Yesterday I picked up two tool cabinets, both eye height, an 11 drawer
Vidmar and a 17 drawer Lyon. The Lyon had a poor attempt to unlock
via drilling, then some sort of mangling which bent the lock
mechanism. I got them home and unloaded via a Uhaul trailer. The
Vidmar is re-assembled and ready to receive tools.

I want to repair the lock mechanism on the Lyon before reassembly.
I've managed to remove the drilled lock. The locking mechanism in the
back of the cabinet, on the other hand, is more of a challenge. The
operating rod hole at the front, locking mechanism bolt hole at the
back, and lock bar pivot (the lock bar is built up to resemble a
vertical angle which pivots into a recess in each drawer frame to lock
all drawers) at the back are all curved slots which have been closed
enough to prevent removal of much anything. I can almost, but not
quite remove the locking mechanism over the lock bar pivot. This
sucker was not intended to be disassembled.

Tomorrow, I plan to file or grind the slots enough to allow removal of
the operating rod, lock mechanism, and lock bar. At that point I'll
be able to straighten the lock mechanism and determine everything's
working before I reinstall. A trip to the locksmith should provide a
new lock.

Anybody got any other suggestions for opening the slots?

Thanks.

Pete Keillor