Trelock Telephone Dial Lock

Huw Eastwood

Found this one in with the Lassman combo pads- another I didn’t know I had.

I know Adrian’s got a thing about these- it’s not very old- could be as recent as the 1980s from the style of packaging- it’s circa Berlin-Wall-division though, evident from the ‘Made in Western-Germany’. Unusual little locks and they’re a bit of fun anyway- my 2 teenagers can’t even imagine the concept of a phone which could be manually locked with one of these 😃:

Adrian Weber

Uhhhhh want want want!!!! 🙁rofl):

I can post a picture of my phone dial padlock collection later, got quite a few now and only some are missing!

KitBear

Undoubtedly Abus copied or visa versa because I have about 6 in my collection, they made a Brass version which I did have once but went walkies somewhere never to be seen again, mine are all Chrome KA.

These don’t offer any sort of security (3pins) and can be picked without difficulty, heck, I’ve opened mine by just putting pressure on the tailpiece and inserting the pick and it opened 😃:.

The first time I saw one was when I was about 11 in school (brass Version), I never tried to pick it because it was in a public area and had no idea how long it would take and so just left it, Wish I had now, Free phone calls 🙂

KitBear

MaxVaultage wrote
Found this one in with the Lassman combo pads- another I didn’t know I had.

I know Adrian’s got a thing about these- it’s not very old- could be as recent as the 1980s from the style of packaging- it’s circa Berlin-Wall-division though, evident from the ‘Made in Western-Germany’. Unusual little locks and they’re a bit of fun anyway- my 2 teenagers can’t even imagine the concept of a phone which could be manually locked with one of these 😃:

They’ll understand quite perfectly if you removed their mobile phones and replaced the house phone with a rotary dial with one of these on it 🙁grin):

[unknown]

Adrian Weber

Hey Kit,

back in the day nobody really thought about manipulation and the Zeiss Ikon telephone dial lock is not that easy because due to tight tolerances and a decent keyway.

Anyway, we do normally talk about history here and not this other topic! I have the older version of the Zeiss Ikon telephone dial lock which was chrome plated and had 2 screws at the back in order to be able to take it apart. I believe I posted pictures of it once. Interestingly you can tell how old it is by the logo of it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLDJje_n2Vs

Adrian

KitBear

Those are very nice, If I had to choose between them it would be the 1936 because it just looks like it’s been built better.

I try not to talk about manipulation etc but I thought it was worth a mention because the older telephone locks seem to be of a better quality as you have kindly illustrated, unusually lower quality than I expected from Abus.

Kit

Adrian Weber

Hey Kit,

good point!

The Abus does have a paracentric keyway but is not nearly as tight as the Zeiss Ikon, at least as far as I can remember. I can post a picture as soon as I am back home, which will probably be on Sunday.

The older and the newer Zeiss Ikon do have the same quality trust me, they differ a little in size and finish + the old one can be taken apart where as the new one has a pin that holds the back in place. Both are of very good quality though.

I do however also prefer the older one a bit 🙁happy):

Adrian

Huw Eastwood

I’ll go along with tight tolerances on the Zeiss Ikon’s Adrian! I only ever used to encounter a few of their small locks back in the 1980s and can’t remember what models or series they were from but they pretty much put everything else to shame! They were very difficult to pick and even trying to shim one apart on the bench with a shim and key blank was a nightmare as the fit of the plug in the cylinder was so tight it eluded even the thinnest shims- very well made locks and unbelievable really for what was a small ‘everyday’ pin tumbler cylinder.

I don’t think any of the manufacturers of these small types of device were intent on bank vault level security though- they were after all, made purposely for the dial of the telephones of the day, and also I think mainly intended only for domestic use. Other similar locks were the same. These Burg and Guard ‘blockers’ spring to mind- for 99% of cases I think they did their job and acted as an adequate deterrent. All of these had their little faults and weaknesses but overall I think they worked well for what was intended- Zeiss sure did set a standard above most of them though through sheer precision and tolerances 🙁happy):

Adrian Weber

You got me hooked Max!

