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Last time I walked into the local watering hole an old friend hollered, "I got something in my truck for you, on the floor on the passenger side. You can have it." I went out to retrieve it and this is what I found. While it was free, it will cost me when Paul calls for a return favor in the future.



This door came off a night deposit safe at a local bank and was scrounged up by a worker during a remodeling project. The rest of the safe was scrapped. Upon initial inspection I was unimpressed. The dial was loose and turned rough, the crappy textured paint to hide poor workmanship was laughable, and the overall construction reeked of cost cutting measures. The lock itself is a La Gard 3330 group 2 and the combination was easily discovered.



The handle for the bolt work is keyed but the key is missing. It is stamped Yale 48LF0. Can anyone cut a key? How about you, Bitbuster?



Upon removing the restrict-a-vision dial I found the dial ring held on with only one screw. Not sure if there is supposed to be a plastic bushing in the ring to support the dial? The dial really had a lot of play and the outer edge would rub when turning.



Removing the dial ring showed why one screw was missing. The door had been drilled at one point. Hmmm... A new lock was put on so I'm not sure if this door originally had a La Gard. Note that the safe was painted after the unit was assembled. Not the way I would build a safe.



To fix the sloppy dial, I machined a brass bushing on the lathe and with a tight fit it was installed into the dial ring. While one screw will be sufficient for the future life of this door I may make a brass plug for the drilled hole to add the second screw.



Assembled with some synthetic grease, the dial now spins slicker than cat shit on a banana peel. So what am I gonna do with just a door? I wondered the same thing. I thought about just mounting the lock but have decided to make a simple steel frame and mount the door in it (it has the hinges) and make an operating wall hanging out of it. It will get a custom paint job probably in a hot rod theme. We'll see. I need something to do while I continue to wait for the artwork for the National bank safe.

I don't have a Yale code book, although someone will eventually get the cuts. I like how they just flipped the lock over to work with the left-hand door.

Cool as for the key - mysecurity pro blank & info ilco 997jA Cuts 76635 code LFO 048 when doing a search

if I have time later on will post the D&S in a - photo or pm me if you don't get it sorted

thanks

ringo

I would love to see that door attached to a mini fridge, just for kicks.

great idea if possible... most of the young people living in shared properties ie : students would think so I would guess

Think out side the box LOL that photo of the D&S on yale key for the handle

While waiting for the pieces of the National safe to return, I thought I would start on this project.

To make a wall hanging out of it I needed some sort of frame. I wanted to keep this a low buck project so I dug through the scrap steel lying around and came up with some 3/8" x 2" steel flat stock which was just wide enough for the thickness of the door and the boxed panel that covers the lock on the back of it. I machined the ends of the pieces for the frame perfectly square to aid in alignment when it was welded together. With it clamped securely on a granite surface plate and with some careful welding it turned out square with just an 1/8" gap around the door. It was then drilled for the hinges and I added a sheet metal plate to the back. A little body work to the frame and the door and it was ready for paint. Digging in the paint cabinet, there was some PPG urethane in GM torch red that was left over from my 37 Ford street rod. Perfect, I will give it a fire engine look.

Parts painted.



The door frame.



Painting started out well. It has been a while since I used PPG and I had forgotten how wonderful it is to apply. Once I got into the second coat I started having some issues with the gun spraying. I wasn't sure what was wrong and played with the adjustments on the gun. By the time I got to the door front as the final piece, I had to lay it on pretty heavy to get it to flow out. It was my own fault as I had forgotten to turn the power on to the air compressor. DUH! Despite an 80 gallon tank, air volume was dropping off as the air pressure went down. As a result I got a slight sag in the paint and a build up ridge on one edge.

Since it is a solid color it was easy to wet sand the flaws out.



This is how you get those flawless paint jobs on rods and show cars. Some initial sanding with 1200 grit wet sandpaper and then moving up to 2500 grit. Then its time for the buffer and Meguiars compound. First with a wool pad then a final buff with a foam one. The results are very satisfying.



Newspaper anyone?



I had to roll it outside for some natural light. Damn, looks like you could reach right into it.



It's all downhill from this point. Anything more than looking at it is bound to put a scuff in the freshly buffed paint. Next, I masked off a border around the door and added some 23 karat gold leaf.



I had a mask cut for the name of the company and leafed that also. Both received some turning to the gold for a more dramatic effect. Next, I will have the pinstriper do some outlining, add a couple pinstripes, and some novelty work to the inside. Stay tuned for the final result. On a side note, there is some action happening on the National safe. FINALLY!

I just spit coffee out my nose for that
Awesome work, as always. Love watching these projects come together. I hope you're teaching some young kids to obsess over detail the way you do... would be a shame to see this as the last generation of people who still take pride in such high quality craftsmanship.

Thank you for the nice compliment. Unfortunately, my skills may die with me. I had grand illusions of my two boys building cars, motorcycles, and snowmobiles, as teenagers in the shop but it wasn't to be. Neither was interested and to this day I kick myself for ever bringing that first Nintendo 64 in the house. I should have bought them a set of wrenches instead.

There is hope. One is an excellent welder and the other is working on a degree in chemical engineering. They may come full circle yet. There are some (not many) kids that are getting into the trades and with today's technology are doing amazing things. I've seen some in there 20's building fantastic custom cars. I don't know about the rest of you, but when I was in my 20's I was drinking beer, ripping up the roads, and chasing girls. With time, I did amount to more than a pinch of shit.

Well said indeed


Amen to that! I myself didn't get my head outta my ass till about 27.
Today, I like to think, and do feel like I'm a pretty good fella doin'
some pretty good things. But prior to that.... yeah hmm. lol

Anyway, really enjoyed this thread so far! You took something that wasn't
all too grand, and... well... made this into a pretty cool piece for sure.

This project is now finished and hanging on the wall. The gold leaf stripe and the brand name were outlined in a dark blue with added dark red shadowing on the letters. When the paint was removed from the hinges they were brass so they were sanded smooth and polished.



I gave the pinstriper an idea and a dose of freedom to come up with something with a little humor on the inside.



This will be an operating wall display for visitors to try their hand at dialing the combination. The fire truck looking theme worked out quite well in my humble opinion. Waddayathink?

When I first saw the door, I would have told you just keep the lock. Turns out I was wrong. You were able to get a stunning result from a piece of trash. I'm impressed, as usual!

Cheers

Very well done, that is beautiful.