Medeco locks are excellent, but expensive. The pins have to not only be lifted to the right level, but also turned the correct number of degrees. The key is cut in a special way to do this. Ordinary key-cutting machines can not do this and, in fact, no key machine can duplicate a Medeco key; they have to be cut from the code and only then by a Medeco machine.
Medeco locks have been picked, but it takes a very skilled locksmith hours and hours to do it with special tools. It's really not a practical technique.
Schlage offers a very comperable (at least in terms of security) system called Primus, which is expensive as locks go, but less expensive than Medeco. Primus locks have two rows of pins. It's actually a two-level key. The upper row can be cut on a standard Schlage key machine. But the lower-level can only be cut at the Schlage factory. Schlage assigns each retailer a code on the lower row and only sells blanks with that lower row cut to that dealer.
As far as I know, nobody has yet picked a Primus lock under UL rules.
UL rules? UL as in the people who put those silly tags on hair curling irons reminding us not to insert the iron into bodily orifices? That UL?
Yes, that UL. It stands for Underwriters Laboratories. Underwritter as in insurance. The insurance industry insures the people who make hair curling irons against product liability and also against theft from their factory so they take a keen interest in the tags that go on the irons and the locks that go on the factory doors.
But, picking isn't that important for residential security. Precious few residential breakins are accomplished by picking. Contrary to what you see in the movies, picking even a minimally decent lock takes even a skilled person a few minutes. And residential burglers don't want to stand at your front door picking the lock for several minutes.
Anyway, both Medeco and Primus feature "key control systems." This means two things: First, your key is 100% unique. In most other lock products, there are only maybe a hundred or two key combinations actually used. So, every hundredth house that has that brand of lock has the same key as your house. Second, the keys can only be duplicated by an authorized dealer. In the case of Primus, only at THE authorized dealer. To get keys made, you have to take your proof of ownership documents and ID documents to the dealer and sign the signature card and so forth and they keep track of how many keys exist and so forth. What this means is that if you give your key to someone, you know when you get it back that no copies were made. It means that when you sell your house and give the new owner five keys, he can go to the dealer and they can check the record and assure him that only five exist; so there's no need for the new owner to rekey.
Kaba is another such lock system, but they are dramatically more expensive and considered unpickable.
I think Corbin has a "key control system" product too.
This type of lock is required by insurance companies on certain types of buildings. But, the insurance requirements go beyond just key control and into the physical strength of the lock and so forth. As a result, these "key control system" locks are very good locks. They're also more expensive. You can expect to pay about $150/cylinder for the locks and $10/each for the keys. But, you do get what you pay for. Not only is this good for security, but these are just durable locks that last and last; they are an investment.
Me? I've got Primus on my house.