Here is a picture of my old Zeiss Ikon telephone lock, keep in mind that this beauty is from the 30s 🙁nerd): I believe that my piece is even older than the one from the museum, since my number is lower and the piece from the museum does not have any screws at the back of the cam.

http://www.zeiss-ikon-schlossmuseum.de/zeiss_ikon_telefonschloss_sl_368.html

Here is a picture of how and at what telephone device it was used, the old Siemens Bakelit telephones, I wish I had one:
http://www.zeiss-ikon-schlossmuseum.de/zi_aufsteller_telefonschloss.html

In my opinion this telephone dial lock was a master piece both in design and security. The inner plug features a step just like on modern euro profile cylinders, making shimming nearly impossible. The screws at the back of the lock could possibly be sealed with lead, but this is just an assumption. The keyway is very tight. The newer model from the 70s could not be taken apart and had a dull finish instead of a shiny finish. I love their design and that the body comes together when unlocking it and moving the cam in the right position.

Very beautiful and a master piece of my collection.

Adrian

Huw Eastwood

That’s a beauty Adrian- great to have it all complete and shows real tribute to Zeiss that they maintained their high standards even on something as straightforward as one of these.

I found yet another I didn’t know I had until a week or so ago- it’s worlds away from the quality of your Zeiss, but with these already ‘a lock of the past’ it’s a nice find all the same.

Mico made a lot of ‘budget’ products back in the 1970s and 80s. Surprisingly this little dial lock seems very well made compared to their other cylinders I remember- some were so badly made that the plug would be at the ‘5 to’ or ‘5 past’ position when the key was removed. Others were even worse- upper and lower pin chambers so badly misaligned that you could remove a key and the pins wouldn’t lock, leaving the plug free to turn. I guess this little guy came out lucky🙁happy):
Adrian- if your Zeiss Ikon is the Maybach of teledial locks, then I think this one’s a Yugo 🙁giggle):

Adrian Weber

Ahhhhhh Max!!! Want 🙁nerd):!!!

The quality looks fine to me and look! It is even a 5 pinner! I have never seen a telephone dial lock featuring 5 pins. All the others mainly have 3 pins and some models have 4 like this papaiz that Brian sent to me once upon a time 🙁clap):

I also have a beautiful Burg Wächter dial lock which seems to be a copy of the Zeiss Ikon. Let me make a picture of that!

Adrian

Huw Eastwood

Well spotted that man 🙁clap):

You’re sort of right Adrian- it has got the 5 chambers on the cylinder, but it’s actually only a 4 pin- the 5th is for the static pin which holds the plug in the cylinder. Might not show up in the pics but the keys have only got the 4 cuts.

Papaiz- you got me thinking now, I think I’ve got one somewhere but mine was boxed if I remember right. They made a few different sized ‘push-in’ pin tumbler locks for sliding door cupboards/bookcases and I think mines in a small blue box like they were. Still haven’t come across the original one I set out to find though- I’ve got it somewhere but I still can’t even remember what it was. Don’t think it’s anywhere near as old or prestigious as your Zeiss Ikon but I think it might have been a Burg or possibly even an Italian Cisa or Viro from the 1970s? Anyway I’ll keep looking 🙁nod):

Adrian Weber

Hey Max,

Yeah I was wondering about the cuts on the key 🙁happy):
Here is a picture of my Burg Wächter telephone dial lock. The inner housing is made out of brass and the outer is made of plastic. The quality is not as good as on the Zeiss Ikon but it is still a nice piece. The lock has 4 pins, no security pins and the keys are made of steel.

PS: I also have that Eagle telephone dial lock here which is really interesting, not sure if I ever posted pictures of it.

Adrian

Adrian Weber

I did post pictures of the Eagle telephone dial lock and I am still wondering about its age:

http://www.antique-locks.com/showthread.php/2996-Eagle-Telephone-Dial-Lock-Age?highlight=eagle+telephone+lock

someone must have an old brochure or catalog with this lock in it…

Huw Eastwood

I quite like that Burg- definitely unusual- the one I’m still searching for is nothing like that from what I recall, so I think that’s the burg ruled out. Unusual idea with the outer plastic sleeve. Those nice little keys are of the type used on their tiny keycase ‘blocker’ locks. Seeing the plastic on yours has got me thinking why they didn’t do a similar idea on the keycase blockers, but they were also intended as blockers for keyholes/mortice locks, so I suppose that’s probably why.

Yep I remember your Eagle- it’s a beauty- to me it would pass for being older than the Zeiss, but I guess that’s down to the finish and patina on it. Might be a long wait for a member with a catalogue with one of those in though…………I can imagine that being one of those obscure little offerings they didn’t market that hard- and only a tiny picture being tucked in a small corner of a rare issue! But I hope you find one and someone out there proves otherwise 🙁happy):