cylinder help

[iluvmynerve]

Hi, i brought the lock yesterday and the locksmith assured me that the plate holding the pins in was very easy to remove....well i cant get it

Is it supposed to come off? will it go back on?

thanks for the help i looked around but couldnt find anything






its an abus lock

[maintenanceguy]

I've never worked on an abus cylinder. All the others I've ever worked on, you remove the strip by getting some tool under it and prying it off. Then it's ruined and you get another new strip and use a special tool to press the new one in place.

[Raymond]

The pin retaining slide is very simple to work with. Many are loose and can be slid back. Those that are tight can be removed by tapping a sharp tool (knife, jeweler's screw driver, etc.) just under the edge at the back. Once you have gained a starting point use a narrow, flat screw driver to continue to pry it up. Try to avoid damaging the springs immediately under it.
When you get it off it can be reused. Flatten it out with a hammer (plastic head) on a smooth surface. Avoid a hard hammer as you will literally flatten out the metal making it too large. Next the flat strip must be bent into a "U" shape the full length. Do this by putting it in a vise and bending it into an angle with a small hammer. Or, lay it in a flat resilent surface like a piece of rubber, carpet or treaded floor runner. Lay a small, round screw driver, nail, punch, etc. on the full length of the strip and hit the metal with a hammer. The strip will be formed into a "U" shape.
When ready to reassemble, load all your pins and springs and hold the curved strip in place. Tap carefully with a small hammer to flatten it back down. The edges will wedge tightly against the sides of the groove.
You are finished.

[Beyond]

Run an ice pick down it slowly. It'll remove the cap and if you do it slowly enough, you can salvage the springs.

If that fails, take a hacksaw blade and place it flush on the cap. Then hit the top, front corner of it with a hammer so that it forces the hacksaw blade backwards and pulls the cover along with it.

[tecnovist]

get some raim set nails ---sharpen them up to a point put you lock in a vise useing the nail like a spick to make a small hole in the spring retainer and then use a hammer tap it out ---- or use a nail shaped like a cold chisel to bend the end of the brasss tag end of the spring retainer that grip it with small vece grips and hammed it out ---
---- I use a small roving vice to hold the lock's and at times have made those spring retainers out of stainless steel -------the ides is to bend it over its lenth that way once in the groove you can tape it with a pin punch (( made from a raim set nail)) and punch the u shape strip of stainless to hold it in the grove -----

[tecnovist]

and if you don't want the springs to fly every were -- just do this inside a plastic bag a clear one so as to see what you are doing ----

[bumber]

Those all sound like SC and KW locks you guys said, the lock in the pic looks like it can only slide out, no bending needed but it looks like it has dimples on it that would kill the springs if slid out...I could be wrong because Ive never taken these apart either, but looking at the picture this is what Id think...why are you wanting to remove the clip for cant you use a plug follower, I would imagine you are repinning but if you had to replace springs I couldn't help(also if you use a follower you can only replace the bottom pis )

[Raymond]

Hey bumber,
The indentions on that pin retainer were probably not intentional. The piece of curved flat aluminum, brass or mild steel was pressed on and flattened out by the pressing. The indentions are just where too much pressure pushed them into the pin holes. Some brands of locks do have one deeper hole to prevent the retainer from sliding out.
I very rarely have to remove the retainer. You are somewhat correct that it is much easier to use a plug follower. And yes, you can change out top pins and springs this way. Just remove the cylinder retainer, use the key (or pick or shim) to take the plug out. Reload all of the springs and pins with tweezers. After a little practice it becomes very easy. I would rather do this on a kwikset than pop the retainer.

Using a plug follower is easier to reload the springs and top pins with. I would not think of using a clear plastic bag. I think he is bull..... you! However, I do work on a fine weave piece of cloth to cut down on pins rolling and bouncing.

[bumber]

I think he means to put it in a bag so the pins and springs don't fly out...although they usually dont unless the lock is in the unlocking part of the rotation although they can I think if you pull the retainer off slowly(with the cylinder Top Dead Center [:lol: Automotive Joke])you will be able to have the spring pop up gently against your finger.

[tecnovist]

Raymond---Hi---
--- I have pulled truck loads of those locks a part and if the spring retainer tag will not slide out
just Bent the end a bit and hold the lock in a vice and the tag with some long noice plyers and tap them with a small hammer
and do all this with the lock in side a plastic bag a clear one so as to see what you are doing ---- that way the springs will not go any were they should' not -
-and it dos not harm the springs its putting the retainer back in that may give you a bent spring

-- I have made new spring retainers out of Stainless steel---
hit on handy tools
or sharpen up a 4 inch ramset nail and use it as a spike and use it to hammer the retainer out ------
--and you can allways straten the bend out and reuse the old ertainer---

[tecnovist]

If for any reason you need to make the slot wider just use a small hack saw blade and scrap out some brass out of the groove ----

[raimundo]

the best way to remove these is to get a piece of hacksaw blade about 3 inches long, place it on top of the spring cap, with the teeth biteing toward the back of the cylinder, then with a small hammer, and I do mean small, tap on the corner of the hacksaw blade near the front of the lock while holding the blade firmly with teeth along the cover,

The teeth will cut slightly into the cap, giving them positive traction, and the cap will slide toward the rear of the lock with every tap. after a few taps, it will be possible to grip it with the needle nose plier and pull it straight back, undamaged and reuseable, the piece can then be replaced by tapping it lightly into place in just the opposite of how it came off.

Once you try this method, you will probably forget those other methods mentioned by the other posters, this one is the best.

I think I originally got the method from one of the Bill Phillips books, so its not something Im promoting for any personal reason, its just the best.

[tecnovist]

the hacksaw idea may well work with the lock in the pic above ---but if it don't you know know there is another way -- hell I have seen them soldered in