History of Manipulation.

[m...@cedep.net]

Hi all,

Manipulation of combination locks is an art that I learned from other
locksmiths in the early seventies. Since then, I have had at least 10
opportunities to open safes that sported S&G 6700 as well as 8700
series locks. These locks all feature fences that are spring loaded
and ride on the cam wheel.

I've often wondered how or even if manipulation (as we know it) took
place on locks where the fence didn't or just barely touched the cam
wheel. As a matter of fact, can anyone shed light as to how old this
artform really is and who developed it ?

While we're on the subject, when and who developed the concept of the
M.R and M.P. series of S&G locks?

I know from the response to my last posting, there are some really
knowledgeable people out there who go back in the industry a lot
further than your's truly. I'd really like to hear from them on this
subject.

Mike Swierzy.

[Pro Lock]

Harry Miller and James Taylor developed manipulation during the war (ll, i
believe) and trained our espionage agents to open enemy safes withouth their
knowledge.

They also developed the MP locks to defeat this type of attack on our own
containers.

With the invent of the "auto dialers" , they developed "two motion" locks to
defeat the dialers.

Electronic locks (X-07) were developed to defeat the "two-motion" mechanical
dialers etc.

BTW prior to the electronics, S&G developed the group 1R MP locks to defeat
x-ray reading of the metal tumblers, as well as manipulation (the dialers got
them , though)

JV

[aa...@_no.spam.deltanet.com]

In <199803190640...@ladder01.news.aol.com>, pro...@aol.com (Pro Lock) writes:
>Harry Miller and James Taylor developed manipulation during the war (ll, i
>believe) and trained our espionage agents to open enemy safes withouth their
>knowledge.

Just as a matter of interest, Harry C. Miller did not actually invent
manipulation. In an interview, he said that safe experts from the 1870s
were able to use a form of manipulation to take readings from the safe
locks of their day. He didn't elaborate on their technique.

>
>They also developed the MP locks to defeat this type of attack on our own
>containers.

Harry says that in 1947, the State Department called the people in the
industry together and said, "Look, we are concerned about the locks that
we are using and the security they offer throughout the world on State
Dept. embassy safes." Harry turned to his famous lock collection for
ideas: "[The collection] was fairly well developed by then, although
many people thought it was just a lot of pretty locks. Well, that was
not my purpose in starting it. If I was to develop a good lock and
have it available for the improvement of security for our government,
I had to study everything being used and what their weaknesses were."

Harry started in the business iin 1924 at age 12, helping his father erect bank
vaults for Diebold. Here's what he said about safe opening techniques
in those days:

"Most of my early training opening safes was done with a candle, a
mirror, and a handful of piano wire. We would drill a 1/2" hole and,
in order to see down the hole, we'd take a little hand mirror and a
candle and try to get right down in there to see what you could. In
most of the safe openings, to get anything to move in or out of place,
it would be done with a piece of piano wire.

"My father was working on drilling a safe at the Coleman Surgical
Instrument Company in Washington, D.C., when the owner, Mr. Coleman,
suggested that maybe one of his medical nasopharyngoscopes would let
him see what he wanted to see in the hole. So he let my father use one
to open the safe. My father was so impressed that he started to teach
his children to use them. That was the introduction of the surgical scope
for use in safe openings in the late 1930s."

Harry C. Miller held 54 patents, 46 of which were actually manufactured.
One non-lock related patent was for a propane ignitor he designed after
watching his maintenance people at S&G try to light furnaces in a high
wind. He said, "You can stick it out the car window at 80 mph and
it will stay lit."

I guess Harry must have liked to drive fast, too...

[Pro Lock]

I was trying not to use so many words (ha ha)

JV