Magic Eye Police Lock

Brian Morland MLA Hon

I came across this in the collection, and wondered if anybody on the other side of the pond knows what it is, or how its used.

Many thanks

Brian

oldbiscuit

Brian, You would see these in bigger cities that had a lot of older appartment units. That is one part of a three part door stop. That piece was mounted about 3-4 feet up on the inside, latch side of the entrance door. There was a anchor shoe that was attached to the floor aprox 2 feet back and a rod that went between the two. When not in use the rod was pulled up from the floor anchor and slid up under the hoop on the door piece and it would hang there. To secure the door once you were inside. you would simply lift up on the rod and slide it down and out, setting the bottom in the floor anchor and the top of the rod would drop in the notch in the door unit, making a brace to stop someone from forcing the door open from outside. I hope my explanation makes sense. Mark

Parautoptic

Brian,

A quick search found these images, an interesting item indeed.

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&docid=G6qgOPFmW-oQHM&tbnid=14sOZPuKL_UMkM:&ved=0CAYQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flickr.com%2Fphotos%2Fsogross%2F3661362027%2F&ei=ilAgU5GUDbST0QWz7oH4Cw&bvm=bv.62788935,d.ZGU&psig=AFQjCNH55xCLwdxah4oSebThmSlRc4GpgA&ust=1394713006593509

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTa8oDuEu9UvbtL64xB8o3oYKWeJfrDW3SpTB0eLlWA-W1sDyDA

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/04/27/nyregion/thecity/lock02190.jpg

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

While you can find them sprinkled around the US, it was primarily a NYC lock. The most popular brand was a Fox Police Lock and the Magic Eye came along later. It operated pretty much as Mark described but he missed one detail. From the outside you locked the door with a key and that caused the rod to move under part of the lock so that if the door were tried it would be firmly braced in position. Unlocking it with the key moved the rod into alignment with the slot/hoop arrangement so that the rod would slide through the slot and allow the door to open.
BBE.

Brian Morland MLA Hon

Thanks Billy, Mark and Phil. Fascinating, so was it a police initiative and whats the Magic Eye part refer to. I notice on mine it has a square spindle socket, so I assume that was the overide connection from the outside.

Thanks everybody for the enlightenment.

Parautoptic

I found this too, a little look at the human story behind the tech.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/nyregion/thecity/27lock.html?_r=0

Phil

Brian Morland wrote
Thanks Billy, Mark and Phil. Fascinating, so was it a police initiative and whats the Magic Eye part refer to. I notice on mine it has a square spindle socket, so I assume that was the overide connection from the outside.

Thanks everybody for the enlightenment.

[unknown]

Pschiffe

Parautoptic wrote
I found this too, a little look at the human story behind the tech.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/nyregion/thecity/27lock.html?_r=0

Phil

In addition to the Fox Police Lock vertical bar lock which was used only on inward swing doors as discussed above, they also made a double bar lock. Rotation of the key or knob turns a gear between two sliding steel bars. This slides the bars into both sides of the door frame up to two and one-half inches. Progressive Hardware Co. of East Northport, NY still sells these as their No. DBL-01 double bar lock, see thumbnail attached.

Pete Schifferli

[unknown]

KitBear

The Fox bar was seen being used on the movie Burglar with Whoopie Goldberg and the DBL was in FX2 - The art of illusion,

Tom Gordon

I think a vertical bar lock as per the old ones shown here, is still available in the UK but without the key override, so is effectively a very strong doorchain/bolt.

Adrian Weber

I believe that I have seen that type of lock in a movie starring Whoopi Goldberg when I was a young boy, she had that door and the police guy tried to break it down and failed. Then they realised that the door had an inner steel plate and got a torch to make a hole in it 😃:

Was a fun movie if I could only remember its name, Jumpin Jack Flash maybe? Not sure….

Adrian

Billy B Edwards Jr. CML

Brian Morland wrote
Thanks Billy, Mark and Phil. Fascinating, so was it a police initiative and whats the Magic Eye part refer to. I notice on mine it has a square spindle socket, so I assume that was the overide connection from the outside.

Thanks everybody for the enlightenment.

Both are just brand names those square tailpieces weren’t made by all companies and sometimes hard to find by those who did make them.
BBE.

[unknown]

KitBear

Adrian Weber wrote
I believe that I have seen that type of lock in a movie starring Whoopi Goldberg when I was a young boy, she had that door and the police guy tried to break it down and failed. Then they realised that the door had an inner steel plate and got a torch to make a hole in it 😃:

I covered that one above Adrian.

Good movie though, better than Theodore Rex.

Kit

[unknown]

Adrian Weber

Hey Kit,

thanks man! I did not see that the first time sorry 🙁:
You guys just childhood mystery of mine, just wish you could still buy them somewhere 🙁happy):

Adrian