The EVVA Dual is a lock with twelve spring loaded sliders and two sidebars. One on each side. It is an exceptionally hard lock to pick. Reinder Stegen, a gifted picker, found gutting of the Dual error prone and devised a tool to help with gutting the lock instead.
EVVA Dual with the correct key inserted.
For a normal pin tumbler lock you can gut the lock once the plug rotates freely. This can, for example, be achieved by picking, back shimming, or using the key. The EVVA Dual can’t be gutted in the same way as a regular pin tumbler lock as the sliders protrude the cylinder both in the resting position as with the correct key. While the housing has grooves cut for the sliders to slide and rotate this also means that gutting the lock is much harder to accomplish.
EVVA Dual Gut Key moved the sliders down
You will find more detailed pictures on the EVVA Dual on a recent upload to the Lock Wiki. http://lockwiki.com/index.php/EVVA_DUAL This wiki has been quietly expanding with lots of detailed pictures over the past year. Certainly worth a look at the Abloy Easy and the Chubb Mark IV Manifoil that are recently added.
Let’s get back to the EVVA Dual as that’s what this post was all about. The solution to gutting the EVVA Dual is this Gut Key (Set-up key for gutting) designed and 3D printed by Reinder. It solves the problem by moving the sliders down to the fictitious ‘shear line’ making gutting the Dual a breeze.
EVVA Dual Gut Key by Reinder Stegen
Reinder Stegen was kind enough to allow inclusion of the pictures and STL under CCBY4.0.
This is a short story of me, Jan-Willem, buying a floor safe without a combination. Then failing to decode it, resorting to an alternative method, and eventually having to part with it again.
Let’s start at the beginning. I’ve found a rusty Major floor safe for sale online, without combo. The ad looked alright and the price was good. I miscalculated the drive and spend the next five hours in the car to pick it up. (Note: I live pretty cental and the Netherlands is not that big.)
The safe was also a lot heavier than anticipated and comes in at about 40kg (~90 pound). The safe door is about 8kg (17 pound).
Failing to manipulate First up was cleaning the safe. The dial felt quite gritty and washed most of the sand away with lock spray from the WD-40 company. It worked quite well. It also created a huge mess in the safe but that was not my concern at the moment.
I’ll just say this outright: I’m not good at manipulating safes. I’ve beaten a few S&G but never beyond 6730 and 6741. Manipulating it was a pain as the space was tight and the dial didn’t show much. I must have spend 10h on it over a week and gave up on it.
Opening the safe, slightly destructive When I have projects like this I want them done as soon as possible. I decided manipulating was not fun and resorted to the semi destructive method of drilling a small hole and use the key change hole to dial the safe open. I’ve used a 8mm (1/3th inch) hole and a 4mm (1/6th inch) camera. (Hopefully more about those in an upcoming blog.) The process was still quite painful but I’ve learned a lot from it. It did not take more than 60 minutes in the end.
As the camera is actually an integrated USB webcam I’ve recorded the process and shared for your entertainment. The short version is 82 seconds and the long version just over half an hour. [note to self: fix Word press so it embeds YouTube videos properly.]
Selling the safe I’ve promised to share the full story so I’ll share a bit about selling the safe as well. These safes are quite rare here. From a quick search I’ve found a new safe door would cost me about €1k. Mostly shipping and import charges.
I love buying second hand goods. I search online and find an item, strike a conversation, place a very good bid, and pay minutes after we struck a deal. Selling on the other hand is extremely painful. (Hence why good manners work so well as a buyer.) For this safe I’ve taken plenty of detailed pictures, included all measurements, and put the safe up for sale. The difference between one buyer and another is clearly noticeable. Many people offered me to take the safe away for free or next to nothing and were offended when I said no. Finding a buyer took a few weeks.
The buyer asked for details on the change key mechanism and I’ve found the La Gard change key worked well. I’ve reset the combination to a random but valid combination. The buyer was unfamiliar with safes and how to operate them. We must have spend an hour on it. Instructing him how to dial the safe and he preformed the dialing a dozen times.
Just before the buyer left with the safe, afraid they would forget, they recorded them selves opening the safe. I’ve discussed this with a few locksmiths and it’s apparently normal. People, scared to forget, will take videos or involve spouse to help remember.
I’ve made a bit of profit on it, not including my time. Learned a few new tricks and have another story. I’ll think twice before buying another safe without combo but we know it’ll happen again.
Pictures Lastly I want to add a few pictures for the archive. The lock is integrated in the safe door and can’t be removed or function without the door. The safe door has a cover that’s held in place with a large spring washer. Without the cover a relocker prevents the lock from opening.
