How old is my Mosler safe? Year of Manufacture Serial Number

by **GFish** » 28 Feb 2018 19:41

I bought this safe yesterday and have been trying to learn a little bit more about it. This page has been very informative and I greatly appreciate anyone's input. One thing that has me confused is the number stamped on the handle doesn't match any on the lists I've checked. Thanks for any feedback!

by **GFish** » 28 Feb 2018 19:46

I give up up trying to post pics lol. I'm pretty sure the handle reads 48645.

by **00247** » 28 Feb 2018 22:17

The Mosler serial number ledger starts in 1886 with the number 50717. Your safe is 48645 so it was made before this ledger was started. The patent dates of March 22 1881, March 6, July 17, and August 28 1883 would tend to confirm this. I would expect it was made somewhere between late 1883 and 1886. When one looks at how many safes were made per year I would guess yours would have been made in 1885.

It would be great if you could take the rear door cover off and take some pictures of the lock and bolt work for all of us to see. Nice safe.

by **ghost_os** » 1 Mar 2020 9:52

The Mosler Safe Co
Hamilton, OH

With a number stamped on the face of the dial (the part you grab with your fingers to turn the dial), stamped number 9375-103 . This number wasn't found on the table at the beginning of this post.

1949 9851
1948 9507
1947 9266
1946 9024

if these numbers were sequential at all, it would seem to place it between 1947 and 1948. This would seem to match the Class C fire and T-20 Burglary rating (T-20 is no longer used, and I believe it stopped being used around 1950). I tried looking it up by the UL certification number, but there are no records turned back from their product IQ database (which makes me question Underwriters' Laboratories record keeping, lol).

Still, I'm uncertain if my thinking about the sequential aspect of the numbers is correct. Would anyone have a firmer grip on this than I do? Again, "9375-103" stamped in the metal face of the thumbturn portion of the dial.

by **Squelchtone** » 2 Mar 2020 20:51

ghost_os wrote:The Mosler Safe Co
Hamilton, OH

With a number stamped on the face of the dial (the part you grab with your fingers to turn the dial), stamped number 9375-103 . This number wasn't found on the table at the beginning of this post.

1949 9851
1948 9507
1947 9266
1946 9024

if these numbers were sequential at all, it would seem to place it between 1947 and 1948. This would seem to match the Class C fire and T-20 Burglary rating (T-20 is no longer used, and I believe it stopped being used around 1950). I tried looking it up by the UL certification number, but there are no records turned back from their product IQ database (which makes me question Underwriters' Laboratories record keeping, lol).

Still, I'm uncertain if my thinking about the sequential aspect of the numbers is correct. Would anyone have a firmer grip on this than I do? Again, "9375-103" stamped in the metal face of the thumbturn portion of the dial.

Show us photos of the safe, we can often estimate the decade it was made by the shape of the dial, the dial ring, handle, hinges, wheels, color, shape of the body, location of the dial on the door in relation to the handle, etc.

Are you just curious about a general time the safe was made or specifically intetested in the meaning of the number you shared with us?

Thanks
Squelchtone

by **karl76chevy** » 26 Mar 2020 19:31

Hello, new to the forum and pretty much safes in general, I just acquired this safe from a salvage yard that had picked this safe up from a bank about 5 years ago destined to be scrapped. I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on a possible year/time that this safe was made. I did do some reading on previous post on this thread and the only type of serial number I can come up with is on the handle that reads 5057. I haven't run across any pictures on the web that were similar to the safe I have. Both combination locks are 4 number locks. I was very surprised to see all the detail that had went into this safe. I have attached several pictures....hope they upload fine. Thanks in advance for any input!!!

[image]

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by **GWiens2001** » 26 Mar 2020 19:37

Soooo jealous! Beautiful safe.

Unfortunately, I can't help with dating that safe.

Gordon

by **tomcf7** » 9 Sep 2021 16:29

I am looking for assistance with a wall safe.I believe it is a Mosler.I do not have the combo.It has been painted over but I believe the plate on the bottom right says 11132442. Wondering what year it is?
Thank you Tom

by **Squelchtone** » 9 Sep 2021 19:42

tomcf7 wrote:I am looking for assistance with a wall safe.I believe it is a Mosler.I do not have the combo.It has been painted over but I believe the plate on the bottom right says 11132442. Wondering what year it is?
Thank you Tom

Hello,

You'll have to post a photo of your entire safe as well as a close up of those numbers. That number is too long to be the serial number, unless it is a very modern Mosler safe.

