This Bauche safe came from Avignon “The City of Two Popes” in Southern France. It dates to around 1870. As the pictures show below, it was in a very rusted state when we acquired it.
We disassembled it completely, including the lock mechanism, and chemically removed the old paint (which was old, but not original). After wire brushing the interior, all the parts were submersed in a bath of liquid rust remover. We then painted the interior with a rust inhibitor primer and followed up with a satin black enamel.
We left the exterior plate steel bare (no paint) to keep it’s raw and rustic charm and sprayed the exterior with a clear satin. After some wire brushing to the cast parts and polishing to other parts, we reassembled everything and redid the interior.
The nameplate reads “INCOMBUSTIBLE SYSTEME BAUCHE BREVETE S.G.D.G. USINE A GUEUX.”
Bauche was known for it’s “incombustible” fire resistant safes. In 1967, they merged with Fichet to form Fichet-Bauche which still produces high-end safes today.
HI
I have got an incombustable system brevete s.g.d.g.usine a gueux.
But have not got the key or part of the lock, can i buy the complete lock?
How much would cost?
Are you interested in buying the save as it is?
Please let me know.
Thank you.
Making a key for the lock isn’t very hard if the safe is open – I doubt you will find a replacement lock. Your best bet would be to list your safe on ebay.
I have one off these safes in good condition
With original key and combination locks
Still with felt inside
What value do you think it is worth
It’s really hard to say because very few of them are here the US and they rarely come on the market. I’ve seen a few in fair to good condition sell in the $1,000 – $2,500 range. I saw one in excellent condition go for about double that at auction.
Bonjour
Je possèdes ce model de coffre. Par contre, un enfant a tourné les roulettes, je ne peux plus l’ouvrir. Auriez vous une solution. D’avance merci Jean Marie Malheuvre
There are a possible 729 letter combinations, but if you start with the left dial and place it on a letter, you should notice a different clicking sound when you rotate the dial on the right to the correct letter.
We have an INCOMBUSTIBLE SYSTEME BAUCHE BREVETE S.G.D.G. USINE A GUEUX with a key code but without a key. Dus any of you know a locksmit?
I don’t know of a specific locksmith, but I’ve made keys for these and have absolutely no locksmith experience. I would think any local locksmith could easily do it as long as the safe is open.
Hello. I just bought one of these safes from someone for $1,000. He bought it from an antique store and he didn’t have the key and never opened it. The safe weighs
less than 100 pounds. Is that about right? I have a safe guy that is willing to try to open it and make me a key for it and charging me anywhere from $150 an hour to $2,500 maximum depending on how long it takes. And without damaging it. Any suggestions on opening this and making a key? How much is the safe going to be worth if we get it open and have a key made for it? It looks pretty similar condition to the first pictures on this page. Not sure if there’s felt inside. Thank you.
I paid a similar price and it did not have a key but it was open. The locking mechanism was very rusted and might not have opened even if I had the key. I disassembled the lock and removed all the rust and was able to make a key myself even though I had no prior key making experience. The challenge is that the (2) dials must be set to the right combination for it to open with the key if it is locked. The combination is easily changeable once opened but 26 letters per dial means even if you had the key, you would have 676 possible combinations for it to open (assuming the slide bar wasn’t rusted and could move). I would make sure you use a locksmith that has antique safe experience. I don’t follow prices, but $3500 for this safe in poor condition sounds very expensive. Good luck.
Thank you for the response. Do you still have your safe? It looks beautiful after you were done refinishing it. I’m contemplating if I should do the same or leave it original. I’m hoping there’s felt inside but I doubt it. I have the combo to the letters for the dials and they spin and make different sounds like you have mentioned before. But I am worried about the lock being rusted. Do you happen to have a picture of the key? I also have a stand that the safe sits on but I’m not sure if it’s original or someone made it at some point. I can send pictures if you would like. Thanks.
I just bought a blank skeleton key off of ebay and modified it to work (just make sure the top of the key has a hole that will fit the lock). It wasn’t a complex key. I’ve never seen a stand for this model so I would be unable to say if it was original or not. 1st dibs has some older Bauche safes with stands and they are always embellished with metal. The green felt is attached to a white gypsum/plaster material approximately 1/2″ to 3/4″ thick which is how the safe contents were supposed to survive a fire. Mine was in very poor condition and I didn’t like want to risk handling it in the event it had asbestos.
Hello! I just found this page after spending several days researching what is probably a Bauche Incombustible from the late 1800s I discovered it in my family’s house in France, a house built in the 19th century and purchased by my great-grand-uncle in 1957.
The safe is wall-mounted (embedded in a bathroom cabinet), with two alphabetical dials and a keyhole on the left. I don’t have the key, or combination. The dials won’t rotate at all, either seized up from rust or possibly locked by the key mechanism itself.
No nameplate visible on the exterior, it may have been lost over time or perhaps wall-mounted versions didn’t have one.
A few questions :
Is the clicking sound technique still reliable if the dials are seized?
Would a skeleton key from eBay realistically work once the lock is picked?
Any advice on finding a specialist in France for this specific mechanism?
Photos attached. Thanks!
The dials should rotate clockwise. If they are seized, I do not know how you would open it. If the safe is open, you can look at the lock mechanism and figure out the slots/cuts you need to make on a skeleton key to make the key work. On my safe, there were three disks and the key needed to be cut to allow these to align to open. I have no locksmith experience and have never even been to France so I can’t help you there. Good luck.