Understanding Pitlock

Genuinely innovative products fulfil a need that people have not yet recognised. Pitlock is one such.

The best description of the Pitlock system we could come up with is: allen keys from hell. Using Pitlock parts, you can replace various fastenings on your bike -- the QR skewers, for instance, or the headset bolt. Once the Pitlocks are in place, they are fiendishly difficult to remove unless you have the right tool, in which case they're a doddle. It goes without saying that we expect that you will have that tool, and that the villains won't. To understand how this works, you'll need a bit more background.

Look at the photo at the left. It shows the three basic building blocks of the Pitlock system: a Pitlock, a Pit, and a Pitlock Collar.

The Pitlock is the thing at the top of the photo. It is a special nut, precision-made in stainless steel with a weird, uneven outer contour. That contour may appear random, but it is in fact one of a repertoire of 256 computer-generated profiles. It is exactly matched to the Pit, the tool at the left of the photo. (The fit between Pit and Pitlock is amazingly snug: this must be one of the neatest pieces of precision engineering we've had through the door, and that's saying something.) The general idea is that, to work on a Pitlock, you need the corresponding Pit. The third item puts the lid on that. The Pitlock Collar, bottom right, is a tapered, recessed stainless steel washer into which the Pitlock fits. We popped in a Pitlock to show you how it looks. The collar makes it impossible to get a grip on the installed Pitlock with a molewrench, say, or wire cutters. So, you thread the Pitlock and Pitlock Collar onto their bolt, snug the Pitlock down using your Pit and a spanner, and that's that. No-one is going to get that bolt undone unless they have the appropriate Pit handy.

'The Full Monty'

As you might expect, it's easiest to buy all your Pitlock components at once. Our favourite Pitlock kit, shown at right, was put together specially for Hubjub by Busse, Pitlock's parent company. They designated it 'Set 01/GA', but we know it as 'The Full Monty'. £44 gets you all the necessary parts to replace your existing front QR, seatpost bolt, and Aheadset bolt. (But see 'What about my seat clamp?', below.) Once the Full Monty is fitted, your front wheel, handlebars, and seatpost are secured to the bike, so a short U-lock through the rear wheel and stays is all you need to park. The set ships with two Pits -- one for your toolkit, one for your bottom drawer.

You also get a security code which tells the factory which one of the 256 different Pit flavours you were issued with, making re-orders easy. Busse maintain full stock, so, if you lose a Pit or want to add a rear QR skewer for your new hub, we can get the parts airmailed in a couple of days.

Bit by bit

Everyone's different. For those who don't want the Full Monty, we have limited stock of two 'single item' Pitlock kits. These are designated logically enough as 'Seatbolt', and 'FrontQR'. (Seatbolt Pitlocks are popular among couriers, and front wheel Pitlocks among tourists.) Both cost £19.00.

Even the 'single item' Pitlock kits come with two Pits and a security code, so you can order additional components later if you find that you need 'em. Note, however, that it isn't a great idea to buy a seatbolt and a front QR kit from us at the same time. Each kit ships with its own Pits, and you will find it confusing to have two different Pit flavours to deal with. If you really need a personalised combination of Pitlocks, drop us a line. Busse are very responsive, and we can likely find you an appropriate set.

What about my seat clamp? And my 1" headset?

These questions throw up two niggling issues with the Pitlock system.

The first is with the Pitlock seatpost bolt. This works well on old-style seattubes with brazed-on lugs, and on modern seat clamps with big exposed flats. However, on other clamps, it is inclined to slip. The remedy is a new clamp. Pitlock make one to their own design with large parallel flats. It's cheap and effective, but it comes in three different diameters -- if you think you need one, mail us to make sure you get the right one.

The second was a limitation to 1 1/8 headsets. This is no longer an issue -- we can provide Pitlock stem caps for 1" headsets. Just drop us a note.

Can I get a Pitlock kit for my bolt-on hub?

Another niggler. Fixers have a thing for bolt-on rear hubs. Pitlock now make a special Pitlock bolt. Marriage made in heaven? Well, the new bolt works pretty well, but i. it is only compatible with particular hubs and ii. it is presently rather expensive. The issue is more complex than you might expect: if you want to Pitlock your bolt-on, write.

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