I’m sure that anyone who has read
more than a few of these blogs will know that I am pretty nostalgic
about my high school days. The people, the times, the friendships,
the teachers and to some extent, even the education had a profound
impact on me.
One of the things from that era that
has remained with me throughout the years is the Dudley lock that
kept my locker closed throughout the six years I spent in high
school. It kept out the Borrowers, the Merry Pranksters, the Narks
and all other prying eyes and minds. It protected my textbooks, gym
shorts, coats and boots, pens, papers, and an assortment of things
that I just accumulated. Old “Dudley” did the job he was
purchased for and he did it well.
“Dudley” has continued to work for
me throughout the years. He would come to the gym with me; he kept
potential burglars out of a number of buildings and locked many
fences over the years. A few years ago, I bought an eight pack of
locks that were all keyed alike and they have taken over the
protection duties, leaving “Dudley” to retire in the back of a
drawer or a box where it is warm and dry. To tell the truth, “Dudley”
had become a little sloppy over the years and instead of a specific
combination, anywhere close to the combination was good enough.
I have picked up other Dudley locks
over the years and I have one that has taken over the personal
protection detail. It is good, but it isn’t “Dudley”. We just
don’t have the history and probably never will. I used the new lock
over the past little while to protect my meagre possessions from Post
Office thieves on the days I worked there. It was somewhat stiff and
didn’t tolerate a missed number the way “Dudley” does. Perhaps
he wants to make a positive impression, but frankly, he is trying too
hard.
I found a Dudley lock on the street a
couple of years ago, and it was in pristine condition. Nary a scratch
and the only problem is that it was closed and I of course don’t
have the combination. Every now and then I would pick it up and spin
three numbers at random, but to no ones surprise, this Dudley kept
closed. The other day I decided that enough was enough! “Dudley”
has served his time and deserves a quite retirement, but this new guy
needs to pick up the slack.
Thankfully there is the internet and
lots of sites for budding safe crackers and those interested in
learning the ways of locks. I tried a few different sites, but most
of them were set on some kind of damage to the lock which wouldn’t
happen unless I couldn’t get it open. I finally found one, the
“Dudley Combo Cracker” that I felt was worth a try.
It turns out that although there are 60
numbers on the face, there are really only ten positions of four
numbers each. That takes the possible number of combinations from
216,000 down to 1000 which a guy could conceivably do if he happened
to be retired with nothing better to do with his time. However, the
number of combinations can be further reduced by tossing out the last
digit. Most of us at some time or another have dialled the first two
digits and left the last one to speed things up. Once you have the
first two numbers all that you have to do is move through the
positions until the lock opens. Now, we are down to 100 possible
combinations.
This site went on to say that most (not
all) Dudley locks have a first number that is larger than the second
number which reduces the combinations down to 45 possibles. Not too
bad at all. The chance of you having to go through all 45 is minimal
if you aren’t me. I went through all forty five and then I did the
forty five with first numbers lower than the second number and it
still didn’t open. I was pretty down because I’ve come to believe
that if something is on the internet then it must be right…right?
Just as I was about to give up, I
realized that I had been spinning the second number incorrectly. Hey,
it has been a while since “Dudley” and I were paying attention to
each other. You have to turn completely around the dial and then hit
number two. Doing it right, I got the correct combination in 26
tries. Yea me!!!!
Of course, I have little or no use for
another combination lock, but that’s not the point, I got the lock
open. Somewhere, in the back of a dark and cluttered drawer, “Dudley”
is proud of me.
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