american locks.

[MERTON]

what do you think of them? i've read that they make some good locks. are they a better deal than abus? i've read master lock has something to do with them and would like to not buy anthing masterlock related if possible while still getting the same quality to price ratio (they handled the tubular key hole problem poorly unlike kryptonite).

actually. if i'm wrong about masterlock being a bad lock company please infrom me of it. i just heard they suck from this real pissed off dude.

how good is the h10?

http://www.keymart.com/american_locks.htm

[CaptHook]

Americans are very good quality, and those dirty bastages are fond of serrated pins. Master lock bought American a while back. Masters arent bad locks, they make some good quality stuff, people just assume the 4 pin padlocks that you can buy pretty much anywhere is their best.
Chuck

[plot]

The only american locks i have use an aluminum body so they are really light, and not very tough. the upside about the ones i have is they have interchangable cores so you can stick in anything you want too... plus they are anodized so they are pretty colors like red and blue and green

those are just the ones i happen to have though, they have a variety of different lock bodies as any padlock company does, and they normally stick serated pins in to make them tough to pick. i'd get one over a masterlock, only, i can't find any store that sells american padlocks around here... everyone has master.

[HeadHunterCEO]

American makes great padlocks
Master makes a decent lock as well

[quickpicks]

Ever since American got bought up by master, the retaining screws are cheaper and strip easy, and spools in the Americans have become more scarce. The "antique" locks from the 70s and 80s are my favorite.

[raimundo]

When did they put the cap on then end of the keyway to prevent exploitation of the security flaw, does anyone know?

[quickpicks]

The earliest caps that I have seen were in the locks from around 1992.

[HeadHunterCEO]

the real question is how many of them have you forgot to put back in the lock after rekeying them

[DeadlyHunter]

as said from others, i havent been a fan of american after they started being made cheaper

[MERTON]

are the 700 series or the h10 any good? and why is that guy selling the h10 for only $15? is that saying something about the lock?

[Ray_Air]

are the 700 series or the h10 any good? and why is that guy selling the h10 for only $15? is that saying something about the lock?

I have an H10 and would feel secure locking up my radio equipment shed with it, on a heavy hasp of course. The H10 is bolt cutter proof with its super strong 7/16" boron shackle. I couldnt even cut an American SERIES 50 padlock with the 3/8th boron shackle and thats with a pair of 36" Klein bolt cutters leveled on the ground for extra leverage! Master's 3/8" boron alloy shackles break with 30" bolt cutters. The H10 has a double-sided disc keyway with 5 discs top and bottom. I believe they are discs, but not sure. Its a real heavy looking lock.

[globallockytoo]

Yes, but a cheap rod saw available at most hardware stores and the blades fit on most hack saw handles, can be purchased for about $2.00 each and will cut through those shackles like swiss cheese!

[raimundo]

I cut a kryptonite U lock once with a carbide grit blade, it was a lot of work, took most of an hour, on the other hand, I have seen a cutoff saw with about a 4 or 6 inch blade cut through one in a very few minutes. kryptonite is also one of those boron steel shackles.

[raimundo]

I fourgot to mention that was a manual hacksaw and a rotary blade power tool that i was comparing in my previous post.

[pinsetter]

As far as padlocks go, American make very good locks. Most American pin tumblers are security pin nightmares.

I have two H10's and they are both Double Wafer cylinders. The lock bodies are very tough, but the double wafer cylinders can be picked easily. Their pin tumbler cylinders are a whole different ball game.