Woooohoo Free Locks

[deralian]

Habitat for humanity or good will might have a pile of old locks that you can pick up for cheap. +1 on asking a locksmith to keep old hardware and 'buy' it off him

[Harry Tuttle]

At my university, anyone who leaves their lock on their locker after the semester is over gets their lock clipped off. I have a deal worked out where those locks come my way. Also, I get the option of having them cropped off or picking them off myself! Imagine that, I get a training room! Just a tip for you guys, it worked out for me.

You might also consider the gym... people abandon padlocks in locker rooms all the time and they usually end up in the lost and found box.

[KPick]

I've tried many places and most don't come up successful. I get some free locks by asking people if I can keep the lock if I can open it. They surely accept and I take the lock off with ease/moderate ease. Some other times I find old rusty locks on gates and then I try to pick them so I can keep them, but these are apparently abandoned due to the fact that they are rusty and I've made sure they are abandoned. Also, I've found plenty of locks at a car abandonment lot. They contain plenty of locks (auto) and then I usually pocket them for free since the owner of the car lot doesn't have the keys for them. I've also tried Craigslist. They do offer good locks at times for very cheap prices. Hopefully there is a Craigslist equivalent in the UK. Since I don't know much about the UK I can't really say too much about it's norms. There are also times where I am doing lock replacements and the owner doesn't want the locks, so I "dispose" of them.

[deolslyfox]

Thanks for the sites !! I haunt yard sales, estate sales and flea markets ....

Make friends with a local locksmith or two. Be up front and tell him what you're doing. (So he won't look at you as "competition" or a crook). You may be able to get him to throw his "cuts" and "non-repairables" in a bucket for you. EG: He might strip American locks for parts, but just chuck anything that can't be easily disassembled or things like U.S. General (Harbor Freight) that DO have removable cylinders that can't be used in high security applications.

You don't care about keys or shackles and a bit of rust just adds to the fun ...

[ethanmckinley1]

What storage unit/company did you ask. Because all the ones I asked don't seem willing to give locks away. Any ideas?
Thanks a lot for the help.

[jbrint]

A lot of this free love is going to depend on how you look and how you ask.

My area seems pretty suspect of a person coming in looking for locks to pick, even the local locksmiths seem suspicious. I attribute this to me being covered in tattoos in a largely conservative area.

I gave up a while back on free things and made friends with a mobile locksmith who I kickback for his take offs, a scrap metal recycler who I buy from by the pound and then the rest comes from Craigslist, yard sales, eBay, trading with friends and local hardware as funds allow. I also keep an eye out for "Locks of Opportunity", these are the locks you find on the side of the road, on your buddies shed that is from a previous renter and the shackle has been pried off on one side, etc....

[kwoswalt99-]

I gave up a while back on free things and made friends with a mobile locksmith who I kickback for his take offs, a scrap metal recycler who I buy from by the pound and then the rest comes from Craigslist, yard sales, eBay, trading with friends and local hardware as funds allow.

I need to find a scrapyard that will sell stuff. I can't believe the stuff people scrap sometimes. The only local one I've been to is very strict on their no-sales policy.

[jbrint]

I gave up a while back on free things and made friends with a mobile locksmith who I kickback for his take offs, a scrap metal recycler who I buy from by the pound and then the rest comes from Craigslist, yard sales, eBay, trading with friends and local hardware as funds allow.

I need to find a scrapyard that will sell stuff. I can't believe the stuff people scrap sometimes. The only local one I've been to is very strict on their no-sales policy.

The guys I buy from are fellow Irish and customers of mine, so I can peruse the bins when out on calls. Sometimes we work out a trade on time and sometimes its $. It is absolutely amazing the things people scrap.

[ffmurray]

I just tried this tip out, hopefully I win the lock lottery!