Sathurshan

December 31, 2019

Prevent Your Brake Callipers From Getting Stolen

Theft of brake callipers is one of the main issues in the Malaysian motorcycling community. There have been numerous complaints of bikers losing brake callipers from various types of motorcycles all around Malaysia. In short, this article covers a few methods to secure your brake callipers.

Brake Callipers | Photo Credit: Brembo

One of the most infamous stories was about Sylvain Ratichon Ract. A Frenchman who was travelling around Southeast Asia all on his Yamaha XT660Z Tenere. After his trip through Thailand, he was passing by Penang, Malaysia. Unfortunately, he got stranded in Penang as the brake callipers, and brake pads were stolen from his motorcycle.

Photo Credit: World Of Buzz

Another infamous story happened during the 2019 Malaysian MotoGP, ​​five Moto2 and Moto3 teams were victims of this petty crime. Gaviota Ángel Nieto Team took the internet by storm as they had the most brutal hit. Brake callipers and pads were amongst the items that went missing.

Furthermore, theft of brake callipers in apartment and hotel parking lots have been gaining public attention as there have are numerous cases are being reported every day. Stolen brake callipers sold in the black market is one of the biggest concern for motorcycle owners.

How to Stop this?

There are a few things that could be done to protect your callipers from thieves. The suggested options listed down below could lower the risk of you becoming one of the victims.

1. Choose the right spot to park

Photo Credit: Melbourne Vic

A simple decision to park in a safe area could save you from losing any parts of the motorcycle. Parking in a safe spot also protects your bike overall. A secure site could be anywhere; a place surrounded by people or an area that could have security features such as CCTV or security posts. So when you take your ride for a spin, make sure to take some time to find the right spot to park.

2. Motorcycle Cover

Photo Credit: We bike

The second simple solution would be using a motorcycle cover. By covering the motorcycle, the thieves would have no clue as to what is underneath. Therefore, it lowers the probability of your bike or parts being the next target on their list. On top of that, it also provides a way to save your bike from harsh environmental conditions.

3. Special Calliper Safety Bolts/Screws

Photo Credit: Bike Empire

You could easily purchase special anti-theft calliper bolts/screws from the market to secure your callipers. These bolts replace the stock bolts connecting to the fork. The calliper bolts/screws require a special tool to remove, thus making it difficult for the thieves to disassemble the disc brake.

You can purchase these special calliper safety bolts/screws here.

4. Roadlok

Photo Credit: Roadlok

Roadlok is a motorcycle lock with a removable stopper that is used to immobilise the wheels to protect the entire bike from being stolen. Furthermore, it also provides additional safety to the front brake calliper as it is permanently attached to the front calliper.

Get to know more about Roadlok here.

5. Safety Wire

Photo Credit: Motordracing

Safety wires act as an additional measure of protection to keep critical fasteners in place during hard vibration. Installation of safety wires requires calliper bolts with holes. Safety wires secure the calliper bolts in place therefore, providing better safety and protection to the calliper itself. In truth, this is not the best solution, but it would make the thieves job harder.

In summary, these are a few actions that you could take to protect yourself and your motorcycle being victims. Similarly, there are other parts of motorcycles which are at risk as well. More tips are coming on how you can further protect other components of your bike. In the meantime, stay alert!