Captain Daniel Troxell from DCFD Truck Company 6 sent in a idea that one of his members brought up during some company training. The company was discussing alternate ways of defeating circular locks on roll down gates and Chris Rutter mentioned this idea. This method involves making two 45 degree cuts on the channel rail (above and below the lock and guard) to form a triangular section, with the narrow side towards the outside of the channel rail. After the cuts are made, this method uses the pike end of the halligan to bend the cut section away to defeat the locking mechanism. Simply take the pike end of the halligan and stick it between the lock and guard. Then use the halligan to bend the cut section back towards the channel to remove the locking pin from the gate. This method only works when the gates have circular locks that have some movement within the confines of the guard (like the one shown in these pictures.) This movement allows for the pike to grab a bight on the lock and guard assembly. The other more traditional method is to use the fork end of the halligan to achieve similar results as shown below. However, it’s nice to have options, you never know what you may be faced with out there! If you only know one way of doing things, you may be out of luck.
Read the original:
Don’t Forget the Pike
