Need help: Antique Roll Top Bankers Desk--Hook Lock/lach system

Hi, first time poster. I hope someone here can point me down the right path--

I have a 1906 mahogany two-pedestal C-shape roll-top banker's desk. I am trying to figure out how the hook-lock things work on the back of the drawers.

I feel like it's a very common system for file-cabinet type desk drawers, but I cannot find anything via Google (I am clearly not calling them the right thing).

On the back of the drawers are harpoon-shaped hooks that go through a vertical board with slots in it for each drawer's hook. The whole thing has v-shaped spring.

I recently moved and the top drawer on the left side always latches and won't open.

What is this lock system called and how does it work? The vertical boards have an L-shaped bracket that you can turn up or down. I *believe* this is to catch the tambour. But I don't know how the lock works.

I thought there was some system where the top drawer wouldn't shut until you made sure all the other drawers were shut or something like that, but I cannot figure out how to engage or disengage the system.

I'd love for there to be a way to latch and unlatch the harpoon hooks when I wanted to lock my desk.

Any help is appreciated. I can upload pics if necessary.

 

The mechanically minded will be along any time now, hopefully with the right terminology. It sounds as though in a general way it works like office desks I have known, where locking the center drawer also locks all the others. If any of the others are open after the center drawer has been locked, they will be locked as soon as pushed in all the way back in. The middle drawer pops out a little whenever unlocked & has to be pushed in against spring resistance to be closed & locked. Don't suppose you have the key?

 

I did not go all though this, but may have some tips:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2255372/please-tell-me-the-trick-to-unlock-a-roll-top-desk

And welcome!

 

No, no key.

This desk was a crazy purchase: I drove out of state to check out an oak flat file and the desk was kind of an afterthought. I was looking for a C-shape roll top made out of tiger oak but this mahogany piece floored me.

I bought it from the great-grandson of whoever sat at it when it was new. He "hated antiques" and I bought it for $300.

I got the desk and matching original chair, but no drawer keys. The center knee-hole drawer has a lock on it, and one of the pigeon holes has a lock door on it. (it's still locked, and I fantasize there are bank notes or something juicy in there).

The tambour also has a door-key style round tumbler lock, which is a Yates.

I don't have any of those keys, but I believe the hook latches on the back of the drawers are a kind of "order of operations" lock. I believe the top right drawer latches or unlatches them all via order of how far each are pushed in or something along those lines.

(EDIT TO ADD: I think it's a barrel cylinder furniture type key. Are there any odds I can find a generic key to open and lock the drawers?)

 

Welcome!
Any photos?
If I had at it I’d get it worked out but meanwhile, as Bronwen said, wait for others like Brad and Johnny.

 

Take pics of the locks to show.
If you have some idea of shape see if your antique stores have old keys. They usually do. See if they will let you borrow them with some kind of collateral and if you luck out pay them double what they want.

 

After posting I looked through more of the entries at the link I gave you above. There is a lot of info there, including some very specific instructions for (the many) others who have had the same problem. While you wait for our furniture gurus you might find something useful to your case from theirs.

I used to want one of these desks sooo bad!

 

here are pics.

Hope it helps.

https://imgur.com/gallery/9hpBp

 

Many here will not click on links.
This may help. Post pictures to this thread.
https://www.antiquers.com/threads/making-a-post-and-uploading-pictures.16038/

Welcome to the board.

 

Can't help much as I am not real familiar with these. I believe on most, if you got the top drawer unlocked, it would allow all the drawers to open. Could see how the mechanism might be tied in to the tambour somehow instead. Just really don't know.

 

This is the locked pigeon hole. The key would also fit the knee-hole drawer.

Latch Mechanism. The "L" bracket, I think goes down (not as shown but in the L position) and catches the tambour when it's open (i'm guessing). You can see the harpoon hook and the vertical wood piece w the slots it hooks onto. The spring does something to adjust the wood up and down but I don't know what. The spring is missing from the right side.


Front View.

Tambour Key

 

Well, I never found or received an answer that helped my particular problem, but I did solve the issue after finding and reading this patent from the turn of the 19th century.

In my particular desk, the roll top in fact IS supposed to catch on the L brackets, which depresses the locking bar and disengages the hooks.

These hook-latch desks all have a mechanism where opening the controller drawer locks or unlocks the others via pressure on the locking bar in the back of the desk. In my case, instead of a controller drawer, it's the roll top.

The problem I was having was due to the latching hook on the top left drawer becoming loose and slightly bent. Rather than fuss with adjusting it, I swapped it for the second drawer down and it solved everything. Now I can lock and unlock the drawers as intended.

 

I have a roll top I got from my dad who has since passed away (he bought it 30 + years ago). Appears to be maybe early 20th century. Roll top (tambor?) is open and will not close. Also 4 drawers on the left side and one top drawer on the right are locked closed. No center drawer. I have 2 keys. One unlocks the roll top locking mechanism (when it’s closed). Can’t find a place for the other key? Don’t know what the other key is for. I have tried and tried to get the roll top loose to bring it down but will not budge. Any ideas? Thanks!

 

@Douglas White - you should start you own thread in the furniture section and include lots of photos to get any response - you are replying to a thread that hasn't had any activity in over 2.5 years.