On sale! 3 for $5 at Harbor Freight!
The bitting was tough - a "9" cut at the third bitting, followed by a shallow cut. But, even with a medium hook, could not open this lock. It didn't feel like it had spools, so what to do? Being a guy, of course there was only one acceptable answer - disassembly!
First, had to grind off the rivits. Thank God for air tools!
Next, to remove the bottom laminated layer, used a trick - a screw. Hammer it in to get it started, then start to screw it in. You can see the rivets receeding as the layer rises off the rest of the lock:
Then you add another screw from the other side, pointed to the other end of the lock. This helps keep the layer peeling off the rivits.
With the bottom layer removed, you can see and remove the lock cylinder:
Wait a second... that is a PLASTIC shell/bible!!! Talk about cheap!
As you can see, if you wanted to removed the pins and rekey this valuable lock, just turn the key upside down and the key pins fall out.
However, back to disassembly - looking inside the lock body, you can see the mechanism that operates the latch. (Yes, just one latch.)
As an interesting note - this lock, like any fine piece of work, has all spool pins... well, sort of:
The picture is not out of focus. It really does looks like the spool pins are melted. This is probably intentional, as normal spool pins would probably quickly damage the high-quality, precision, soft plastic cylinder. At least the plug and pins are brass! However, it did make this lock difficult to pick. Took the pics last night. This morning, I made a Gonzo, so will have to try again with a non-disassembled lock.
Gotta go. Happy Pickins!
