Beginner questions about padlock construction

[TMIB]

Hello!

As you can tell by my post count, I'm pretty new here. (see my post in the intro thread for details about me.)

I picked up a few padlocks from the junkyard and have been practicing some real basic picking on them. One of them I can get open in about 10 seconds now pretty regularly.

I'm curious about a few details of its construction though; partially because I want to understand more about this lock and partially because I want to know what kinds of things to consider with other locks in the future. This is probably pretty basic stuff to anyone that has messed with this much at all, but as noted, it's new to me. I looked through the forum for diagrams and photos of padlock construction, so I think I've got the basics, but I do have few questions.

Here's a pic of the lock in question:
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1233/1065567277_63fa3c8df3.jpg (medium)
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1233/1065567277_63fa3c8df3_b.jpg(large)

The lock is primarily constructed of brass. Lock brand is "ILCO". Numbers stamped on the bottom read "kx47443". A small hole appears in the bottom of the padlock, below the keyway, directly in line with the heel of the shackle. It goes all the way through to the shackle.

On the side of the padlock, directly in line with the catch for the shackle (on the toe side of the shackle) is a circular section of brass that is a different color. It appears to be a plug put in during manufacture.

Now, on to my noobish questions: (I hope I have my lock terminology right in my description above.)

1) What purpose does the small hole on the bottom of the padlock serve? It just appears to go through to the heel of the shackle. My initial guess that it is there to allow someone to lubricate the shackle mechanism, but I'm not certain about that.

2) The brass plug- I'm guessing this covers an unneeded hole made in manufacturing. From the way things are lined up, I'd guess they drilled into the padlock from the side to create the hole that the catch for the shackle toe rides in. Then they filled the hole with a brass plug. Is this correct?

3) is the number stamp (KX47443) indicative of anything other than a serial number? I got two of these locks from the junkyard, and the other one also has a 5 digit number on it. It wouldn't be the pin heights would it?

4) Could I slip a feeler gauge in along the shear line with it unlocked and remove the plug? I'd have to hold the gauge in place long enough to slip a rod in, or the pins would fall out I guess.

5) Since I have two of these locks, and they cost me almost nothing, I considered making one a cutaway. Any tips on how to do this, or should I just mill off the face?


Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions, and for being patient with my beginner questions.

--TMIB

[nzleagle]

1) What purpose does the small hole on the bottom of the padlock serve? It just appears to go through to the heel of the shackle. My initial guess that it is there to allow someone to lubricate the shackle mechanism, but I'm not certain about that.

This hole also allows for any liquids, eg rain, to drain from the padlock, stoping the inside of the lock from deteriotaing

2) The brass plug- I'm guessing this covers an unneeded hole made in manufacturing. From the way things are lined up, I'd guess they drilled into the padlock from the side to create the hole that the catch for the shackle toe rides in. Then they filled the hole with a brass plug. Is this correct?

Unsure on where your meaning the plug is, post a picture and I might be able to help you there

3) is the number stamp (KX47443) indicative of anything other than a serial number? I got two of these locks from the junkyard, and the other one also has a 5 digit number on it. It wouldn't be the pin heights would it?

The number stamped on it is the key code, this code just happens to be a direct code, so the pins in your lock are 47443 so you could make a key for it quite easily if you knew what you were doing.

4) Could I slip a feeler gauge in along the shear line with it unlocked and remove the plug? I'd have to hold the gauge in place long enough to slip a rod in, or the pins would fall out I guess.

Dont know about that, again, post a picture, it might help.

5) Since I have two of these locks, and they cost me almost nothing, I considered making one a cutaway. Any tips on how to do this, or should I just mill off the face?

Sorry cant help you on that one..

[Gordon Airporte]

You're right about the brass plug in the side - it's from the manufacturing process.
There's no way to bypass or open the lock through the drainage hole, although everyone hopes there is when they notice it.
Unfortunately, that lock was not made to be taken apart, so while it's possible, you'll have to fight with it a bit. There might be a pin on the side that you can drill out to release the plug, or you might have to try something exciting like heating the lock up in an oven then shocking it in ice water.
I don't advise you to try anything, though, because the lock naturally isn't made to be put back together again either, so you'd basically be sacrificing the lock to see how it works.
There are plenty of padlocks out there that are made to be rekeyed, you should even be able to find some at the hardware store. If you want a padlock you can take the core out of, I think that's the best way to go.