Decoding Best Master Key

[searsman05]

I just decoded a Best IC that i had laying around my house. I measured all the pins i removed with my caliper and them multiplied them to get the code then subtracted to get the cut.

Now my question to all you lockies is how do you decode the master key of a core. I was reading about a best decoding kit (i believe that it was a lab kit) and they stated that you could decode the control key and the top most master key.

All the info that i have is on how to decode the core key. I am pretty sure that you can decode the master key like the kit said but i am not sure the order you do it in or the numbers that you subtract it from.

If you know how decode a master key please fill me in on how to do it.

Or if you have any info or pictures on this please steer me in that direction.

Oh ya this is a best A2 setup and the pin stacks do add up to 23.

Thanks,

-James

[Chucklz]

This will give you tons of good information on how pinning in a Best style system works.

http://professional.schlage.com/pdfs/pc ... manual.pdf

You should be able to decode the control key from this. But the top level MK, you probably cannot do that from a single core alone, unless you have the operating key bitting.

[vector40]

I don't know of a way either, unless the mastery was done in a way that makes it evident. Think of it this way: suppose every pin stack has three shearlines, one control, one for the operating key, and one for the overall master. (So we're assuming the simplest situation, only one level of master.) Ignoring the control shearlines, you know that any of the remaining shearlines, and any COMBINATION of them, will allow the lock to open. How do you know which shearlines are for this lock alone and which are for the master?

At the very least you'd need a second cylinder from the same system but with a different operating bitting. That way you could look at what pin heights are common between the two cylinders and use that for the master, which should be correct unless there happen to be two identical operating heights.

The easier way is to have a working operating key. That way you can eliminate those heights, and the remaining shearlines are your master.

BEST is a little weird though. There may very well be an official fixed system.

[Chucklz]

Don't forget that not all Best cores are factory combinated. So, even if there is an official system (probably not), there would be no way to know if your core was from a factory system.

That being said, I have seen a few factory systems, and the only general thing I can say about the MK's is that they generally have one or more low cuts, and one or more very shallow cuts. Note that this is a generalization.

[searsman05]

well i am going to try and find another one that is if i even have one around here to find. I think i have a padlock with a best core in it but not sure if it is the same system. i will get the control key cut and find out that i guess.

I successfully decoded the control key that was straight forward enough to do.

Also the core i decoded has 4 pins in each stack if that means anything. It is not master pinned to bad so i might have a chance.

Now i do not have any keys to the core so i cannot eliminate that cut so i am kinda stuck where i am for now, or that is what i am guessing so far.

-James

[grit1]

My friend actually wrote a program that allows you to input the decimal values of pin stacks in an SFIC and will calculate and output all of the permutations to a text file. These line return seperated values can be combined with another core's output into an excel spreadsheet, color coded and sorted to look for common bittings. Cut the top most common bittings across two or more cores, and one will be your master. We haven't had a chance to try it yet, still looking for a couple of cores from a set, but when we do I'll let everyone know how it works. He's an open source fan so it will probably hit this community if we have some success. ~Grit

[searsman05]

Nice well if you want some help testing feel free to send it my way it sounds very interesting.

And please let me know how it works for you. I would really like to see how it works myself.

-James

[goliathdrakken]

My friend actually wrote a program that allows you to input the decimal values of pin stacks in an SFIC and will calculate and output all of the permutations to a text file. These line return seperated values can be combined with another core's output into an excel spreadsheet, color coded and sorted to look for common bittings. Cut the top most common bittings across two or more cores, and one will be your master. We haven't had a chance to try it yet, still looking for a couple of cores from a set, but when we do I'll let everyone know how it works. He's an open source fan so it will probably hit this community if we have some success. ~Grit

any chance this program has been posted?

[Evan]

My friend actually wrote a program that allows you to input the decimal values of pin stacks in an SFIC and will calculate and output all of the permutations to a text file. These line return seperated values can be combined with another core's output into an excel spreadsheet, color coded and sorted to look for common bittings. Cut the top most common bittings across two or more cores, and one will be your master. We haven't had a chance to try it yet, still looking for a couple of cores from a set, but when we do I'll let everyone know how it works. He's an open source fan so it will probably hit this community if we have some success. ~Grit

any chance this program has been posted?

@goliathdrakken:

Nice necro-post...

2nd post on LP101 too...

What is your specific interest in BEST SFIC type locks other than being able to decode the cores ?

~~ Evan

[bobhdus]

I have close to 250 BEST A2 Padlocks from one of our Plants that my Company (Harley-Davidson) “idled”. These are general use so they are okay to reuse. Being a Locksmith in our Maintenance Dept, my boss thought it would keep me busy I guess. They all have the operator keys, but there is no core remover or grandmaster key. They are sitting in a box gathering dust now. I was able to pick one to the core remover line, but lost patience trying to do anymore. I do not even know if they are on the same Grandmaster scheme, but if I could generate a key to play with, it would be easier to try this out than to cut the shackles or pick. BEST said they had no record of the numbers on the keys nor did their local Stanley supplier rep. If there is such a program please let me know. Thanks

[Evan]

I have close to 250 BEST A2 Padlocks from one of our Plants that my Company (Harley-Davidson) “idled”. These are general use so they are okay to reuse. Being a Locksmith in our Maintenance Dept, my boss thought it would keep me busy I guess. They all have the operator keys, but there is no core remover or grandmaster key. They are sitting in a box gathering dust now. I was able to pick one to the core remover line, but lost patience trying to do anymore. I do not even know if they are on the same Grandmaster scheme, but if I could generate a key to play with, it would be easier to try this out than to cut the shackles or pick. BEST said they had no record of the numbers on the keys nor did their local Stanley supplier rep. If there is such a program please let me know. Thanks

@bobhdus:

Since you have all of the operating keys to the padlocks in question you should be able to gauge all of them to determine if they are part of the same system... (You will notice that they all follow a pattern when you chart out the key cuts)

Once you have verified that all the padlock cores are in fact part of the same master system, you can decode the one you have picked to the control shear line and removed from its padlock housing... If some seem not to follow the same pattern as the others put those aside so you can deal with them later if the control key you make from decoding the core you have access to doesn't remove those cores...

There has been a thread here recently which touched on SFIC control key issues which I contributed to and at the time I made my posts in that thread I searched the LP101 site to see if that topic had been covered before which after searching I discovered it had not...

SFIC Best style mystery (OP: Raymond -- March 31, 2011)

That thread should be enough to allow you to decode and cut a control key for your cores if you have a set of calipers and access to a size chart for the A2 system pins... Just make sure you eject one stack at a time and keep the pins in the order they came out of the core while you are measuring them -- the order of the pins in the core is extremely important to properly decoding a working key...

You can post any additional questions you have here in this thread or in the linked thread above... Good Luck...

~~ Evan