When you absolutely positively need to be inside a building two minutes ago, you need a Mini Pro-Bar. Fire and rescue crews commonly reach for this Halligan-type tool as a one-stop multi-tool for forcing entry into a building.

Whether you need to snap padlocks, rip down plaster, rip out recessed or flush cylinder locks, or pry open doors, the Mini Pro-Bar has you covered. Made from 4130 aircraft steel, the knurled shaft recesses into both the fork and adz/pike ends and is heat-pressed and welded. The adz and fork also double as nail pullers and gas shut-off tools.

Fire Hooks Unlimited sells the Min Pro-Bar in two versions: the 16″ bar weighing 3-1/4 lbs and the 20″ bar weighing 3-1/2 lbs.  Either Mini Pro-Bar will run you about $75 — getting caught with one in your trunk while wearing a black ski mask will probably cost you a bit more than that.

Mini Pro-Bar [Fire Hooks Unlimited]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Mini Pro-Bar [The Fire Store]

Here’s another tool for breaking s#@! from the firefighters’ playbook. It’s called the Rabbit Tool by most, although it’s officially the Hydra-Ram. Whereas many of the other fire and rescue tools we’ve featured require some pretty violent swinging force — or a powerful pneumatic or hydraulic power source — to get the job done, the Rabbit Tool just needs one guy squeezing the handle and the tool together.

It’s almost like a small bottle jack, but its fittings to allow you to break open a door. It doesn’t matter what kind of door you need to break, or even if you’re opening it at the latch or at the hinge. As you pump the tool, the two plates that start off together begin to spread out — and eventually separate the door from its frame.

Make sure you have your contractor and locksmith on speed dial though – you’re looking at a new door, door frame, and locks after the Rabbit does its thing. You better also have your accountant on speed dial, too, as one of these will set you back between $1,600 to $1,900 depending which model you choose: the Hydra-Ram I with a 4” maximum opening (how far the plates can spread out) or the Hydra-Ram II with a 6” maximum opening.

Hydra-Ram Forcible Entry Tool (Rabbit Tool) [Fire Hooks Unlimited]
Hydra-Ram Forcible Entry Tool [The Fire Store]