Norman Lock cylinder

Maurice Onraet

Hello Fellow Lock Collectors,

Does anyone have the Patent Number of the Norman Lock Cylinder?

Thanks,
Maurice

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

The patent, 3,968,668 was issued on June 13, 1976.
BBE.

Tom Gordon

and what is the Norman lock cylinder please?

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

The Norman cylinder was invented by Norman Epstein and produced by his Pragmatic Lock Co. It was a High Security and environmentally friendly lock cylinder. High Security because it couldn’t be picked and key blanks were not available. The mechanism consisted of a number of rotary discs inside the cylinder and each disc had embeded in it a ball bearing. Once all of the ball bearings were aligned end to end the mechanism was effectively longer and could then cause another ball to engage and ultimately the cam/tailpiece could be turned. It had a cast, curved blade key that was double bitted. Norman typically demonstrated the lock at conventions by having it buried in a fish bowl of sand. He would pull the lock out of the sand and give it to you with the keys and they would work smoothly after you poured the remaining sand from the lock.

Norman was a very interesting and intelligent guy who passed on a few years ago. I think the cylinder has been out of production for around 10-15 years.
BBE.

Maurice Onraet

Hello BBE,

Thank you very much for posting the patent number.

Sincerely,
Maurice

Dean Nickel

Tom Gordon wrote
and what is the Norman lock cylinder please?

I am looking for one of these with a key. I have one without a key but blanks were only made at the factory…. :cry:

MrWizard

Halflock wrote
I am looking for one of these with a key. I have one without a key but blanks were only made at the factory…. :cry:

What is the patent number on this version pictured of the Norman cylinder. The patent number a few posts up doesn’t match this one. I have this same exact one looking for a pdf of the patent on this version.

Or any other info in this one.

Thanks Richard

[unknown]

Dean Nickel

It would appear that the lock was upgraded later in 1987. The first patent doesn’t look anything like what the lock latter appeared as.

us4688405.pdf

314kB

us3968668.pdf

290kB

MrWizard

Halflock wrote
It would appear that the lock was upgraded later in 1987. The first patent doesn’t look anything like what the lock latter appeared as.

Thanks the for patent looks real close except the key isn’t double sided.
Lucky you had that magazine article that seems to be the only exact view of this lock to be found. 🙂

Richard

[unknown]

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

MrWizard wrote
Thanks the for patent looks real close except the key isn’t double sided.
Lucky you had that magazine article that seems to be the only exact view of this lock to be found. 🙂

Richard

As happens as often as not, the production model of a lock only implements the overal mechanism features of a particular kind of lock. In the case of the Norman cylinder the overriding feature was the alignment of the ball bearings. It is very likely that making the key with two separate bitted blades that were parallel added a cost factor that the market would not bear. Consequently the key and mechanism to align the ball bearings was changed to produce a better production cost. That change was then documented in the later patent for the overhead door lock. Norman is probably one of the few that ever had one of the cylinders that match the patent drawings.

I have an example of the cylinder shown in the above photo, an example of the overhead door lock and one blank key in my collection. The overehad door lock was actually being produced by the Waterbury Lock and Specialty company just before they decided to close the doors and the key for those locks was brass with a curve to match the cast nickle plated zinc keys used in the cylinder. It’s my understanding that Waterbury only made a dozen or so of the overhead door locks before closing their doors. The one I have was used in testing and shows signs of that, but it is still a very rare lock. I will attempt to find it and take a picture in a few weeks.
BBE.

[unknown]

keybler

I have 5 cylinders and 3 keys. All keyed alike.

Are these worth anything to anyone?

I pulled these form the scrap bucket at work. This is the only website that I’ve found with any information.

Thanks

oldbiscuit

PM sent

mhmh

One of these left?

Thanks
mh

keybler

My cylinders have been sold. Thanks.

mhmh

When you google for Norman Epstein, you will find a Popular Science article that states he was an “escape artist”.
Do you know if he was really an escape artist, or was that the term for “hobby lockpicker” at that time?

Cheers
mh

Dean Nickel

I will wait for BBE to reply as he might know more… I am interested.

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

mhmh wrote
Hi

When you google for Norman Epstein, you will find a Popular Science article that states he was an “escape artist”.
Do you know if he was really an escape artist, or was that the term for “hobby lockpicker” at that time?

Cheers
mh

I contacted a friend who used to own Waterbury Lock and asked if Norman had been an escape artist. His reply was ‘not the Norman I knew’. He was acquainted with Norman for many years.
BBE.

[unknown]

mhmh

This is the Popular Science Magazine article from Jan. 1980 that said so: http://books.google.de/books?id=scDqNaEhDEgC&pg=PA53&lpg=PA53&dq=norman+epstein+escape+artist&source=bl&ots=TuFSnx6xGC&sig=H-l5BWysns_jmgK8vMq9yfM1qFo&hl=de&sa=X&ei=xY4jVJ2dIu3g7QaGuYHwDg&ved=0CB0Q6AEwAA
(not sure if the link works, but it’s the first link on google for “Norman Epstein escape artist”).

It says “… is an escape artist who says he can pick most locks - but not his own.”

Was Norman Epstein a professional locksmith instead?

If not - besides the fact that lock inventors often used to pick their competitors’ locks, e.g. Alfred Charles Hobbs -
how about the 1970s and 80s - did the “non-criminal, non-professional-locksmith Lock Picker” (today known as a hobby lockpicker) exist in people’s minds? Or would such lockpickers have been called “escape artists”?

Cheers
mh

Dean Nickel

I am going to guess he worked as a locksmith at some point. We all pick locks… occupational hazard.

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

Dean Nickel wrote
I am going to guess he worked as a locksmith at some point. We all pick locks… occupational hazard.

I think the reporter got some wires crossed. I did a search for Norman Epstein Carmel NY and the answer was interesting. It claimed he is still alive at 84 and living in Carmel. I remember seeing the notice of his passing some years ago, like 15 or 20. So I’m unsure of what is happening with the online search.

I did find that he had four US patents, 2 for the Norman cylinder and 1 for a knee replacement and another for a hip. So, he certainly was an inventor.
4,653,540
5,514,183
5,549,689
5,556,434

BBE.

[unknown]