ABUS 74M/40 Plastic-covered Padlock, 1/4" Shackle dia., 1 37/64" Width

The 74M/40 has a 1/4 inch shackle diameter with 3/4 inch of horizontal clearance and 1-1/2 inches of vertical clearance under the shackle. That means the staple or hasp eye has to accept a 1/4 inch shackle, and the shackle spans up to 3/4 inch across and 1-1/2 inches of stacked material. Thick gate hasps, chain links, or a doubled hasp plate can eat that clearance quickly, so measure the stack you are locking through before ordering.

Yes. The 74M/40 is ordered either KA (keyed alike, all locks on one key) or KD (keyed different, each lock its own key), and both are offered in every color. A property manager putting locks on a run of gates or storage rooms takes KA; a facility handing out individual locks to tenants or techs takes KD. The colors let you keep separate KA groups visually distinct on the same site.

It is built for it. The body is solid brass with a steel shackle, and both are encased in vinyl, which is what makes it weather resistant and keeps the lock from marring painted gates or powder-coated equipment. Brass does not rust the way a plain steel body does. The vinyl also gives it a grip in cold weather.

No. The 74M/40 is key retaining, so the key stays captive in the cylinder until the shackle is closed and locked. That is the behavior you want where locks get left hanging on a gate and keys walk off. If you need to pull the key with the lock open, look at a non-key-retaining padlock instead, such as the Sargent 858 or the Sargent 82-856.

The 74M/40 tops out at a 1/4 inch shackle, so a staple drilled for a heavier lock will let it rattle or shear. For a thicker shackle, the Medeco 5260 brass body padlock runs 7/16 inch, and the Schlage KS23D/KS23F brass padlock and the Medeco 54515G both use 5/16 inch. Match the shackle to the hole in your hasp, not the other way around.

The ABUS 74M/40 is a solid brass body padlock with a steel shackle, and both the body and shackle are vinyl encased so the lock will not mark up painted gates, powder-coated cabinets, or vehicle bodies it swings against. If you want the same brass body without the plastic jacket, the Sargent 758 is a key retaining standard padlock in a US4 satin brass finish, and the Medeco 5260 is a 52 Series brass body padlock in satin chrome with a 7/16 inch shackle diameter. Both give you bare metal at the contact surfaces, which matters where a coating could be cut off or where the lock has to be wiped down rather than protected.

The 74M/40 uses a 1/4 inch shackle diameter with 3/4 inch of horizontal clearance and 1-1/2 inch of vertical clearance, which suits standard hasps, lockers, and tool cribs. For a heavier shackle, the Schlage KS23D/KS23F brass padlock and the Medeco 54515G XT electronic indoor/outdoor padlock both use a 5/16 inch shackle diameter, and the Medeco 5260 steps up to 7/16 inch. Measure the hasp eye before you order - a larger shackle diameter will not pass through a hole drilled for 1/4 inch stock.

The 74M/40 gives 1-1/2 inch of vertical shackle clearance, which covers most flush-mounted hasps and locker latches. Where you are locking through a chain, a thick staple, or stacked hasp leaves, the Sargent 60-858-2 is a removable core padlock built with a 2 inch stainless steel shackle. Clearance is the dimension that decides this, not body size, so measure the total stack the shackle has to pass through and add for the loop.

The 74M/40 has a precision 6-pin cylinder and is rekeyable, so it can be brought onto a keyway you already service. If your facility standardizes on interchangeable cores so that a core swap rekeys the padlock without opening the lock body, the Sargent 60-858-2 is a removable core padlock with a 2 inch stainless steel shackle. On a large key system, a locksmith pulls and replaces cores rather than repinning each padlock, and that difference in method usually decides which of the two a facility buys.

The 74M/40 is key retaining, meaning the key cannot be withdrawn while the padlock is open - the lock cannot be walked away from in the unlocked state and left hanging on a gate. Among comparable padlocks, the Sargent 758 is also key retaining. The Sargent 858 is non-key retaining with a stainless steel shackle in US4 satin brass, the Sargent 82-856 is non-key retaining with a 2 inch by 2 inch brass case and stainless steel shackle, and the Medeco 54515G XT is non-key retaining as well. On a padlock removed and pocketed during a work shift, non-key retaining is what a crew usually wants; on lockout, access control, and gate applications, key retaining is what keeps the lock on the asset.

The 74M/40 is weather resistant and its brass body and steel shackle are both vinyl encased, so the covering keeps water off the shackle at the shoulders where an exposed padlock corrodes first. Where the environment is harsher still - coastal air, wash-down, or a lock that stays on the fence year round - the Medeco 521 G8R is a weather-tight padlock with a solid stainless steel body, supplied less the pop-out cylinder, and the Medeco 54515G XT is built for indoor and outdoor duty. The stainless body option puts the corrosion resistance in the metal itself rather than in a coating that can be nicked.

