Locks and Security News: your weekly locks and security industry newsletter
17th April 2024 Issue no. 701

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Genuine Lishi 8 Cut Tibbe debuts at Tradelocks' Open Weekend

Tradelocks is fast becoming synonymous with tool advance and innovation, and once more Tradelocks under their Genuine Brand have advanced the market yet again! And this time it's the humble 8 Cut Tibbe pick that is the focus of their attention.

The Tibbe has been used for many years on Ford and older Jaguar vehicles with the latter using the 8 Cut Tibbe as opposed to the more common 6 cut.

For years the market has had a Tibbe for the 6 cut locks that acts as both a pick and a decoder. In Europe, most locksmiths favour using the pick as a means of entry, whereas in the USA the locks are commonly decoded and then a key cut to open the door. The 6 cut works really well as a pick and a decoder, but it is a delicate tool, and on some locks particularly in old Transits, many over tension the tool and break the turners.

So this led to Tradelocks launching the very popular 6 Cut Tibbe and make up key. The lock can be quickly decoded and the make up key can be assembled with the correct combination for opening the vehicle. This resolved the issue of broken picks, whilst offering the locksmith the chance to then clone the make up key to make a duplicate rather than having to use a cut to code machine!

This is all well and good for the 6 cut, but there has been no useable decoder or pick for the 8 cut. The problem has been the weakness of the turners in the structure which makes it difficult to make a useable tool.

And so Tradelocks took 18 months to develop a good solution, and now it is ready for the market. It is designed on the same principal as the 6 cut Tibbe using the same style of turners, and there are 8 turners with 3 heights instead of the standard 6 turners with 4 heights.

The 8 cut is described as a decoder, and is ideally used with a make up key or a cut to code new key. Martin Pink explains, "The new 8 cut Tibbe will pick a lock, but you have to relax the number 2 heights a fraction to do this. On a stiff or old lock, this may cause some issues, so we prefer to promote the 8 cut as a straight decoder and generate the cut key or make up key as an opening solution to protect the tool."

Tradelocks have also changed the standard packaging for the Tibbe, making it a part of the now famous Genuine Lishi NightVision tray system.

David Jennings explains, "The NightVision tray system is now well established, and we wanted to make sure as many tools as possible fit into the modular system. We looked at the way Lego bricks lock together with single, double, quad bricks etc., and got inspiration from that."

"The new Tibbe tray is a double height tray that locks into 2 of the Genuine Lishi NightVision trays vertically. We liked the concept so much that we are also now adopting it for the standard Tibbe and the make up key! The tray slides out and has a central rail into which the wheeler turners fit to keep the pick upright and safe. We have adopted 3 strong colours for the 3 parts so that getting the right one is easy. Red is for the Make Up Key, black is for the standard 6 cut Tibbe and blue is for the 8 cut Tibbe decoder!"

Changing the system also allows Tradelocks to add the Tibbe to their serial number registration programme on their Genuine Lishi app and Genuine Lishi website. David says, "Having the serial number registered allows you to view all the Tibbe training videos and documentation we have, and it's completely free!"

The 8 cut Tibbe is available now, and you can find out more information by visiting www.tradelocks.co.uk. Information on the Genuine Lishi app and registration details is available on www.GenuineLishi.com.

8th July 2015