Diebold early 1950’s

[AMFgaming]

I acquired our family business’s safe. Can find no info about it. Looking for general stuff: manual,sales advertisements, name, series, dates, diebold company has nothing on it. Internet search turns up nothing.
My grandparents founded the business I want to pass this on to my son so I need to also know what to look for in a safe tech. Don’t know how to weed out the hacks from the pros. I believe the external relocker has activated and I don’t want this turned into Swiss cheese.
Thank you.

[Squelchtone]

That's a lot of Asbestos man.. just letting you know in case you are not in the know. Some people care about that sort of thing, some don't.

It appears in photo 2 that the door is open, did you dial a combination to open it or was the safe already unlocked?

Why do you believe a relocker has fired? Did you take off the cover from the back of the combination lock?

If you remove the inner skin from the door you can expose the lock mechanism and bolt work and service the lock, figure out the combination, etc.

Thanks,
Squelchtone

[AMFgaming]

No. Relocked for the move. Now combo works at usual. But handle will not turn

[Squelchtone]

No. Relocked for the move. Now combo works at usual. But handle will not turn

Hmmm, after you dial the combination, on the "last number" do you get to a point where the dial is harder to turn and then the dial stops dead when the bolt is retracted, at which point you try the handle but you're saying the handle won't turn left or right?

or when you dial the combination does the dial never stop being able to be turned by hand?

Is the safe standing on it's wheels or is it on it's side still?



Thanks,
Squelchtone

[AMFgaming]

It turns to the right. Maybe 45 numbers. Feels and sounds as before. As tho the bolt is being retracted. Comes to stop. Handle still will not move

[Squelchtone]

It turns to the right. Maybe 45 numbers. Feels and sounds as before. As tho the bolt is being retracted. Comes to stop. Handle still will not move

Sounds like the door is binding.. can you press against the door and try the handle?

[GWiens2001]

First, is the door currently open? If yes, ignore these instructions. If no, try the following:

After retracting the bolt on the lock, use a plastic dead blow mallet and keep knocking around the outer edge of the door about 3 inches in from the edge of the while turning the handle.

By doing this, you are hoping to jar the door enough for the bolts to be freed from the binding, even if it is a little at a time. If this does not cause the handle to move (even if it is in small increments), then you may have a bigger problem.

Gordon

[AMFgaming]

I do notice that the door is VERY tight. It seems strange that the is absolutely no wiggle or rattle but I cannot recall what is was like prior to this not opening. I”ll try the dead blow hammer. I read a bag of lead shot is also something to use.

[AMFgaming]

First off…..OPEN

[image] [Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/X7zkYVX.jpg)[/image]

[AMFgaming]

Thank you all for bearing with me. I did not want rush into doing something when I know nothing about it.

Squelchtone, you said something so obvious that it didn’t even register with me. BINDING

So the safe was on its side in the Baja, hinges on the bed liner. I pushed it out to the pivot point and lowered it just over a foot to the patio. I saw that the door had moved upwards leaving a gap between the door portion and the body portion of hinge. When I I moved it to its place I noticed plastic in the hinge. The hinges gouged the bed liner. I really thought nothing of it. I removed the plastic in from the hinge and gently tapped the door down. Tried to open it, dial part was fine, but not able to turn handle. BINDING.

Read as much as I could find about it (very little). So I took my 25 lb of lead shot to nudge the bolts. No go. Move on to rubber mallet wrapped in neoprene. Nothing.

[AMFgaming]

Then Dilbert helped. Gently lifted at bottom of door.


[image] [/image]

[AMFgaming]

I am going to take the inside cover off the door now to see, and photograph, how this thing is put together. Since the door was lower on the hinge I don’t know how to deals with it. These are beefy hinges. Don’t appear to have bent. I will have questions as I go along.

Thank you again.

[AMFgaming]

Top hinge pin showing bronze part

[image] [Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/ALTTwFD.jpg)[/image]
Top hinge showing serrated bronze part

[image] [Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/SpAbgIA.jpg)[/image]
Bottom hinge.

[image] [Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/aipBrMX.jpg)[/image]
One of the crushed or worn spacers?

I found washers of about the correct diameter and thickness but the bronze part with a washer on it holds door too high. Any ideas as to what Diebold had in these hinges ?

[AMFgaming]

[image] [/image]

[image] [/image]

[image] [/image]


very frustrating using the Imgur site