Edit: Sniped. User Glubbdrubb posted almost exactly the same thing just a couple minutes before I did. I was surprised no one had posted about this when I checked. His thread is here.
I've had a couple people point this out to me recently.
Basically, it's a youtube video that's gone viral over the past day or two demonstrating a new type of bike lock. It is supposedly "unpickable" because the user doesn't have direct access to the keyway.
My thought: since it's a dimple lock, could someone make a rake or bump key out of one of the provided keys, load it in, and manipulate it from the outside? The lock doesn't appear to move smoothly, but perhaps with the right lubrication it could be bumped like any other.
That video is by marduk28, a member here. Really wish he could get more of them, as that is a drool-worthy lock.
You have no access to the actual keyway, so making/using a rake is out of the question without at least some destructive entry. It can't be shimmed, either. Can think of a couple possibilities, but without one of these locks to try them out, the ideas are theory only. They come down to impressioning and self impressioning.
Gordon
Just when you finally think you have learned it all, that is when you learn that you don't know anything yet.
Thanks for sharing this. Such a clever concept and design. I wonder if we will be seeing more of this concept implemented into other kinds of locks. I really wish they were for sale to individuals so we could play around with it.
Pretty cool. I've seen this on safe locks before, but not on a bike lock. However, it seems like a lot of work until this thing is locked / unlocked. I use my bike a lot and going to all this procedure each time would take too long for me. But otherwise it's a nice design.
On safes it's called "Lafettensystem" (don't know the English word for it). It means that you pull out the "lafette", insert the (Chubb) key, push it in and turn it. The idea is basically the same: You can't access the lock directly.
Haha that has trouble written all over it in the long run, IMO.
At a guess, self impressioning by using a ground-down key and foil laid over it - gently wiggle it until the pins self impression. I've had success using this on a number of KABA locks - I wonder whether it would work with this.
What would you do about water slowly getting in there and freezing? I'm sure there would be a drain hole, but we have bike locks freezing on us all the time where I'm at.
you know guys... as quick you are to point out potential flaws or issues, I for one applaud whomever had the frame of mind to design this, to at least try to think outside the box in terms of something new as compared to everything else that is already out there on the market. If anything, my only worry is wondering what material the shackle is made of, and how quickly crops or a hacksaw would go through it.
I think it is a step in the right direction. No doubt it is not perfect, but imagine this design in 3 or 4 revisions down the road. What if the key was changed out to an Abloy Protec? What if to even to open the key loading bay you needed another key or a prox chip head that activated a small solenoid allowing the rotation of the sleeve.
Oh, don't get me wrong - with even a basic Abloy system it would be formidable.
For indoor applications such as safes, it furthers the existing-and generally formidable-locks to the point where opening them via manipulation *may* well be considered as near enough impossible. With this said, for a lock that is primarily designed for outdoor use, I'm not convinced it is a great idea. There is either no secret way to bypass that system, in which case it has the design fault of being unserviceable *or* there is a way to get around it and it falls under 'security through obscurity'. The latter is problem although it's hardly a new problem but the former is outright silly, IMHO. I'd hazard a guess that the shiny keyway protector can be removed-perhaps not in a sympathetic manner-under which is a normal keyway that can be picked.
