Check rail lock and method of making check rail lock paintable after

Abstract

A check rail lock including a housing with a pivot opening, a handle having a pivot shaft extending through the pivot opening, the handle being disposed over the housing when operably pivoted between locking and unlocking positions, and a cam secured to the pivot shaft beneath the housing with a post extending toward the housing. A C-shaped spring mounted to the housing between the housing and the cam has shoulders which (1) allow the spring to flex outwardly to allow passage of the post past one of the shoulders when pivoting the handle from a painting position extending away from the housing to either operational locking or unlocking position and (2) stop the handle from being pivoted beyond the locking or unlocking positions to the painting position. Recesses in the spring adjacent the shoulders positively indicate when the lock is in either the locked or unlocked positions. A method of manufacturing a check rail lock is also disclosed, including the steps of (1) pivotally mounting a handle to a housing with a pivot shaft through the housing so that the handle projects away from the housing toward a painting position covering a minimal amount of the housing, (2) securing a cam to the pivot shaft, (3) painting the handle and housing, and (4) pivoting the handle to an operational condition in which the handle is permanently prevented from being pivoted back to the painting position.