There's nothing inside the locker to which to attach a hard case, which would undoubtedly be stolen. Can't change gyms w/o losing $$ - have a two-year plan. Been going there for years. BTW all gyms have this problem - it isn't uncommon. I _have_ considered abandoning the gym and going to a body-weight exercise plan + walking/running. I'd get more sun/rain/sleet/sunny days.
- tunap 10y ago
  edit: n/m, topic covered already. Why not leave valuables in your(locked) car?
  - ptaipale 10y ago
    Is that a sarcastic joke? Cars are obvious targets for burgling. At least over here, insurance companies won't pay anything if you leave it in the car and it gets burgled.
    - dpark 10y ago
      Cars are probably broken into less than gym lockers. A locked door on a car is typically sufficient deterrent, as the thief will just prowl for an unlocked one. A lock on a gym locker is apparently not enough deterrent.
      - ptaipale 10y ago
        Over here in Europe, car burglaries are common, and often insurance covers burglary to a locker (as locker is meant for safe storage) but not burglary to a car (as a car is not).
- jungletek 10y ago
  I'm sure if you made a (perhaps public) fuss about their lack of security in the locker rooms, they'd be willing to cancel with no penalties. You could probably also argue that such a failure constitutes a violation of their end of the agreement, depending on the wording. Don't be a doormat, dude.
dpark 10y ago
Someone capable of cutting a padlock can definitely cut a cable lock, so I'm not sure who you're going to deter this way. You will, however, increase your loss if they take your gun case. I think it's a fallacy that using a better lock makes you a bigger target. In a gym, thieves are looking for the same thing in every locker: money and jewelry. A better lock doesn't indicate that the Hope diamond is inside. It indicates that it's going to be harder to steal the $50 from the wallet inside.
- ptaipale 10y ago
  I guess the idea of a cable lock here is to use it so that it attaches the bottom or backside of the hard case to the inside of the locker, so that the cable lock is only accessible from inside the hard case. This is, after all, how safes are attached to floors and/or walls. Then, the thief would have to destroy either the hard case, or the whole locker. That would be slow and noisy. It's not impossible but deters intruders who will simply perform a cost-benefit analysis and move on (but will surely destroy your clothes in revenge).
  - jacquesm 10y ago
    > but will surely destroy your clothes in revenge In revenge for what? Interesting psychology.
    - ptaipale 10y ago
      Indeed. But it seems to be what burglars often do: if they are frustrated by security, they do some vandalism.
  - dpark 10y ago
    Couldn't the thief simply pull up on your gun case and cut the cable through the gap created? There's no way you're going to get the cable tight enough by hand than a thief can't move the case a bit (safes generally use bolts, which don't have this problem). Maybe if it's secured to the back wall it will be awkward enough to maneuver the cutters that the thief gives up?

giardini 10y ago

The thieves break into the most commonly-used locks. FWIW there are hacks for most locks on Youtube! There's nothing inside the locker to which to attach a hard case, which would undoubtedly be stolen. Can't change gyms w/o losing $$ - have a two-year plan. Been going there for years. BTW all gyms have this problem - it isn't uncommon. I _have_ considered abandoning the gym and going to a body-weight exercise plan + walking/running. I'd get more sun/rain/sleet/sunny days.

tunap 10y ago
edit: n/m, topic covered already. Why not leave valuables in your(locked) car?
- ptaipale 10y ago
  Is that a sarcastic joke? Cars are obvious targets for burgling. At least over here, insurance companies won't pay anything if you leave it in the car and it gets burgled.
  - dpark 10y ago
    Cars are probably broken into less than gym lockers. A locked door on a car is typically sufficient deterrent, as the thief will just prowl for an unlocked one. A lock on a gym locker is apparently not enough deterrent.
    - ptaipale 10y ago
      Over here in Europe, car burglaries are common, and often insurance covers burglary to a locker (as locker is meant for safe storage) but not burglary to a car (as a car is not).
jungletek 10y ago
I'm sure if you made a (perhaps public) fuss about their lack of security in the locker rooms, they'd be willing to cancel with no penalties. You could probably also argue that such a failure constitutes a violation of their end of the agreement, depending on the wording. Don't be a doormat, dude.

dpark 10y ago

Someone capable of cutting a padlock can definitely cut a cable lock, so I'm not sure who you're going to deter this way. You will, however, increase your loss if they take your gun case. I think it's a fallacy that using a better lock makes you a bigger target. In a gym, thieves are looking for the same thing in every locker: money and jewelry. A better lock doesn't indicate that the Hope diamond is inside. It indicates that it's going to be harder to steal the $50 from the wallet inside.

ptaipale 10y ago
I guess the idea of a cable lock here is to use it so that it attaches the bottom or backside of the hard case to the inside of the locker, so that the cable lock is only accessible from inside the hard case. This is, after all, how safes are attached to floors and/or walls. Then, the thief would have to destroy either the hard case, or the whole locker. That would be slow and noisy. It's not impossible but deters intruders who will simply perform a cost-benefit analysis and move on (but will surely destroy your clothes in revenge).
- jacquesm 10y ago
  > but will surely destroy your clothes in revenge In revenge for what? Interesting psychology.
  - ptaipale 10y ago
    Indeed. But it seems to be what burglars often do: if they are frustrated by security, they do some vandalism.
- dpark 10y ago
  Couldn't the thief simply pull up on your gun case and cut the cable through the gap created? There's no way you're going to get the cable tight enough by hand than a thief can't move the case a bit (safes generally use bolts, which don't have this problem). Maybe if it's secured to the back wall it will be awkward enough to maneuver the cutters that the thief gives up?