"Existential Angst" wrote:

Awl --

The past cupla days have been one of those periods where the wisest thing is
to just pull down the shades and curl up in a fetal position under the
covers, without venturing *anywhere* for about a week. Goodgawd, even the
*bathroom* poses risks in periods like this.
I was actually scared to go to work, or even drive!! Hadda been a
poltergeist....


I've had keys made that didn't work. I've found that sometimes just buying the blank and
using swiss needle files using the old key as a pattern clamped to your old key is the way
to go. Blue up the old key, pick a round file and work down. Try to stop a bit proud of
the pin notch since the key seems to wear more than the pin.

Try the key.

Work down a bit further and try the key again.

If you recieved two keys, try the best looking one and if it works, get a few spares cut
and use them.

Wes



--
"Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect
government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home
in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller

On Sat, 17 Jul 2010 18:01:51 -0400, Wes
wrote:

"Existential Angst" wrote:

Awl --

The past cupla days have been one of those periods where the wisest thing is
to just pull down the shades and curl up in a fetal position under the
covers, without venturing *anywhere* for about a week. Goodgawd, even the
*bathroom* poses risks in periods like this.
I was actually scared to go to work, or even drive!! Hadda been a
poltergeist....


I've had keys made that didn't work. I've found that sometimes just buying the blank and
using swiss needle files using the old key as a pattern clamped to your old key is the way
to go. Blue up the old key, pick a round file and work down. Try to stop a bit proud of
the pin notch since the key seems to wear more than the pin.

Try the key.

Work down a bit further and try the key again.

If you recieved two keys, try the best looking one and if it works, get a few spares cut
and use them.

Wes
5 years ago, I had some extra car keys made - straight key, no chip -
and discovered that I needed to file a bit off the tip. I mentioned
this to the clerk that made them and he offered to re do them which I
declined, but the "gift to women" guy beside him insisted that the
machine was in perfect adjustment and to prove it he would cut another
key that would be perfect on the first try. After six tries, he got a
key that worked and offered to sell it to me for half price which I
declined. Now I take great pride in taking advantage of his arrogance
every chance I get, and the original clerk rejoices every time I do
it!
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

On 2010-07-17, Wes wrote:
"Existential Angst" wrote:

Awl --

The past cupla days have been one of those periods where the wisest thing is
to just pull down the shades and curl up in a fetal position under the
covers, without venturing *anywhere* for about a week. Goodgawd, even the
*bathroom* poses risks in periods like this.
I was actually scared to go to work, or even drive!! Hadda been a
poltergeist....


I've had keys made that didn't work. I've found that sometimes just buying the blank and
using swiss needle files using the old key as a pattern clamped to your old key is the way
to go. Blue up the old key, pick a round file and work down. Try to stop a bit proud of
the pin notch since the key seems to wear more than the pin.

Beware of making the sides of the notch too steep. This can
result in the key becoming trapped in the plug.

When I worked at a semiconductor manufacturer's in the Boston
area many decades ago, I arrived fairly early (I came in to calibrate
the production line test equipment and thermal test ovens) I found a key
in the lock to the front door. I mentioned it to the front desk guards,
and they said "Yes -- it was there when we came on shift, and we can't
get it out." So -- I walked back pulled on it and saw the plug come out
slightly, so I tried holding the plug in with my left thumb while
pulling the key with my right hand.

This got it out, and I handed it to the guards, and suggested
that they get a locksmith in to tighten the screws holding lever on the
back of the plug.

Someone had tried making either a master key or a duplicate
front door key -- and it worked, but the notch walls were a bit too
steep, requiring more force to pull out than normal -- thus the loose
screws trapped that key, while they did not trap the real keys.

I don't think that it was a normal front door key, because I
compared it to the guard's front door key -- and the cuts were
different.

If you want to make a key by hand -- and not risk modifying the
original -- *and* if you can remove the lock from the door (I've not
seen the beginning of this thread because I have PV killfiled for
various reasons) you can use the working key to open the lock, take the
plug out (and make sure that you have a follower to keep the pusher
tumblers and the springs in place and insert the blank, remove one pin,
and reach down through the hole with a round needle file to make a mark
showing where to file, then replace the pin and start filing and testing
until the pin is just level with the top of the plug, then go to the
next one marking it and filing. It is probably best to work starting at
the tip of the key, and make sure that you slope the sides of the notch
enough so it does not become trapped.

This process could be problematical if the lock is part of a
master-keyed system -- as you will have difficulty being sure that you
are cutting to the working key pattern instead of the master key
pattern, or some cross between the two.

Try the key.

Work down a bit further and try the key again.

If you recieved two keys, try the best looking one and if it works, get a few spares cut
and use them.

Sometimes, the blank or the original are not correctly installed
against the stops in the duplicating machine. This means that the
grooves are either too close to the tip or too close to the handgrip
area. If the former, you can usually make those work by pulling
slightly out as you turn. If the latter, you would have to file the
shoulder which butts against the plug (for most styles) or the shoulder
on the bottom of the tip (on a key for a BEST lock) to allow it to
insert a little deeper. There may be others which gauge from the tip,
but I have never encountered them. The BEST can use the same key blank
for a four-pin, five-pin, 6-pin, or even a seven-pin lock.

Oh yes -- also if either the original or the blank is not fully
bottomed, the dimensions will again be wrong on the duplicate. So
whoever is working the duplicator should know how to use it properly.

Enjoy,
DoN.

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