What is a Push Key?

kirky

I have an old Yale padlock, and I think it may be a push key. I’m wondering how a push key works. The padlock itself dose not have a key with it but I was wondering how the key would work.

Thanks!

Petere76

The push key is a vertical plate (tumbler) and gate arrangement. The end of the key is cut to accomodate the locks coding. Many padlocks were produced with this mechanism although I have seem old rim locks with this style mechanism. Usually dated in the early 1900’s. One padlock mfg comes to mind as “climax” with the words “six lever” on the casing. The keys I have seen were brass and had a shoulder stop cut into the key to serve as the limit of travel for the key depth.

Peter

oldbiscuit

Kirky, You seem to be a new collector.If you don’t already have a copy, you should look into purchasing the 6th edition of “the Padlock Collector” by Franklin M. Arnell. It’s a great reference book with descriptions and prices of most every kind of padlock ever made. I’m sure you would be very pleased with it.I’de venture a guess that most every serious lock collector has a copy or at least looked at one. Good luck. Mark

CBET

If you just want to see a picture of your push key padlock the book by Arnell is fine but there is almost no information about the locks themselves. I bought it at a pretty high price and was really disappointed. The price guide listings aren’t really useful because from what I have seen since I started collecting antique padlocks is that the price of padlocks is very similar to the stock market. It fluctuates a lot from month to month and I have purchased several locks at what seemed comparitively inexpensive compared to past experiences with the intent of selling the duplicates to help make up for what I was spending for my collection and now I have a good selection of paperweights because even though they were expensive a short while ago they have continuously dropped and they are not in demand any more. The Arnall book has a limited amount of information about some companies that merged or were at one point affiliated but you have to get hints in the company names to research the business history to even get a rough idea of the age and with most even that isn’t possible. It has been informative to me probably four or five times in identifying the locks but age is not even hinted at and that was what I bought the book for.

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

Just to help finding the book, it was published and written by Frank M. Arnall, not Arnell.
BBE.

CBET

Sorry for the Typo, I didn’t have the book with me so I misspelled the name but I bought it about 6 months. All the rest of my post was not a typo. The book is nice in the respect that it has a wide variety of pictures, which Google Images also has, but my main quest is to trace age and the development of the parent companies and I wouldn’t feel so bad about buying it if it wasn’t so expensive. I wish I had had a chance to see it before I purchased it because I would have bought two more locks instead. Just my own observabtion, but if you have a chance, find one to look at before you buy one and have a list of what you are wanting to find out so you can see if you are satisfied with the books contents. Sorry I can’t type or spell well.

BBE wrote
Just to help finding the book, it was published and written by Frank M. Arnall, not Arnell.
BBE.

[unknown]

Scott Klemm

Hello CBET. Without seeing an actually picture of your padlock, I think it may be of the Champion type made by the Miller Lock Co. This lock was patented on July 26, 1870. You did, however, mention the Yale name. Yale &Towne purchased the Miller Lock Company in 1925, and continued to manufacture the push-key padlock. Finallyin 1929 the Champion name was replaced by the Yale logo.
The Arnall book is great for its many pictures, but not useful in dating. You may be interested in the book I’m publishing called “Unlocking the Portals of History”. As stated in my preface, “I have tried to bring as much detail as possible in describing these locks and their inventors and/or makers…I hope this adds a little human-interest to what may otherwise be viewed as cold, inanimate objects of steel, iron or brass.” The tentative date for its release is September. Meanwhile try to get a copy of Thomas F. Hennessy’s Locks and Lockmakers of America. Not only does it give the histories of various lock companies, but it also haslists of lock patents.
Scott

Scott Klemm

Sorry for all the run-on words above. There doesn’t seem to be any way to edit once the message is posted. Can’t fix it.
Scott

oldbiscuit

Scott, Please put my name on your list for the book when you get it published. It sounds like something I’de like to have in my library. Thanks, Mark