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First post. I've been manipulating safes for a while now but have never ran across one of these. It appears to be a Yale OB5. It was on an American Safe Co. safe that I recently brought home. I haven't found any information on it so I thought I'd bring it to show and tell. It has a simple cast iron round housing, a gravity operated fence, and what looks like an OC5 wheelpack. It wasn't hard to manipulate as I could apply extra pressure to the wheels and read the gates by operating the handle. I'm sure that wasn't by design, but it happened. Any info on this odd lock would be appreciated. I love having history with my safes. Next in line for manipulation is a John Baumann with Yale OC5... fun fun.

I think your lock model is called OBB.

Have fun with the OC-5 and with hoarding safes.

Perfect! Thank you! It's amazing the info one can find when they know WHAT they are looking for.

The American safe is a Baum.

That's what I was thinking... It's exterior, including the hinges, hinge caps (not acorns) are identical to a larger J. Baum Safe & Lock Co. I currently have. The rounded corners and door fitment are identical. The locks and T-handles are different which had me. I thought Baum made safes for other brands... I'm even doubting the other John Baumann safe as I cannot find anything on that name aside from a locksmith ad. Maybe it was a past restoration and somebody got cute with the naming. It has a Yale dial and geared lock, I can hear/feel the gears but I really don't know what's in it till I get the door open. Honestly, I'm doubting the John Baumann has an OC5 as it has 6.25" from center of dial to center of handle.... *facepalm*

I spent $400 for both safes and have one working so I'm golden. Somebody gotta teach me how to graph as I have been using stethoscope and pen/paper all this time. Never found a challenge like this JB Yale...

A big welcome to you sir, and great job on this opening. Always excites me to see another safe enthusiast come around.

As to any history behind this safe, sadly I haven't much to offer. I too find the the history of safes very interesting, but I'm not much of a historian. And what I do find/read I rarely retain. lol

This other safe you speak of - if you continue having difficulty making sense of your spin sessions with it, post some pictures. Maybe someone here can help narrow down what lock you're dealing with.


Glad you're here(!) and looking forward to seeing more of what you're up to.

Thanks Much! I know what you mean. The biggest problem I'm having with the John Baumann safe is the "BRRRRRRRR" when I spin the dial fast. If I could get some dry graphite down that shaft.... I might try to tape up the dial ring and use air to blow graphite in, without taking a bath... I can't feel/hear anything but gears as I can only spin the dial slow. I seem to get automatically logged out if I attempt to upload pictures now. Well, ok...