ramblinChet
Well-known member
Harry E. Mueller is a third generation locksmith company that has been locally owned and operated since 1927. When I purchased my Schlage B60N6 deadbolt and attempted to install it I noticed that there was one additional part required specific to my installation - a circular snap-in face plate. I stopped by both local big box stores and neither had any idea of what I was asking even through I had a Schlage part number and drawing. As you might imagine, when I walked into Mueller's the lady knew exactly what I was looking for and even gave me the part for free.
I feel bad for not checking with them first and purchasing the part from this local locksmith. Yes, it may have cost a few dollars more but the service alone it worth many times that. In my opinion, we all must begin to spend more money locally and insist on a higher level of service.
For reference, on the left is the old circular snap-in faceplate that came with the Defiant lock, it was too long and interfered with the deadbolt mechanism on the new Schlage. On the right is the correct length part that was supplied for free by Muller's.
Here is a picture of the installed lock. Note the grime and grit from just a few miles of driving through town and now try to imagine many thousands of miles of trails off road. These locks live a rough life!
Switching gears - I wanted to share some information I have collected over the past four years of driving my truck. For whatever reason I decided to snap a picture at the 1,000 hour mark to record the overall mileage and more importantly, the ratio between the idle and driven hours.
Same information collected at the 2,000 hour mark. Note inset picture taken earlier in the day which displays overall mileage.
My most recent picture at 3,000 total hours of engine time.
Here is a summary of the data collected along with a few basic calculations which show additional information. I find it interesting that my % idle hovers around the same percentage. I suspect part of that is due to how I take time to warm up my engine during the first start of each day since I make sure my engine reaches 104° F before I move my vehicle. It only take a few moments most days and my goal is to make sure lubricant is free flowing and equally distributed prior to placing a load on any of the components.
Another interesting bit of information relates to my average MPH. It seems most of my time is spent on backroads driving 35-45 with a good amount of time spent at 55-65 MPH when traveling a significant distance. While on the trail I normally average 10-15 MPH although there have been times where I was stuck at 3-5 MPH or other times where I was making good time at 20-25 MPH for short distanced.
I feel bad for not checking with them first and purchasing the part from this local locksmith. Yes, it may have cost a few dollars more but the service alone it worth many times that. In my opinion, we all must begin to spend more money locally and insist on a higher level of service.
For reference, on the left is the old circular snap-in faceplate that came with the Defiant lock, it was too long and interfered with the deadbolt mechanism on the new Schlage. On the right is the correct length part that was supplied for free by Muller's.
Here is a picture of the installed lock. Note the grime and grit from just a few miles of driving through town and now try to imagine many thousands of miles of trails off road. These locks live a rough life!
Switching gears - I wanted to share some information I have collected over the past four years of driving my truck. For whatever reason I decided to snap a picture at the 1,000 hour mark to record the overall mileage and more importantly, the ratio between the idle and driven hours.
Same information collected at the 2,000 hour mark. Note inset picture taken earlier in the day which displays overall mileage.
My most recent picture at 3,000 total hours of engine time.
Here is a summary of the data collected along with a few basic calculations which show additional information. I find it interesting that my % idle hovers around the same percentage. I suspect part of that is due to how I take time to warm up my engine during the first start of each day since I make sure my engine reaches 104° F before I move my vehicle. It only take a few moments most days and my goal is to make sure lubricant is free flowing and equally distributed prior to placing a load on any of the components.
Another interesting bit of information relates to my average MPH. It seems most of my time is spent on backroads driving 35-45 with a good amount of time spent at 55-65 MPH when traveling a significant distance. While on the trail I normally average 10-15 MPH although there have been times where I was stuck at 3-5 MPH or other times where I was making good time at 20-25 MPH for short distanced.