Mosko Moto ADV Locks Review [Heavy Duty and Compact]

Mosko Moto Heavy Duty ADV Lock and Compact ADV Lock provide protection from opportunistic thieves who keep an eye out for steal-and-run chances. While adventure bike soft panniers are convenient for capacity, flexibility, and price, they leave me uncomfortable regarding security. Mosko Moto evidently felt the same way, so the White Salmon, Washington-based company came out with cinchable cable locks.

The Mosko Moto locks come in two security levels—Heavy Duty and Compact—to add theft-deterrent to motorcycle luggage. The cables are bright blue to catch the wandering eye of potential thieves and suggest they find a different target. To keep things tidy, each cable has two Velcro straps to secure any extra cable after cinching.

For $25, you get the Mosko Moto Compact ADV Lock. It uses a light 5mm, PVC-coated steel cable in five- and six-foot lengths and cinches with a combination lock. The Compact has a loop at one end if you want to slip knot it to your frame. The 5mm Compact lock uses a three-tumbler combination lock with a pivoting lever that locks the cable in place when you mix up the tumblers.

The Mosko Moto Heavy Duty ADV Lock runs $35. It uses a more robust 8mm, PVC-coated steel cable in five- and six-foot lengths (same price) with a rubber-coated, high-security, cinchable key lock. The 8mm HD lock uses a security key mechanism to hold the cable tight after cinching it up. The 8mm looks and feels harder to cut, so it is a good deterrent in an area with foot traffic. However, the Heavy Duty lock weighs nearly 12 ounces, compared to a featherweight 4.5 ounces for the Compact version.

Both the Heavy Duty and Compact ADV locks hold their cables tight. Besides locking the panniers, these cables can be used to secure your helmet, jacket, and pants. Depending on your creativity, you might be able to secure your boots—every pair of riding boots I have has a pass-through for the cable, though you might have to look for it. It would be nice to take a dip in a forest creek on a hot day and not worry about my gear wandering off when I have my back turned.

I have a hard case, and have taken tours with one lockable hard case and one soft pannier. While soft panniers are more flexible for packing, my paranoia has kept me looking for soft bag security solutions.

The panniers currently on the Ultimate Motorcycling Yamaha Ténéré 700 Project Bike have six red eyelets on each bag that accommodate both sizes of the Mosko Moto ADV cables. When the cables are threaded from the front to the back, through the pannier rack and back to the front, there is no way to easily get a hand inside the pannier for a five-finger discount. Most opportunity thieves don’t carry 12-inch bolt cutters in their back pockets.

Nothing can keep a determined criminal from their evil doing. Four muscular men can throw your half-ton touring bike into a pickup truck and drive off! However, if you want soft luggage on your adventure bike, then threading the cable of either the Mosko Moto Heavy Duty ADV Lock or the companion Compact ADV Lock through dedicated loops, or just cinching it to its mounting rack, will allow you to walk away reasonably confident your contents still there when you come back.

Mosko Moto ADV Locks Review Photo Gallery