# Mag Door Lock **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 2, 2012, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134 "2012-08-02T01:52:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![IceQube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@IceQube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IceQube)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/1 "2012-08-02T01:52:10Z")
I know conventional mag locks take 1200 pounds of force to open. Questions is: could one realistically exert 1200 pounds of force to open a mag lock? Or am I better off sparing my hand from exerting that kind of force? Like, what would happen to my hand if I tried pulling on the door with 1200 pounds of force? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/2 "2012-08-02T01:58:55Z")
I’d wonder if the door handle could survive that much force. I’d suspect it could. I’ve always figured it would be easy enough to hook a chain to it attach the other end to a car/truck or a come along. Even using a car jack against the building to pull the chain should have more then enough force to pop the door. Your hand, probably not. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/3 "2012-08-02T02:16:57Z")
Haven’t you ever lifted weights? I do rows with 80 lbs, and I need wrist straps to help my grip. I seriously doubt that you could hold onto 600 lbs. with each hand, unless you have trained for it. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/4 "2012-08-02T02:25:45Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Haven’t you ever lifted weights? > I do rows with 80 lbs, and I need wrist straps to help my grip. > I seriously doubt that you could hold onto 600 lbs. with each hand, unless you have trained for it. And that’s with, what, a one inch diameter tube. This would be a [commercial door pull](http://www.zadottglass.com/web_images/door.png), so all the weight would be on your middle knuckles and one arm turned backwards. You’d almost have to get both feet up on the wall just to get your shoulders straight so it’s more like lifting then pulling. ---
**Author:** ![IceQube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@IceQube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IceQube)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/5 "2012-08-02T02:27:27Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Haven’t you ever lifted weights? Lifting weights involves vertical movement. Opening a door involves horizontal movement. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/6 "2012-08-02T02:39:52Z")
> [@IceQube](#): > > Lifting weights involves vertical movement. > > Opening a door involves horizontal movement. And which do you think is easier? Your average weightlifter can lift a hell of a lot more weight as a [deadlift](http://www.wannabebig.com/wp-content/themes/mimboPro_single/images/article_images/training/deadliftchampion2.jpg) then he can as a [row](http://www.sutree.com/upload/thumbnails/37928.gif). ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/7 "2012-08-02T02:47:08Z")
> [@IceQube](#): > > Lifting weights involves vertical movement. > > Opening a door involves horizontal movement. That would make it harder since you’re more limited by your own body weight. Think about it this way. Lifting something off the ground is (more or less) determined only by your strength. When pulling something down, there’s a point at which you’re going to pull yourself up off the ground. Pulling a door open is going to be a combination of the two since it combines both vectors. Strength is involved, but at a certain point, you’re just going to pull yourself towards the door. That’s why I mentioned putting your feet up on the building and trying to turn it more into a lift. It’ll also square your shoulders so one arm isn’t turned backwards. This, I think, is relevant, [from wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadlift#World_records) > [@](#): > > ``` > The record for a raw deadlift (a deadlift performed without the aid of a deadlift suit, where only a weight belt is allowed) is 460.4 kg (1,015 lb) by Benedikt Magnusson. This lift currently exceeds the equipped record. [1][verification needed] > > The record for an equipped deadlift (a deadlift performed using a deadlift suit using a standard bar and plates where straps are disallowed) is 457.5 kg (1,009 lb) by Andy Bolton.[2] > > The record for the tire deadlift (in which Hummer tires are used as weight) under Strongman rules (in which lifting straps are allowed) is 506.7 kg (1,117 lb) by the Lithuanian strongman Žydrūnas Savickas at the Arnold Strongman Classic 2012 (Columbus, Ohio).[3] > > The record for the single handed deadlift is 330.0 kg (728 lb) by Hermann Görner in Leipzig 1920.[4] > > ``` I’d be surprised if these men could pull more weight towards them, then they could off the ground. FTR, I don’t mean, dragging the same weight across the floor, I mean, if they were to attach a spring weight to the wall, I don’t think they could make it read 1200 pounds by pulling it with their hands. But I could be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/8 "2012-08-02T02:55:23Z")
I can’t find any world records for weight on a rowing machine. I can find plenty of people pulling planes, but I’m not finding a weight gauges to see how much weight they’re actually pulling. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/9 "2012-08-02T03:14:39Z")
What about with a lever or crowbar? ---
**Author:** ![Jamicat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c67d28/32.png) [@Jamicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamicat)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/10 "2012-08-02T03:47:34Z")
If you need answer now… Suction cups and a glass cutter is the usual way for cat burglars. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/11 "2012-08-02T03:55:24Z")
Sounds like a job for Pat Robertson. ---
**Author:** ![IceQube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@IceQube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IceQube)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/12 "2012-08-02T05:42:51Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I can’t find any world records for weight on a rowing machine. I can find plenty of people pulling planes, but I’m not finding a weight gauges to see how much weight they’re actually pulling. What’s the max weight of rowing machines? ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/13 "2012-08-02T12:43:23Z")
An African or European rowing machine? ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/14 "2012-08-02T13:17:31Z")
> [@IceQube](#): > > I know conventional mag locks take 1200 pounds of force to open. > > Questions is: could one realistically exert 1200 pounds of force to open a mag lock? If you could, then it wouldn’t be much of a lock, would it? You have two choices if the door opens away from you. Crowbar and battering ram. Both of which should be able to get you enough leverage/impact to get past 1200 pounds, though maybe not on the first try. If the door opens towards you, you’re relying on the strength of the door handle. I’d figure on the handle breaking long before the lock comes loose. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/15 "2012-08-02T14:25:10Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > An African or European rowing machine? I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/16 "2012-08-02T14:36:23Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > An African or European rowing machine? Thank You. Made my morning ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mag-door-lock/630134/17 "2012-08-02T15:42:54Z")
> [@IceQube](#): > > I know conventional mag locks take 1200 pounds of force to open. > > Questions is: could one realistically exert 1200 pounds of force to open a mag lock? > > Or am I better off sparing my hand from exerting that kind of force? Like, what would happen to my hand if I tried pulling on the door with 1200 pounds of force? > [@](#): > > Questions is: could one realistically exert 1200 pounds of force to open a mag lock? Manually - no - “Sparing your hands” is beside the point you cannot generate that much horizontal force on a door handle pulling it towards you. It is well beyond human physical capacity. Just a speculation I would guess 1200 lbs of force might actually be enough to actually to pull your hands off your wrist unless you are very powerfully built. With leverage tools perhaps but at that point you’re probably going to be bending and damaging the door frame with your efforts. I’m a large and strong individual and I’ve tried to force magnetic locks just for the hell of it. I can feel the entire handle and frame move as I pulled. I think the handles or hinges would fail would fail well before the magnetic coupling.