american combo locks

[jay----]

I've got a couple of american combo locks, (they look just like master combo locks) and of course shimming it to get it open would be easy, or figuring out the combo by finding the 3rd number and doing the math, but they actually have a keyway in the back of the lock that I never got the key for,(probably becaused my work supplies the locks for our lockers) but I don't think my work gets the keys either! When an employee quits or gets fired and if the company doesn't know the combo they just cut it off with boltcutters.
The funny thing is, I can pick this keyway on the back of the combo lock in about ten to fifteen seconds!

So now when they need to remove a lock from an ex-employee's locker, they just ask me and I get to keep the lock too!! (bonus)
But if they don't supply a key with the locks, are the keys only for locksmiths or whats the deal?
Just thought I'd ask.

[mercurial]

These locks are typically ordered by an organisation (school, gymnasium etc) to use for lockers.

An organisation buying a batch of these locks IS supplied with the key for the keyway on the back of the lock that serves as an override, should the combination be lost. These keys are certainly not limited to locksmiths.

If your workplace has been resorting to boltcutters when an employee is fired (or other situation where the combination is lost), I would assume that they have lost the override key for this set of locks.

There is also a small chance they obtained these locks cheaply, because they lacked the override key, but still had known combinations - although this seems unlikely.

Being allowed to keep these locks you are asked to remove is bad practice - anybody with the appropriate knowledge and practice could easily make a key, that will open all such locks used at this workplace.

Sounds to me like a security upgrade is in order.

...Mark

[jay----]

Thnx for the reply, actually as of a couple of years ago, all new employees have to supply their own locks but there is still alot of the old combo locks kicking around.

Maybe they did lose the key.