What goes wrong

The statute was stretched

On this page14

The section was read as reaching key blanks generally Which is three qualifiers in the first limb A blank was assumed to be a key The intent element was dropped And unlawfully and improperly were treated as one word A packaging requirement was looked for in it Which is the finding rather than a gap Locksmith licensing was assumed to be federal And restricted keyways were assumed to be legal A mark was assumed to have effect And this property was expected to help with a lock Read the section for what it is Then read the material References

It says nothing about containers.

The section was read as reaching key blanks generally

It describes a key suited to a lock adopted by the Postal Service and in use on the mails, or a key to an authorized mail receptacle.

Which is three qualifiers in the first limb

Suited to, adopted by, and in use on. All three, and a commercial padlock key fails the second.

A blank was assumed to be a key

The first limb turns on being suited to a lock, and an uncut blank is not suited to anything. That is what makes it a blank.

The intent element was dropped

The possession branch requires an intent unlawfully or improperly to use, sell or otherwise dispose of the thing. Possession alone is not the offence as described.

And unlawfully and improperly were treated as one word

They sit alongside each other in the clause and are not the same. Improperly is broader and softer.

A packaging requirement was looked for in it

There is none. No marking, no labeling and nothing about a container anywhere in the section.

Which is the finding rather than a gap

This is the group where the honest answer is that the federal provision naming a key is about a crime, and the container question stands alone.

Locksmith licensing was assumed to be federal

It is a state matter and varies, and it is what actually governs who may do this work.

And restricted keyways were assumed to be legal

They are a commercial arrangement, and nothing here describes how they operate or what force they have.

A mark was assumed to have effect

Whether anything such as do not duplicate has legal effect is not answered on these pages either way.

And this property was expected to help with a lock

It does not, and that is deliberate. Nothing here would assist anybody in defeating one.

Read the section for what it is

A theft and forgery provision with a ten year maximum, quoted because it is the federal law that names a key.

Then read the material

Which is the part this catalog can actually answer, and the answer is 56 of 251 containers.

References

18 U.S.C. 1704, which provides in part: "Whoever steals, purloins, embezzles, or obtains by false pretense any key suited to any lock adopted by the Post Office Department or the Postal Service and in use on any of the mails or bags thereof, or any key to any lock box, lock drawer, or other authorized receptacle for the deposit or delivery of mail matter"; and "Whoever knowingly and unlawfully makes, forges, or counterfeits any such key, or possesses any such mail lock or key with the intent unlawfully or improperly to use, sell, or otherwise dispose of the same"; and "Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both." This is a theft and forgery provision and says nothing about containers, labeling or packaging. Nothing on these pages addresses the lawfulness of making, holding or selling any key or key blank, locksmith licensing, restricted keyways or key duplication. law.cornell.edu

The Davis Pack Supply catalog, measured 19 October 2026. The 251 containers on this shelf are 117 PET, 78 polypropylene and 56 glass, so 195 plastic against 56 glass, a little over four to one. For a small metal part the difference is practical: glass does not scratch, does not haze and does not take a static charge, and both plastics do all three.

Written from 18 U.S.C. 1704 and from the catalog as it stood on 19 October 2026. That section is a theft and forgery statute about keys to Postal Service locks and says nothing about containers, labeling or packaging; it is quoted because it is the federal provision that names a key. Nothing here addresses the lawfulness of making, holding or selling any key or key blank, locksmith licensing, restricted keyways, key duplication, or whether any mark has legal effect, and nothing here would assist anybody in defeating a lock. This shelf is shared identically by nine groups and the sewing notions property enumerates the inventory.