Its not just Kunming, all cities are bad. London, Manchester, and Liverpool are also bad.
The bikes that get stolen, one can assume are quickly turned into cash. Make and model are not important. I have uglified my bike by hand painting. I doubt any used bike dealer would want to buy it from a thief. I figure most thieves could work this out.

Regarding locks. 'U' locks (aka D locks) are one of the easiest types of lock to break into. Strong cable or chain locks are harder to deal with. Thieves seem to just hook up a string to lift the locked wheel and roll away. Locking both wheels mean that they can't do this.

If a thief wants your bike, they will take it. But if there is an easier mark nearby, they will take the easier option.

Here is a good bike thief revenge vid www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRJyJqx6WM0

Most locks can be broken with a can of lighter fuel, 60 seconds. To keep your bike, take either the saddle or the handlebars with you.

Or put a GPS tag on it and track it with your iWatch..

Looks like I won't be leaving my bike outside in KM. Toronto is this way too.

I like the switchblade idea, but it has the potential to injure people who aren't bike thieves.

I would think with bike theft being so prevailent it would be easy to catch theives through entrapment. Just lock an expensive bike up to a tree, and hide in the bushes with a bunch of friends. When the thief starts doing his thing, catch him, take his photo, strip him naked and tie him to the tree. Throw buckets of restaurant waste at him, and leave him there with a sign that reads "Bike Thief" hanging around his neck.

The cheap locks have nylon bearings in the lock. Hence the lighter fuel trick.

Just walk or take a bus - better yet, take a taxi and be ignored or completely dismantle your bike and put it in your backpack since most foreigners like to carry 2 backpacks anyway.

i think the best solution is to BECOME a black taxi driver or a bicycle thief. if you're the driver, you can't ignore yourself. and if you're a thief, you ALWAYS have a bike or 2 or 6 around.

All the laowai can get together and wear red berets and be just like the Guardian Angels in NY. Then you can set up traps as was mentioned. This is much better than getting together in the south of Guandu and serves a public service.

Yes, bike and e-bike theft is pretty rampant here, no doubt. I honestly think the only way to deter it is to buy about a dozen giant, thick, industrial, steel chains, and chain every part of your bike to everything else, then use several chains to chain your bike to trees and posts around it.

Yes, laowai can carry 25 kilos of steel chain in their backpacks and tie their bike to trees and poles.

HFCAMPO, are you speaking with authoritah?