Gadgets

Upgrade your shitty bike lock with the APEX Ti by Altorlocks

Pop and lock

by
Curtis Silver
August 26, 2019

Image: Altorlocks

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To this point, I’ve been using the same bike lock since high school. It’s a thicker chain link lock with plastic coating and a thumb slider combination. There is no key. Sometimes I forget to even roll the numbers to lock it. Sometimes I don’t lock it.

I’ve had one bike stolen in my lifetime and it was retrieved. I currently ride a moderately expensive fixed gear road bike. It’s nice. It’s light and sleek and I recently added the APEX Ti by Altorlocks to its arsenal of attachments.

The APEX Ti is a $189 titanium, modular angle lock from Altorlocks. It weighs a modest 1.4-pounds and folds up to about the mass of a clipped-on water bottle. It’s hardened steel wrapped around Grade 5 aerospace titanium alloy. It is an eight-piece interlocking joint lock that is impervious to most power tools. It is also pending certification by ART, an international lock-testing organization. Those are facts about this lock, because this is a professional lock that demands facts.

It should be noted that Altorlocks also has an Indiegogo for its latest lock, a 14-pound $200 behemoth called the SAF Lock. It’s a massive U-lock and while roughly the same size as normal U-locks, is angle grinder proof. Based on the current success of the campaign, it seems that cyclers aren’t really keen on carrying a 14-pound lock when their bikes generally weigh under 20-pounds naked. Altorlocks, for its credit, is really looking to cyclers secure their bikes, even if it means nearly doubling the weight.

The point that Altorlocks is trying to make with the APEX Ti is that it would be easier to cut the bike in half than mess with these locks

altorlock apex ti bike lock — Image: Altorlock

Move on. This bike is not for you to steal. While the Apex Ti is as easy to add to your bike weight as it is to use, the SAF is just a ridiculous amount of bike locking overkill. You don’t need that lock.

Even if you are riding an $8,000 Trek bike, chances are you aren’t keeping it outside on the fucking curb. You ride it, you slap it on the back of your RAV4 to take on trails, but you don’t lock it up outside the local Popeye’s while you are getting your chicken sandwich on.

This is not a sponsored post, I received this bike lock for review and I like it. Sure, it’s damn expensive for a lock, but if you give a shit about your bike, the price of the lock is certainly relative to the price. My road bike was not a bag of walnuts, so it probably needs a good lock that doesn’t weigh all that much. Even with tools in the saddlebag, a water bottle, pump and handlebar bag, adding the APEX Ti still keeps my bike weight in the 25-26 pound range.

To be fair, I don’t have gears so the desire to steal a bike like mine is probably fairly low. People look at a fixed-gear and they get scared. I know I was when I bought it. Even though I mostly ride flywheel, I still need to lock it up from time to time. Like when I’m getting a Popeye’s chicken sandwich. Or hanging out in a Walmart bathroom trying to pee, my padded bike shorts strangling my kneecaps (that one is for you Kevin).

altorlocks apex ti bike lock — Image: Altorlocks

The Altorlocks APEX Ti is a strong, visually scary lock. With its angles and key lock in a high-security disc detainer lock mechanism and ability to be connected to other APEX Ti locks for an even longer lock, even thinking about jacking the bike attached to it is daunting.

If you ride a shit bike then you probably want a shit lock, but if you’ve spent any amount of money on your bike, then you want a nice lock that is lightweight and strong. The Altorlocks APEX Ti fits that bill. While I didn’t have room to bolt it to my bike (the bracket for it at least), it slides nicely into the saddlebag. It unfolds quick and can be locked before someone notices that you have a key for it.

Because that’s key isn’t it? Not letting them see you sweat or worry about your bike. Not letting them watch you roll the combination or glance around for shady characters. While this lock might not solve your general paranoia, it will likely keep your bike from getting stolen, leaving you with half a bike chain and sadness.

A sample unit was provided for the purpose of this article.