On 5 May 2005 12:21:14 -0700, wrote:

| Hi,
| We have sliding patio doors and the key has broken and is now stuck in
| the main yale lock. I cannot remove the key. I cannot see how to remove
| the lock.
| This isn't urgent, it's been broken for months but with the summer
| coming up I thought I'd better get it fixed!
| Please can anyone advise on what I can do?
| Many thanks,
| Andy
|

I have several hemostat forceps I once bought from a hobby supply.
They are normally used in surgery to clamp off blood vessels, but can
also be used in such things as model making and woodworking. I use
them occasionally when working on computers.

When a neighbor's key broke off in her door lock after she locked it,
I was able actually to reach into the keyhole with the hemostat, turn
the lock, and extract the key.

They make a good tool for this kind of situation. The hemostats are
very narrow and tapered, extremely strong, and have tips that have a
slight "gripper" filed into them. They also have a one-way lock built
into the handle allowing you to clamp something and lock the hemostat
onto it.

There are two kinds of hemostats, one curved at the tip and one
straight. Here's what they look like:

http://www.tedpella.com/dissect_html/53096.htm

I can't recall where I bought mine, but over the years I've used them
on various home repair projects many times where a needle-nosed pliers
would have been too big. Good for getting broken lightbulbs out of the
socket, fishing or pulling wire through tiny holes, picking up dropped
nuts and screws from inside appliances and computers, bending computer
parts slightly to fit, etc. Quite useful, especially the straight
ones.