Patent ID: 7377137

Claim:
A barrel lock, comprising: a shank defining a threaded bore and a side hole, the shank includes an upper end and a lower end; a drive pin insertable through the upper end of the shank and threadingly engaging the threaded bore, the drive pin includes a driving end and a driven end that are at opposite ends of the drive pin, the upper end of the shank is closer to the driven end than the driving end; a driven ball disposed within the shank and being movable to vary an extent to which the driven ball protrudes out the side hole; a drive ball interposed between the driven-ball and the driving end of the drive pin; and an end stop disposed within the shank at a location where the end stop can be selectively engaged and disengaged by at least one of the drive ball and the drive pin such that when the end stop engages at least one of the drive ball and the drive pin, the driven ball and the drive ball lie along a ball-to-ball line that is at a predetermined minimum angle relative to a radial line, wherein the radial line is perpendicular to the drive pin and the predetermined minimum angle is greater zero degrees and is sufficient to inhibit the drive ball and the driven ball from locking up within the shank.