Please post photos to https://imgbb.com/ or email them to me at squelchtone @ lockpicking101 dot com and I'll post them for you.

Thank you,
Squelchtone

by **keyssheri** » 28 May 2022 21:57

HI! I just purchased an old Mosler vault door (with inside doors and frame) I am trying to find out how old it might be. The stamp on the handle is 258755. Would love to learn more about this!

https://ibb.co/BZCd8HQ
https://ibb.co/tchXczp
https://ibb.co/bdHcSDB
https://ibb.co/sw2PDDr
https://ibb.co/k6bVqPS
https://ibb.co/PcWRG2n
https://ibb.co/N1KF2Df

by **Squelchtone** » 28 May 2022 23:05

keyssheri wrote:HI! I just purchased an old Mosler vault door (with inside doors and frame) I am trying to find out how old it might be. The stamp on the handle is 258755. Would love to learn more about this!

https://ibb.co/BZCd8HQ
https://ibb.co/tchXczp
https://ibb.co/bdHcSDB
https://ibb.co/sw2PDDr
https://ibb.co/k6bVqPS
https://ibb.co/PcWRG2n
https://ibb.co/N1KF2Df

https://i.ibb.co/r6wTnKz/IMG-0374.jpg

Based on the serial number, if you look at page 1 viewtopic.php?f=36&t=62920#p465853 of this thread, you'll see that it is probably from 1915

Year Serial #
1916 265585
1915 258394
1914 253174

by **GWiens2001** » 29 May 2022 9:29

Fire door! Meant for records rooms and places like that. Nice find.

Gordon

by **PhotoSkeen** » 10 Oct 2022 13:54

I have searched Google High and Low and it keeps pointing me back here for answers.... so you guys must be doing something right.

I have an old Mosler Safe and it's combination too. The serial number is stamped on the handle and according to the "look-up" post I found on your site, the year of manufacture is 1896. The stamped number is 127374.

The safe is in excellent condition with a few cosmetic issues and the 'dome' of one hinge is broken off. I have more photos and actual dimensions as well.

The bottom line, I suppose, is to determine the year of the manufacture and hear any suggestions about the value and where I might sell this beast! I am located in Charlotte, NC.

Thanks so much!

https://ibb.co/B2nWmy3
https://ibb.co/cCSS3j0
https://ibb.co/9by6CB7
https://ibb.co/D4vQcfY

by **Squelchtone** » 10 Oct 2022 14:22

PhotoSkeen wrote:I have searched Google High and Low and it keeps pointing me back here for answers.... so you guys must be doing something right.

I have an old Mosler Safe and it's combination too. The serial number is stamped on the handle and according to the "look-up" post I found on your site, the year of manufacture is 1896. The stamped number is 127374.

The safe is in excellent condition with a few cosmetic issues and the 'dome' of one hinge is broken off. I have more photos and actual dimensions as well.

The bottom line, I suppose, is to determine the year of the manufacture and hear any suggestions about the value and where I might sell this beast! I am located in Charlotte, NC.

Thanks so much!

https://ibb.co/B2nWmy3
https://ibb.co/cCSS3j0
https://ibb.co/9by6CB7
https://ibb.co/D4vQcfY

Old girl looks like she's in a bit of a rough shape compared to other Mosler safes I've seen over the years. Aside from the acorn being broken off, you are also missing the acorns from the bottom of the hinges. That combination dial and dial ring are also not original to the safe. It would be interesting to see inside the door behind the metal panel to see what has been done to the lock mechanism. It also looks like it may have been drilled above and below the handle at some point in time. You could sell it on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace and you could probably fetch $250-$500 for it depending on how much the buyer wants it. As the serial number look up chart suggests, your safe was made between 1896 and 1897.

by **drdiesel** » 28 Oct 2023 9:56

New guy from Indiana here! I bought this Old Mosler from a friend and can't make sense of the only number I can find, 2985. From the documentation here, if it is the serial number, doesn't match up with any of the listed numbers. If there was a number on the dial knob it is long lost to history, very worn. Please see the attached picts.

My crane scale says 2100lbs.

BR,