30 plus year old Yale lock

satch

trying to identify what key blank fit’s old Yale about 30-40 years old. Friend of mine who worked for railroad say’s maybe an old C & S lock….

Parautoptic

As is often the case, a crisp photo of the keyway would help… Yale have produced dozens (hundreds?) of different keyways over the years.
Also, give a try with any keys you have to hand. If your lock is of a common type it is likely that one or other of your own keys will fit the keyway and so give you some clues.

Phil

satch wrote
trying to identify what key blank fit’s old Yale about 30-40 years old. Friend of mine who worked for railroad say’s maybe an old C & S lock….

[unknown]

PeterZ

Most but not all Yale padlocks for the railroads and utilities used Yale F1L (ilco 997PA, Taylor 6PA) if they did not use one of the multiplex series.

-Pete

satch

PeterZ wrote
Most but not all Yale padlocks for the railroads and utilities used Yale F1L (ilco 997PA, Taylor 6PA) if they did not use one of the multiplex series.

-Pete

Thanks Pete, A friend of mine say’s he knows someone with an original key but it say’s Do Not Duplicate so i would
bet most locksmith’s would most likely not touch it and they probably don’t have a old blank…

[unknown]

Pschiffe

PeterZ wrote
Most but not all Yale padlocks for the railroads and utilities used Yale F1L (ilco 997PA, Taylor 6PA) if they did not use one of the multiplex series.
-Pete

Other substitutions for Yale 11FL (F1L) are:
6PA Taylor, 20X Keil, 3507 Hazelton, 886A Old Ilco, 997PA Ilco, 2602LL Graham
Of those only 997PA Ilco is extant, all others are long obsolete.

Pete Schifferli

[unknown]

PeterZ

“Do Not Duplicate” is more of a suggestion than a legal restraint. Unless the key is still under patent protection or property of the Post Office, very few lockshops will refuse to copy your key as long as it does not appear to be of suspicious origins. If you have an antique lock and key in your hand, most will copy it without any question. An older more established shop will be more likely to have the blank.

-Pete