Hi all,

With people still be careful with their money in the current climate, it seems many people are now trying to find solutions to problems themselves. Saving themselves money. Which is what we all want, but sometimes you have to know where your abilities lay. You need to be able actually I’m not going to attempt this I will do the right thing and call a professional.

Thankfully I had a customer just like that. Although he called in a professional only after he had attempted the job himself. Then discovered he still could not open the door. Rather then give up he continued to try and open eventually causing more and more damage.

The gentleman rang and informed me that he had attempted to open the lock to change the barrel for a new one, as he had lost the keys to the old lock. He had decided to drill this particular lock open. When I arrived on site the gentleman took me through to a set of French doors into the garden and it was apparent the damage that was caused. The damage to the cylinder was extremely high. Sadly they had damaged the handles as well as the gear box to the multi-point locking point system.

I got the door open with a struggle and then removed the system from the door and fund the case to be distorted and out of shape. There was some obvious internal damage therefore it was inevitable it would need a new central gearbox, new handles and cylinder as the one they had sourced was wrong.

The guy was really annoyed not with me but his self it seemed. What would of been a relatively cheaper option would of been to rang me and got a quote to come out open the lock, and supply and fit a new cylinder for them. As now they had the extra labour cost because of the length of time, on site putting right what was wrong. Then the cost of a new cylinder, new handles and now the cost of new mech. As this particular make you can not buy in parts you have to buy the whole unit.

Then I was called by my accountants the very same day. They reported that there front door lock had fallen to bits. I arrived on site and found the internals of this lock were literally in bits as described on the floor.

Now it’s ok to think if I took it apart, that I would remember how to put it back. That is very true. Though when someone else has attempted to repair it and then start taking bits out. That’s no good to me. One of the workers informed me that part of it had failed and be of their guys had attempted to fix it but I think they got a bit lost.

Now this is where you have to play detective. You some times have to become an engineer and designer to in visage how it would work. There was screws, plates, grub screws, springs, spacers s well as the main body of the lock. Now there is so many variations to these locks and each one can be adapted for different solutions and scenarios. I had no plans or instructions to work to.

This is where my problem solving skills as well as my manual dexterity came in handy. Don’t get me wrong sometimes I had to take parts apart again as something needed to be put in before a certain other part. How ever after an hour of persistence I rebuilt the lock. I had it working as good as new. Though I do like jobs like this. As its a good test to prove your knowledge and experience and the working something out. I think I learn better from it. I physically put it back together so if I came across another then I know I’m capable of doing it again.

So this is one of the reasons why I like being a locksmith, as you have such a varied customer base. The same with their properties you come up against a whole host of different locks. Your forever learning and adapting.