Best lock for home

[kwoswalt99-]

Love it when someone says that a mechanical key operated lock is unpickable. There is always going to be someone somewhere who knows how to pick - or bypass - the lock or mechanism.

That's what you think.

[burkevalocks]

I think the best types of locks the Medco locks. They are high security locks Medeco also provides and protect U.S. government and military with their locks. They also use them for schools and universities, hospitals and banks, vending machines and parking meters, homes and offices, and much, much more. They can not be picked or bump keyed the only way to into them if there is no key, you would need to drill them. The Smart Key is also great. But I would go with the Medco.

why do I get the feeling you're an SEO spammer account? respond to this and convince me you're not,.

by the way, it is Medeco not Medco, it's not a medical company, its MEchanical DEvelopment COmpany. ME DE CO.

drives me up a wall when people say Medco. Its like parents who in the 80's and 90's would say Nitendo instead of NINtendo

Squelchtone

I am sorry I can tell you im no SEO Spammer I am not trying to sell any type of Medeco locks or anything like that. To my understanding I really didn't think they can be picked. I am sorry I got wrong information. But know I know that you pick a lot of Medeco locks before 9am each day. I just thought they were really good locks I was told they are on of the best. Not trying to up sell them once again sorry it sounded like that.

[l0ckcr4ck3r]

I am sorry I can tell you im no SEO Spammer I am not trying to sell any type of Medeco locks or anything like that. To my understanding I really didn't think they can be picked. I am sorry I got wrong information. But know I know that you pick a lot of Medeco locks before 9am each day. I just thought they were really good locks I was told they are on of the best. Not trying to up sell them once again sorry it sounded like that.

There are quite a few extremely knowledgable people on here and its one of the best places to learn about locks, hang around and ask questions and you'll learn a lot. The more you learn about how a lock functions, then the easier it becomes to accurately judge its effectiveness yourself... we all started out in happy ignorance! If you would like a good read and to find out more about Medecos, this book is pretty affordable nowadays on Amazon. Medecos are so far from being "One of The Best", they don't even rank in the category of "High Security Locks"... think of them simply as "higher security" than the average you find at a big box store.

[FletcherMunson]

drives me up a wall when people say Medco. Its like parents who in the 80's and 90's would say Nitendo instead of NINtendo

My parents called it "Intendo".

--FM

[GWiens2001]

I still consider Medeco to be a high security lock due to the multiple locking mechanisms and decent tolerances. It isn't an ASSA Twin Combi, but it sure ain't no Kwikset.

Gordon

[MBI]

I still consider Medeco to be a high security lock due to the multiple locking mechanisms and decent tolerances. It isn't an ASSA Twin Combi, but it sure ain't no Kwikset.

Gordon

I agree. It's still high-security as it's hardened against several types of forced and surreptitious entry, and would be a very big step up in security from standard pin tumbler locks you get at a hardware store. They meet certain UL requirements that hardware store locks could never withstand. I realize some of the UL tests are arbitrary, but they are one measure of a lock's toughness.

However, they're not perfect. They're a lot harder to drill than "regular" locks, but you can do it with the right tools and technique. They're pickable. For me they were one of the most fun high security locks to pick, at least under controlled circumstances. Especially the M3, with it's keyway wide enough that it felt like you could park a truck in it. Plenty of room to maneuver a pick. In the field though, when the lock might be dirty or in need of lube, ambient temperature might not be most comfortable, mounted at an awkward height, I haven't found them to be easy to pick. I learned to do it but each lock was a slow process of trial and error for me.

Would I put Medeco on my front door? It depends. If I got a steal of a deal on some Medeco deadbolts on ebay or something, I'd key them alike and use them, and sleep well with them on my door. If buying new/retail though, there are better locks for the money. In the same general price range of Medeco if I were buying them for myself, a friend or family member, I'd go with Abloy Protec or Protec 2 before Medeco. In a heartbeat.

[l0ckcr4ck3r]

MBI & Gordon, i take your point. I guess that i assume that any discussion on this forum, about the effectiveness of a locking system, is more slanted towards its ability to resist non destructive methods and so i put a lot less emphasis on things like drill resistance. But there are many locks out that that have good drill protection but are trivial to pick for example. With only the 2 categories of "Lock" & "High Security Lock" i just can't bring myself to place Medeco in the same category as Abloy, ASSA Twin, Primus, EVVA 3KS/MCS, Fichet et al. There are just to many exploits and vulnerabilities that have been highlighted over the last 40 years for me to continue to rank it along side more modern and more secure systems.... But i'm sure not putting it on a level with Kwikset.

[burkevalocks]

I am sorry I can tell you im no SEO Spammer I am not trying to sell any type of Medeco locks or anything like that. To my understanding I really didn't think they can be picked. I am sorry I got wrong information. But know I know that you pick a lot of Medeco locks before 9am each day. I just thought they were really good locks I was told they are on of the best. Not trying to up sell them once again sorry it sounded like that.

