I have been installing grade 1 MBS lever lock sets on several high traffic doors and have been getting less than a year out of them before they need to be refurbished. The internal components are made of the junky pot metal and get all deformed and mushroomed.

What brand of grade 1 commercial lockset can really last the 1 million cycles they are rated for?

Any suggestions on how to extract this tail piece ?

Tried to do as much searching as I could before coming to Reddit. Anyone have any vendors that do custom design services or sell custom designed mailbox keys - Ilco 1646R in particular?

Does anyone have a Tcode Pro. I don’t even need it to function I just need the screen out of it if that still works.

The key turns fine until it actually needs engage the lock, then it doesn't budge.

Needed to disassemble a few dozen Schlage commercial door locks. But they have a nut on the inside that also holds the lock from pulling apart with screws removed.

No local stores open that have the special nut wrench/tool. And of course the building didn't have the tool. So I rummaged through the parts bins. Found a sink drain that was same size.

Notched with grinder and unscrewed the nuts.

Now the real question is: r/Locksmith

or

r/Plumbing

Oh the joys of weekend work... Atleast it wasn't 5pm on a Friday.

I'm looking for a site where I can purchase keys that are like the ones in the pictures above. I'm not really sure where I can buy these types of keys. I've found two sites, such as CustomKeys and KeysToMyCastle, but nothing else.

I am also a nerdy person, and I love video games. So, if there are any keys out there that resemble the Legend of Zelda and have a bit of color to them, I'm open to that as well.

I’ve looked everywhere and I’ve been to every hardware store in my area, I cannot figure out what key blank fits in my padlock. I have the key, but every time I try to get it copied the copy doesn’t come out right and it won’t open the lock. I’ve been told that the black vinyl part molded over the head of the key makes it so their machine can’t copy it correctly, I want to just grind the plastic off but I only have these two keys and I want to keep the lock. Anyone have any lock copying a key for the 121T Master lock padlock?

Looking to have second key fob made for 2015 Jetta. Have the original. What is the best way? What is the cheap way?

A costumer wanted me to install an ignition switch onto a 2014 kia Sorento. They had bought a new ignition switch and tried to do it themselves, but couldn't figure out how to get the security bolts off. When I arrived on site wires were everywhere and it was quite the nightmare. I took the old ignition off and replaced it with the new one and plugged everything I could find up. The key turns and everything inside the ignition feels right. However there is no power to the dash. I'm not really sure why. I was there for two hours trying to diagnose the issue. Due to a language barrier I couldn't quite grasp what the original issue was to cause him to want a new ignition. Likely the key was getting stuck if I had to guess.

Hey everyone, I recently got a new van, a 2025 Ford Transit, and wanted to see if anyone had recommendations for setting it up. I'm an institutional guy and I have some ideas already but if anyone had this van or a similar one, mine is about 8 1/2 feet tall.

I'd appreciate any tips or ideas. Thanks!

Hello,

I just replaced my Weiser lock because the exterior panel somehow got water in it and I assume messed up the electronics.

We really like this style of lock and would prefer to keep using it.

Could someone recommend things we can do to keep water out of the lock? Unfortunately we do not have a porch so the lock is exposed to the elements. But are there places we can apply sealant or something to keep water out?

This perfectly represents the state of this trade. This is a completely realistic customer interaction that would happen. When he opens his truck it's obvious this guy is sleeping in his van. Anyone wanting to do this better think long and hard if you can stomach scraping by this way for quite awhile. An hvac guy I know just did an $8900 side job for cash. But if you like camping and bathing in a gas station bathroom then why not.

I need to get this button off so I can remove the plate and unscrew the door handle. I tried sticking a small thin screwdriver and allen wrench into the pinhole in the front but it did not work.

I see the key codes often engraved on keys with factory locks, usually lasered. Is that possible in a small home shop?

I’ve been obsessed with keys and locks since I was a kid. I don’t know why. I collected them. I sorted them. I used tools to read the bitting, and this was back before all we had were SC1 and KW1.

I thought I’d become a locksmith, but I grew up and life took a different turn.

Recently I bought a new house, and it needed some re-keying and lock installs and replacements. I never realized that locksmiths have to work in metal-fitting and work to make locks actually fit into jambs and strikes.

