mechanical safe failure?

[feal]

anyone ever have a mechanical safe fail?

had an mpx deal set up - went to open the safe - nothing........ missed the sale, wondering if something slipped, start trying +-1 of the combo - not fun. eventually open the safe - all numbers were -1 of original...wondering if this has happened to anyone else? and do i have to be worried about it "changing" again. this is an older amsec safe

psa - if this happens, try - or +1 of all 3 numbers opposed to one at a time....

[OtterbatHellcat]

Opie11 is a super bad ass for situations such as this.

[opie011]

How old is the lock? This can happen and I recommend a lock replacement every 10yrs. on mechanical locks. I can definitely set you up with a new mechanical, electronic or redundant lock.

[OtterbatHellcat]

Told ya.

Heya, Opie.

[opie011]

Told ya.

Heya, Opie.

Hey brother! Thanks for the shout out [Beer]

[feal]

thanks everyone for the replies. just glad i didnt pull a jack daniels and kick the thing

[copfish]

Opie, can you explain for those of us in the hinterlands what to do? Should we look at replacing the old dial lock with something's no better? My old 15-20 year old Canon has an S&G dial and my 5 year old Fort Knox has an electronic keypad. Other than lubing the bolts and changing batteries I've not messed with them. Any recommendations? I like the sound of the redundant...

[patrick0685]

Opie, can you explain for those of us in the hinterlands what to do? Should we look at replacing the old dial lock with something's no better? My old 15-20 year old Canon has an S&G dial and my 5 year old Fort Knox has an electronic keypad. Other than lubing the bolts and changing batteries I've not messed with them. Any recommendations? I like the sound of the redundant...

interested as well

[opie011]

Opie, can you explain for those of us in the hinterlands what to do? Should we look at replacing the old dial lock with something's no better? My old 15-20 year old Canon has an S&G dial and my 5 year old Fort Knox has an electronic keypad. Other than lubing the bolts and changing batteries I've not messed with them. Any recommendations? I like the sound of the redundant...

Here is my opinion. Mechanical locks are very reliable but, with any mechanical/moving part, wear can happen thus creating problems that the OP is having. Electronic locks are very convienent but as with anything electronic, there can be failure. Almost every safe including commercial safes come with an electronic lock due to convenience. I have safes with both types of locks only because that's how they came.

When needing/upgrading a lock, it's all personal preference. A lock is a lock is a lock(within a quality manufacture) and what your wants/needs are should determine what lock to get. Somebody who's in there safe once a day will be fine with a basic e-lock. Redundant locks are great. You get the best of both worlds, reliability and convenience. Also, lock manufactures are coming out with all-in-one kits that don't require modifications to the safe door!

Again, it boils down to personal preference and your wants/needs are.

[copfish]

Thanks Sir! Which "redundant" lockset would you recommend? We should look at a group buy and road trip...

[Skip]

OP - Thanks for adding to the list of things that keep me up at night.

[OtterbatHellcat]

OP - Thanks for adding to the list of things that keep me up at night.

Funny, but it's the truth....lol.

[Aloha_Shooter]

Yes, I've had an old safe with mechanical lock fail on me. Luckily (sort of), the safe was open when it failed so after my boss ditched me (Fri evening, safe wouldn't close and lock) saying, "we'll get you some time off next week if you have to stay the weekend," I was motivated to pull the inner panel covering the lock, look at it and disassemble/reassemble the locking mechanism. Tested it with the drawer open and it worked like a champ so I stored the files and locked it up.

I've seen safes with the locks fail while closed -- that's a real pain in the butt.

[Aloha_Shooter]

Redundant locks are great. You get the best of both worlds, reliability and convenience. Also, lock manufactures are coming out with all-in-one kits that don't require modifications to the safe door!

What do you mean by redundant locks? One mechanism will open the door if the other fails (as opposed to getting screwed if EITHER of them fails)? I can't envision how that works.

[feal]

the redundant lock has a mechanical and electrical portion that each can open the locking mechanism.

thanks for the recommendation for Opie11 - he's as good as advertised. He spoke with me and researched a couple of things for mo on sunday - and after i messed up resetting the combo, he came back to make sure everything was ok.

[OtterbatHellcat]

Glad it worked out for you, Feal.

Opie11 is tops in many of our books, I believe. I won't deal with anyone other than him when it comes to safes, and or moving them.

[opie011]

What do you mean by redundant locks? One mechanism will open the door if the other fails (as opposed to getting screwed if EITHER of them fails)? I can't envision how that works.
Sorry I missed this post. A redundant lock is a locking system wherein a secondary mechanism ensures operation in the event of a primary mechanism failure. Meaning that if your electronics fail in the lock, you can use the mechanical portion to dial the lock open like a standard mechanical lock.

the redundant lock has a mechanical and electrical portion that each can open the locking mechanism.

thanks for the recommendation for Opie11 - he's as good as advertised. He spoke with me and researched a couple of things for mo on sunday - and after i messed up resetting the combo, he came back to make sure everything was ok.

Thanks for the kind words. It was nice meeting you [Beer]