Disabling a bank vault door

[gundy]

I have own an old bank with 2 vaults one built in the 1911 and the other in the mid 30's. The newer one will be used for storing bikes for a vacation rental and the other just storage. Neither of them need to be locked and it would be best if the lock was disabled to avoid any issues in the future.

My Plan is just to but in some type of a door stop that would make it so the doors can not be closed=. I'm wondering if there is a way to make the door inactive so you can still open and close it without it locking.

[MartinHewitt]

In your case the locking mechanism should really be disabled by a professional for safety and perhaps liability reasons. Having someone accidently locked in is no fun. From my point of view it would be great if the locks could be preserved without damage.

[Squelchtone]

[EDIT: Moving this from This Old Lock to This Old Safe]

Without photos of the outside and inside of both doors we can't offer you proper advice.

I echo what Martin said and that would be for a safe technician to properly retire both safe doors and set their combination to 50 50 50 or to remove the combination wheels or lock bolt to prevent a lock out.

Once we see some photos we can better tell you if you need a pro or if you can handle doing this yourself.

Squelchtone

[gundy]

Thanks for the help. What type of expert am I looking for? I'm not there now, so the pictures and detail are limited... I have attached some pictures. The new one is from the 30's.

I will be amazed if these picture links actual work!


https://imgur.com/a/mr16Oai


https://imgur.com/dczG2GH


https://imgur.com/zVzDmc7

[MartinHewitt]

Ideally you get someone who knows about safes and vault and not a locksmith who just sells door locks and copies keys. Locksmiths who do not know anything about safes are sadly to often working on safes.

What needs to be done depends on how the bolt work and the lock interacts. To see that the back cover must be removed.

[gundy]

Finding someone knowledgeable could be a challenge. The building is located a few hours away from Minneapolis.

Any advice on finding someone is appreciated - thanks for the help!!

[sign216]

Looking at it, perhaps a regular mechanic can do it. Just disconnect the hand wheel from the mechanism. Of course, it always looks easier from the outside.

Joe

[Squelchtone]

Thank you for the photos, I have some follow up questions.

Are the combinations to the safes known right now? Are you familiar with the dialing procedure as far as Left Right Left and 4 times this way and 3 times this other way to such and such number, then turn the handle or wheel this way or that way?

Are the doors currently in what is known as "locked open" where the bolts are extending out of the sides of the doors and the doors cannot shut all the way? if so, then you could just call it a day. If the bolts are all retracted and the doors can be pushed shut all the way, then that might cause someone to be locked inside. You could just open the doors, then extend the bolts, spin the dials 4 or more times around to scramble the combinations, and call it a day, but then someone slamming the doors may bend a bolt.

There is a SAVTA (Safe And Vault Technicians Association) safe technician named Dan Wehrman near you in Madison, WI. http://cameronsafe.com/
Give him a call to ask how much it would be to have him come out and have this done, or perhaps he can offer you a minute of advice over the phone.

Squelchtone

[gundy]

Good morning,

I am the new owner of the building, the previous owner has owned it for 30 years, has the combo's, but has never tried them... I am probably concerned about shutting it and then the combo's not working or me not knowing the correct details

The bolts are extended but will close if I spin the handle. The locking open idea would solve my concerns and make the doors work as I need them to. I don't have a need to lock or fully close them.

Confirming.... I can lock it fully open. By leaving the bolts out and then scrambling the code by spinning it 4 times or more - correct?

The building is near Brainerd Minnesota, looks like the closest technician is a little over an hour away. Might be worth checking in with them.

Thanks again for the help.

[Squelchtone]

Good morning,

I am the new owner of the building, the previous owner has owned it for 30 years, has the combo's, but has never tried them... I am probably concerned about shutting it and then the combo's not working or me not knowing the correct details

The bolts are extended but will close if I spin the handle. The locking open idea would solve my concerns and make the doors work as I need them to. I don't have a need to lock or fully close them.

Confirming.... I can lock it fully open. By leaving the bolts out and then scrambling the code by spinning it 4 times or more - correct?

The building is near Brainerd Minnesota, looks like the closest technician is a little over an hour away. Might be worth checking in with them.

Thanks again for the help.

To confirm, yes, extend the bolts using the wheel (or the handle on the other safe), then spin the dial 4 or more times all the way around, and then try to turn the wheel or throw the handle, if the bolts still retract, that might mean someone already disabled the insides of the safe bolt work, if the wheel and handle do not retract the door bolts, then you should be all set. You may want to turn the combination dial slowly to the Left all the way around, and then slowly to the Right all the way around just to make sure it doesn't "drop in" or stop dead at 0 or some other number on the dial, that would indicate the combination is set to just 1 number for all 3 wheels, or that the wheel pack has been removed from the inside of the combination lock making the safe door unlockable without dialing in an actual combination. Glad you found someone relatively close by in case you need to call them in.

Squelchtone

[gundy]

Thank you - the help is wonderful.

The Vaults have not been used in 60 years, I'm surprised that no one has done anything about there safety yet - thanks!!!

[JTHulkster]

There is a safe tech at KatKeys in Saint Paul that has MN routes. Maybe you can catch him on his way back to the cities from one of his other clients if you can wait.