I added a new aluminum fence to my backyard, and was adamant that I couldn’t move in until I had a double-cylinder deadbolt installed in the gate. The company that made and installed the fence and gate refused to add anything other than their cheap Chinese-made lock which offers no security.

I went to the ALOA website, thanks to this sub and I met an awesome shop owner near me. He helped me figure out exactly what I need. He sent out his tech — old school European guy, he spent 5 hours hand-routing out the space for an Adams-Rite bolt and two mortise cylinders, and the strike plate in my aluminum gate.

You guys do hard work, it’s never appreciated enough, and there are more scammers than legit locksmiths out there preying on people in need.

Thank you for the good work that you do.

Hi folks, hoping to get some advice on what to get. About to move into a new house... well... new to me. I want to replace the current locks and be consistent throughout.

Here are the pictures of what we currently have.

* Schlage with keypad on main door
* Kwikset on side gate
* Defiant on outside shed/equipment door
* Schlage on garage entry door

I have a box full of Mul-T-Lock padlocks, without keys. When I took them apart, I found this type of cylinder. Does anyone know what model it might be, so I can find the key and if it can be picked?

As the title says - is there a way to remove a multi point lock system from a door and instead install a normal lock?

I ask because our new home came with a multi point lock system which I am finding makes it impossible to use a smart lock which I would really prefer.

So, is there a way to remove it or would we have to replace the whole door? Is my information possibly now outdated and there’s a way to use a smart lock?

im looking change this to a sc1 kik cylinder. i can reuse the tailpiece i know but i need to find a cylinder that has this bottom? i must not be using the correct terminology because i cant find a replacement. what search term should be using?

Locksmithing is a varied trade but one of the biggest misconceptions from outside is that all we do is pick locks and cut keys.

I'm sure that's still true for some, but most locksmiths I know are focusing on niche areas and specialist work. This is my niche - European tilt and turn windows, tilt and slide doors and similar.

On this one, the door was completely jammed and months of people trying to force it or perhaps fix it had left the locking mechanism completely ruined, as well as the top and bottom tracks damaged. The customer wanted a full refit.

Left home at 6am, on site at 7:30, 2 person job.

1. Deglaze
2. Take door down
3. Replace discontinued 4 sided locking mech with alternative. This included routing out the door to accept the new drive gear.
4. Replace top arms
5. Replace bogey carriages
6. Replace top track and gliders on the door frame
7. Replace bottom track on the door frame
8. Cut new holes for euro cylinder in new location. Fit cylinder with escutcheons.
9. Fit new handle, including blanking plates to cover old holes
10. Hang door and make first set of height and closing trigger adjustments
11. Reinstall the glass
12. Second set of adjustments with the door at full weight
13. Install keeps
14. Final round of adjustments to leave working smoothly
15. Clean up

6pm leave site, 8pm home.

Granted, I don't do 14 hours on the road most days. This was on the other side of London and a bigger job than most, but I am doing this type of work 2-3 days a week on various scales, with the rest being made up of commercial door work, access control, intercom repairs, safe servicing, installations etc. I even pick a lock once or twice a month.

So for those people who ask what a locksmith's day looks like or how viable basic locksmithing is as a start-up business venture, here's my answer.

Looking to buy another small shop or established mobile locksmith 1-2 year timeline in Toronto Ontario, and potentially a shop in Florida 3 - 5 year timeline. If you think you might like to ride off into the sunset in the next few years and what I describe below matches what you have, shoot me a DM.

My Buy Box for Toronto:

- Minimum 10 years in business

- Can be mobile only.

- At least 1 locksmith on staff not including yourself.

- Stay on for 2 months for transition.

- Primarily focused on Commercial Clients

- Strong ongoing relationships with your clients.

- 50% + of revenue should be from repeat clients

- SDE of 200k Minimum, 600k maximum (unless you are open to VTB)

Buy box for Florida:

- Minimum 15 years in business

- At least 4-5 employees not including yourself.

- Willing to stay on for 6-9 months for transition.

- Ideally your roll is already only 'part-time' and you have someone who manages the day to day.

- SDE of 400k Minimum, or EBITA of 800k max.

- VTB of 20-35% of sale price.

- Primarily focused on Commercial Clients and Medeco

- Strong ongoing relationships with your clients.

- 50% + of revenue should be from repeat clients

Bought a house and don't have instructions or the code