Sears Brand Padlock

[Castle_Fr]

Hi all:

Been lurking for a little bit, just now getting around to posting.

I've come across an interesting lock and I was looking for some basic information about it (model number, approx. date of mfg, etc.) but I can't really find anything online about it.

It's a laminated steel padlock with a brass plug. The top of the lock is marked "SEARS genuine pin tumbler" and the bottom says "made in usa" with the text in a circle, the shackle is marked "HARDENED" and it has a small divot in the underside right in the middle of the U. It's about a 1.5" square and 1" thick. There are three rivets on the top of it and four on the bottom.

I don't have a key with it, but as of now it doesn't need one to open; you can grab the shackle and wiggle it back and forth and it comes open. If you push the shackle down when it's open and rotate it clockwise until it contacts the lock body you can start to see the catch rotate out from it's home in between the shackle limbs.

A) Can anyone tell me more about the lock?
B) What can I do to fix it so that it needs to be picked proper instead of just wiggling open?

[MacGyver101]

It's seldom that I'd throw out a lock... but it sounds like this one isn't worth your time.

A Sears-branded laminated padlock is only a few dollars to begin with -- and it sounds like this one has been pretty badly damaged.

It's possible that some rust or debris have accumulated in the lock: it might be worth it to try to flush the lock out with some oil (or something more extreme, like soaking it in some kerosene) to see if that helps? Beyond that, I think the value is unlikely to be worth your time.

Just my $0.02.