There are quite a few extremely knowledgable people on here and its one of the best places to learn about locks, hang around and ask questions and you'll learn a lot. The more you learn about how a lock functions, then the easier it becomes to accurately judge its effectiveness yourself... we all started out in happy ignorance! If you would like a good read and to find out more about Medecos, this book is pretty affordable nowadays on Amazon. Medecos are so far from being "One of The Best", they don't even rank in the category of "High Security Locks"... think of them simply as "higher security" than the average you find at a big box store.

Thank you I will look into it and get the book. I see I have a lot of catching up to do.

[MBI]

i just can't bring myself to place Medeco in the same category as Abloy, ASSA Twin, Primus, EVVA 3KS/MCS, Fichet et al.

While I'd still rate Medeco as high security, I can totally see where you're coming from. Once I learned to pick them, they became my favorite lock to pick for a long time. Anything less just wasn't enough of a challenge, but most other high security locks still gave me a lot of difficulty in picking.

However, to be fair to them I think that Medeco has received the lion's share of attention, when it comes to people putting time into trying to defeat them, since they hold roughly 70% of the high security market in the US. It's like the largest number of viruses target Windows, in part because it gives the best bang for the buck since for the past 25 years there have been more Windows devices out there than just about anything else.

Personally I'd remove Primus from that list above though, because while they're hard to pick, it's a lot easier to make an improvised restricted blank for them, than with many others there, and that opens up a whole host of security vulnerabilities. Also I've lost count of the number of locksmiths who complain about poor longevity of the finger pins in the locks, to the extent that I know some institutional locksmiths take the finger pins out altogether just to avoid the hassle of service calls due to a lock that's jammed shut and out of service. Reducing them to the same resistance to picking as a common household lock. Since businesses and governments comprise most of the high security market and those locks tend to require many operation cycles, to be considered one of the best I think they need to be a bit tougher.

[cledry]

He doesn't sound like a spammer here. http://www.antique-locks.com/showthread.php/4041-Hey-There-from-So-Cal-Torrance

well that whole medeco cannot be picked sales sounding post up above here really sounded spammy, if they're a real person, they're in for a treat when we show them all the Medeco locks we pick before 9am each day.

Squelchtone

Love it when someone says that a mechanical key operated lock is unpickable. There is always going to be someone somewhere who knows how to pick - or bypass - the lock or mechanism.

Gordon

Gordon, have you tried picking that bike lock you bought from me? I would be curious if you have and if you were successful. Please don't tell me you bypassed the lock with an angle grinder. LOL

[globallockytoo]

Hi All,

I am looking for the best residential deadbolt lock for my new home. I need it to be secure but also not look heavy duty or commercial. Most importantly - it has to be bump resistant.

What do you think of this:

http://hotbikiniwallpapers.com/

Should I go with the Kwikset Smartkey? Does anyone has experience with it?

Thanks!

Bilock Deadbolt. Sells for about $175.00. or you can purchase a Bilock cylinder for a Schlage (or other non-brand name quality) deadbolt for about $125 including 3 keys. 100% bump proof, virtually pick proof and keys are copy proof.

install a Strikemaster II Pro to the jamb and you prevent door frame failure (kick-ins) too.

If there is glass in or near the door, you can install window film like ShatterGARD, to prevent the window from breaking.

[Corvid]

I knew that medeco was pickable but I definitely thought that they would be tougher than this thread implies. I feel a very strong urge to buy one now.

[GWiens2001]

Gordon, have you tried picking that bike lock you bought from me? I would be curious if you have and if you were successful. Please don't tell me you bypassed the lock with an angle grinder. LOL

Have not yet tried to pick the bike lock I got from you. The pick that I had made is in the mail to me now. Once it gets here, will give it a try on some Abus X-Plus padlocks first, then try that bike lock. Will be sure to let you know more when I have the pick in hand.

I also do not consider myself to be more than an intermediate picker. Have I opened a number of high security locks? Yes. Have I picked an EVVA MCS? Yes, but it did not open.



Gordon

[jbrint]

I bought a new home recently and it came with the Kwikset junk. Ebay and a couple of older keyed alike Medeco's later makes me feel much better. They look normal on the door and work like a champ. The cost from Ebay was less than some of crap locks from the local depot.

[GWiens2001]

I bought a new home recently and it came with the Kwikset junk. Ebay and a couple of older keyed alike Medeco's later makes me feel much better. They look normal on the door and work like a champ. The cost from Ebay was less than some of crap locks from the local depot.

Glad you like them.

Be sure you replace all the screws in the hinges and other hardware into the door jamb with 3" screws, to make it harder for people to kick in your door. Your security is only as strong as the weakest link.

Gordon