Info about Yale padlock

Carmello

Hi, I’m new to this forum and collecting locks in general. I have a Yale padlock and was hoping someone could give me more information about it.

I have the original key. It has 5b673 engraved into it.

oldbiscuit

Carmello, it’s hard for me to tell from your photo’s just how big this padlock is. I can’t tell if you have small or large hands. If it’s just an average size Yale pin tumbler padlock, with no other company names besides Yale, or logo’s on it, I’d say it would be from the early 20’s to the 50’s and worth $15-$20. However, if it’s a large body Yale, the price could go up another $10-$15. Other company names or logo’s on it would increase the value even more🙁emo):

Carmello

Thanks for the reply and sorry about the pictures. My iPod doesn’t have the best camera. It’s pretty big and heavy. It says hardened on the shackle and there’s an A above Yale, but other than that it doesn’t have anything on it.

Pschiffe

Carmello wrote
Thanks for the reply and sorry about the pictures. My iPod doesn’t have the best camera. It’s pretty big and heavy. It says hardened on the shackle and there’s an A above Yale, but other than that it doesn’t have anything on it.

Yale extruded brass pin tumbler padlock, made for many years beginning from about 1940 in five sizes:

No. 771 1″ width, 3/16″ shackle, 4 tumblers, .32″ dia. plug, #24-½ key blank
No. 772 1-¼″ width, ¼″ shackle, 5 tumblers, .40″ dia. plug, #13-½ key blank
No. 773 1-½″ width, 9/32″ shackle, 5 tumblers, .40″ dia. plug, #13-½ key blank
No. 774 1-¾″ width, 9/32″ shackle, 5 tumblers, .51″ dia. plug, #8 key blank
No. 775 2″ width, 9/32″ shackle, 5 tumblers, .51″ dia. plug, #8 key blank

Yours appears to have a #8 key, thus apparently #774 or #775 depending upon case width.

Pete Schifferli

[unknown]

oldbiscuit

Thanks for the extra info Pete, I wasn’t for sure how far back Yale started making that lock.Do you know when they discontinued it?

Pschiffe

oldbiscuit wrote
Thanks for the extra info Pete, I wasn’t for sure how far back Yale started making that lock.Do you know when they discontinued it?

Sorry, I don’t; my guess would be late 20th century. Actually 1940 was a guesstimate, the earliest reference I found to that series was in a small catalog titled Yale Padlocks and Auxiliary Locks, Revised April, 1940. The popular #774 had a list price of $20.00 per dozen at that time! Although the default keyways for stock locks are shown in my earlier post, we have seen these with various multiplex keyways as well (Yale calls them Surety Sections), JA-JK for the 13-½ and GA-GK for the 8 & 11 (11 is the 6-pin version of the 8 5-pin sometimes used on the Nos. 774 and 775).

Pete Schifferli

[unknown]

Dean Nickel

I know my grandfather had one from his work in the Navy Dept. and that was the 1920s.

Pschiffe

Dean Nickel wrote
I know my grandfather had one from his work in the Navy Dept. and that was the 1920s.

That may very well be Dean, however; my “guestimmate” was based upon not seeing that model in either the 1929 or 1937 catalogs and then finding it in the 1940 document cited! My two cents.

Pete Schifferli

[unknown]

Pschiffe

Dean Nickel wrote
I know my grandfather had one from his work in the Navy Dept. and that was the 1920s.

That may very well be Dean, however; my “guesstimate” was based upon not seeing that model in either the 1929 or 1937 catalogs and then finding it in the 1940 document cited! My two cents.

Pete Schifferli

[unknown]

Dean Nickel

Maybe they made this lock for the Military before they offered it on the general market. But I really only know what I am told by my father and others. So you could be very right.