Antique letterbox padlock

Darren

I recently obtained a letterbox padlock with no key. It’s a common 5 push lever with a “11” on the face. I can easily decode locked “Champion” pancake locks and make keys using needle probes, but I’ve yet to play with letterbox locks.

Can any locksmiths out there give me some advise on the process. I would image the levers can be decoded once the lock is in the open position. All 5 levers have great spring action on my lock. Does hasp tension work or not?

oldbiscuit

Darren, If you can pick a Champion and have the tools to impression the key then you shouldn’t have any problem doing the same on the mail lock. As per the rules of this forum site, we won’t go into the details of how to pick locks as this is an open forum and there can be legal issues involved.🙁think):

Darren

Sorry, I never read the rules. I’m an accomplished locksmith. I did probe the lock as I would a “Champion” and got similar readings. And by no means is the process “impressioning” by definition; I don’t use that “Dix Pix” either, although the tool shows merit for decoding open locks. I like using my dial calipers and "simple math. I think I’m on the right track. I’ll search the web for mechanical drawings or pictures to see what’s going on. And by the way, I never mentioned “picking”.