What blank would fit in this Lock

[sillygirl201]

Who thinks they know what key blank fits in this lock?

[squelchtone]

If I'm correct, that would be the Arrow lock owned by the US Postal Service.

You won't be able to buy a blank anywhere on the planet, and if it isn't your lock, we're not here to teach you how to break Federal Laws.

Best Regards,
Squelchtone

[cledry]

Yup, looks like the one the postal workers use to open up the entire gang of boxes.

[minifhncc]

Just a general question. Since I'm not in the USA I'm not familiar with locks there...

I see USPS locks quite often. What are these for? Do all mailboxes have these kind of locks, or is it just for PO boxes?

Also, are the blanks for those locks patented?

[cledry]

Just a general question. Since I'm not in the USA I'm not familiar with locks there...

I see USPS locks quite often. What are these for? Do all mailboxes have these kind of locks, or is it just for PO boxes?

Also, are the blanks for those locks patented?

They are used in communities that have ganged boxes, apartments, condos and some housing areas. Each person has an individual key to their box, there is a special key used by the delivery person to open a big door on the back so they can insert the mail into the individual boxes. If the item won't fit in the box there is often a parcel box and the key to it will be put in your mailbox so you can retrieve your parcel. The keys to individual boxes are not patented and are freely available and may be duplicated just about anywhere. The key shown is for the back and is patented and unlawful to duplicate even if you had a blank.

Within the post offices they also rent boxes, the individual keys for these are unlawful to duplicate even though the blanks are available if you know where to look.

[Anavaree]

Just like my neighborhood. just noticed this today.

[minifhncc]

They are used in communities that have ganged boxes, apartments, condos and some housing areas. Each person has an individual key to their box, there is a special key used by the delivery person to open a big door on the back so they can insert the mail into the individual boxes. If the item won't fit in the box there is often a parcel box and the key to it will be put in your mailbox so you can retrieve your parcel. The keys to individual boxes are not patented and are freely available and may be duplicated just about anywhere. The key shown is for the back and is patented and unlawful to duplicate even if you had a blank.

Thanks for your reply. That's not how it's done in Australia. In Australia all mailboxes are pretty much wafer locks and the boxes have an opening where you can put the mail in without the need for a key.

But isn't the approach taken by USPS a bit insecure? If the mailman loses their key then effectively whoever finds it has access to all the mailboxes and there's nothing the owner can do about having their mail stolen...

[keysman]

But isn't the approach taken by USPS a bit insecure? If the mailman loses their key then......

USPS workers do not loose keys... but they have been known to go postal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Going_postal

[cledry]

Thanks for your reply. That's not how it's done in Australia. In Australia all mailboxes are pretty much wafer locks and the boxes have an opening where you can put the mail in without the need for a key.

But isn't the approach taken by USPS a bit insecure? If the mailman loses their key then effectively whoever finds it has access to all the mailboxes and there's nothing the owner can do about having their mail stolen...

Considering that the majority of mailboxes are not even locked I don't think it matters much.

Most look like this.

[misterj]

I've seen that keyway on the large door behind the rural mail boxes, just as everyone said.

As far as PO Boxes, all the ones I've seen around here use what looks like a reverse/opposed Yale E1R/Para keyway.