Chatwood 12 lever lock

Paul Prescott

This is an example of Chatwoods 12 lever, double bitted, double bolted anti pressure lock as fitted to ‘ Special Diamond ’ quality safes.

The lock has two banks of six levers, each overlapping each other, each bank with it’s own independant bolt. The lock is effectively protected against picking with an anti pressure pivoting bolt stump, the effect of which can be seen in the attached pictures.

Enjoy ..

NKT

Sorry, but what are we looking for? Where’s the pivot point?

Paul Prescott

A close look at 125 + 126 will reveal all …

Tom Gordon

And if you like it enough then I have one or two for swaps if you have some interesting Chatwood stuff or safeplates.
Cheers
Tom

Huntlocks

I can see the bolt stump has turned slightly in 126 but explian what jams please? Is it under the bolt?

Alan Morgan

Look closely at the pin which the springs rest on. At the bottom you should see a difference.

Huntlocks

Brilliant isn’t it. I wonder how long it took to make a lock like this? I assume they must have ‘mass’ produced some of the components.

Paul Prescott

Doubt it would have been ‘mass produced’ by todays standards. They made them in batches of 12 at a time, but not at all frequently and thehand made nature means that the parts from one lock will generally not work in another.

& Yes, it’s a very nice + rare lock to have.

Tom Gordon

Very true -don’t be fooled by how many I have - very few people are likely to have even one.
Cheers
Tom

geoffrey bailey

request for information

as part of a research project for a book, i am looking for suggestions/advice about safes. the period i am covering is between 1930 and 1955. the safe would house a substantial quantity of jewellery, including an elaborate tiara. it would be located in the wine vault of a grand period house in london (uk). the safe, located behind a pair of iron gates secured by a chubb detector lock (definitive) would need to be removable by two men deploying (if it were secured to a concrete base by, say, metal bolts) a hydraulic/mechanical jack. ideally, the safe can’t be more than 350 lbs in total weight, so that it can be transported by a simple dolly. my initial thought is that some version of the chatwood duplex would work in this context, but i am completely open to suggestions.

thank you.

geoffrey bailey

Tom Gordon

Safes are graded by the value of the contents that they are suitable for. The weight will normally rise in proportion. What is the value of the jewellery meant to be in tens of thousands of pounds?

Ian D. Lewis

The rating for valuables is generally 10 times that of the cash rating ie £ 200 cash = £2000 valuables. But you need to check with your insurance company.
A grand period house with a wine vault. The owner might have chosen to convert part of the wine vault into a cash vault.

Ian