Master Lock Street Fortum U-lock

The entry price point for proper U-locks seems to get lower every year, and this unit from Master Lock at £30 (less online) is a great piece of entry level security, resisting attack with the tenacity of steel costing twice as much.

The Street Fortum is well constructed from hardened steel, with a shackle that goes right through the locking bar helping to anchor it in place. It's finished in orange plastic and frame-friendly rubber, and you get four keys and a fairly bog-standard frame mount that does the job without any fuss.

We attacked the lock with our usual crop of thieves' tools starting with the bolt croppers which didn't make much of an impression. next up was the persuader which was equally ineffective, and the well-protected lock barrel survived some abuse too; the lock was still fully functional after five minutes with only minimal cosmetic damage.

All in all the Street Fortum passed with flying colours and at thirty quid – twenty if you shop around – it's excellent value to boot. Okay the mount could be better but hey, it works, and you can't have everything for this kind of money.

Verdict

Great value security solution that's well worth considering. Why spend £20-£30 on a cable lock when you could be packing this?