They are not the same class of hardware even though both hang on a hasp. The ABUS 74M/40 is a mechanical padlock with a 6-pin cylinder, key retaining and self locking, and it is rekeyable to your key system. The Medeco 54515G XT is an electronic indoor/outdoor padlock with a 5/16 inch shackle diameter, supplied with cylinder and non-key retaining - it belongs to a credential-and-audit-trail system rather than a pin tumbler keyway, so it brings programming and battery or key-carried power into the picture. If you are matching what is already on the other gates and those are keyed padlocks, the 74M/40 is the like-for-like part; the XT is a change of system, not a substitution.

Color coding is the reason most buyers pick the 74M/40 over a bare metal padlock. It is offered in black, blue, brown, green, orange, purple, white, and yellow, in keyed alike or keyed different, so a property manager or contractor can assign a color per trade, per building, or per zone and read the assignment across a yard without touching the lock. Comparable padlocks are specified by their metal finish rather than by color - the Sargent 758 and Sargent 858 are US4 satin brass and the Medeco 5260 is satin chrome. If visual identification is part of the job, the covered ABUS is the part that does it; if the lock just has to disappear into the hardware, the brass and chrome bodies serve.

Eight: black, blue, brown, green, orange, purple, white and yellow. The color is the vinyl jacket over the brass body and shackle, not a paint or plated finish, so it doubles as a department or crew code. Each of the eight is available keyed alike or keyed different.

The 74M/40 is rekeyable and runs a 6-pin cylinder, so a locksmith can repin it rather than replacing the lock. Six pins gives you meaningfully more key differs than a 4- or 5-pin padlock cylinder, which matters when you are building a master or KA group across a portfolio.

Yes, it is self locking, so pressing the shackle home locks it without turning the key. On a loading dock or a gate that gets opened all day, that removes the step everyone skips. Combined with key retention, you cannot walk away with the key and leave the lock unlocked.

The vinyl-covered brass 74M/40 is the choice when the lock touches a finished surface, gets handled in the cold, or needs color coding across crews or buildings. Go to a stainless body when the environment is harsh enough that you want no coating to cut or peel at all: the Medeco 521 G8R is a solid stainless steel weather-tight padlock, and the Sargent 60-858-2 uses a 2 inch stainless shackle. Those are heavier-duty bodies without the color options.

No. The 74M/40 uses its own 6-pin cylinder and is rekeyed by repinning that cylinder, not by swapping a core. If you standardize on removable or interchangeable cores so a facility can rotate keying in-house, look at the Sargent 60-858-2, which is a removable core padlock.

The ABUS 74M/40 arrives as a complete lock with a precision 6-pin cylinder in it, and it is rekeyable if you want it brought onto your own key system later. That is not true of every padlock a locksmith orders: the Medeco 521 G8R weather-tight padlock is supplied less the pop-out cylinder, so a cylinder has to be ordered and fitted before the lock works. The Medeco 54515G XT ships with its cylinder, and the Medeco 5260 is built with M3 key technology. Check which arrangement you are buying before you schedule the install, because a less-cylinder padlock is not a lock until the cylinder arrives.

The 74M/40 measures 1-1/2 inch in product width, which is a compact body that fits between close-set hasp leaves and in tight locker frames. For a broader footprint, the Sargent 82-856 is built on a 2 inch by 2 inch brass case with a stainless steel shackle. The wider case seats differently against a hasp plate, so on a narrow staple or a recessed latch the smaller ABUS body is the one that will actually close.

The 74M/40 is a commercial-rated padlock in the ABUS 74 Series with a 6-pin cylinder, self locking action, and rekeyable cylinder, so it is specified for commercial doors, gates, and equipment rather than as a residential lock. The comparable commercial padlocks separate mainly by key system: the Sargent 758 and 858 Series and the removable core 758/858 Series, the Sargent KESO Series 82-856, the Medeco 52 Series 5260 with M3 key technology, the Medeco G8R Series 521, and the Schlage 20 Series KS23D/KS23F. If your buildings are already standardized on one of those key systems, match the system; if you are keying a new set of padlocks on their own, the ABUS is a complete commercial lock out of the box.

The body measures 1-1/2 inches wide. That is a mid-size padlock, big enough for a gate or a chain but slim enough to seat in a standard hasp without fouling the plate. Pair that with the 1/4 inch shackle when you are checking whether it will pass through your existing staple.

Commercial. Solid brass body, steel shackle, and a 6-pin rekeyable cylinder are commercial-grade construction, not the 4-pin wafer setup on a hardware-store lock. It is a working padlock for gates, cages, storage, meters and equipment across a portfolio.

The Schlage KS23D/KS23F is a straightforward brass padlock with a 5/16 inch diameter shackle, and the Sargent 758 is a key retaining standard padlock in US4 satin brass. Either is a plain mechanical padlock without the vinyl encasement that the ABUS 74M/40 carries on its body and shackle. Choose the ABUS when the lock contacts a finished surface or when you want color identification; choose the plain brass locks when a larger shackle diameter or a specific key system is what governs the buy.