All jobs require a trip charge – I am never just “in the neighborhood.”  If you have an additional job site within one mile of your first job site, you only have to pay one trip charge.  If you require special-order parts that must be shipped to me, there is an additional trip charge, as I must go to pick them up and then go back to your location. View a map of the area we cover.

Most of the time, I can pick the lock, which does not damage it.  If I cannot pick it, then you must purchase a replacement lock cylinder if you wish me to proceed with drilling it.  Replacement cylinders are usually about $25, though I will advise you of the exact price.

High security locks such as Abloy, ASSA, Best or Medeco are an additional charge and, in some cases, may be impossible.  Opening them always involves destroying them.

I cannot open a BMW.  No locksmith can, so beware of hiring someone who says that he can open any vehicle, as he probably does not know what he is doing.  The BMW dealership can make you a new key.  No vehicle other than BMW is a problem.

This charge is to cut off or drill the round discus-style padlocks used on storage units.  I can usually pick Master padlocks and other inexpensive padlocks used on the gates to people's backyards, which is $20.  I cannot open American padlocks or other heavy-duty padlocks used on commercial properties.

Each place that you use a key is a lock cylinder.  If you have a double-cylinder deadbolt where you use the key on both the inside and the outside, that would count twice.

No additional charge for masterkeying a lock or for working with interchangeable core (e.g. Best or Corbin-Russwin) locks. However, if you do not have a copy of the existing key to a Schage, Yale or Corbin-Russwin lock or you do not have a copy of the control key to a Best or Corbin-Russwin interchangeable core lock, then there is an additional charge.

When I rekey a house or business, you must purchase the new keys.

Keys stamped "Do Not Duplicate"

We do NOT duplicate keys that say "Do Not Duplicate." The $3.50 is to provide you new keys with this imprint on them, to prevent your tenants from duplicating them.

This refers to a new installation on an exterior door.  Interior residential doors (e.g. bedrooms) are $30, though you should be aware that your door is cardboard, so the deadbolt is not going to be particularly strong.  I do not install deadbolts on mobile homes as the doors are too thin and there is a danger of hitting a crosspiece with one’s drill, which could collapse the whole door.

This includes drilling out the old lock.  If you have a key for the existing lock, replacing it is only $10.

If the ears (the part you grip with your thumb and first finger) are spinning freely and/or you can pull the key out in the ON-position, it is time to replace the ignition.  I will match the new ignition to your door key.  Most mechanics will give you a separate ignition key, which is why you should have a locksmith do the job.  This price assumes you have a key for your existing lock.  If you do not, you will have to pay to have one made.

I sell ASSA locks, which are made in Sweden. Medeco is popular in the U.S. largely because, being American-made, it is used by the government and the military. Both brands are pick-proof and drill-proof. ASSA keys can only be duplicated by the locksmith who installed the lock while Medeco keys can be duplicated by any Medeco dealer, which is one reason why I prefer ASSA. I do not sell or service Medeco.

When an ASSA lock is installed, the locksmith installs a sidebar in it, which is what prevents any other ASSA dealer from duplicating the keys. If it is a new installation or you are switching from another ASSA dealer to me, you must purchase a sidebar. If you are rekeying locks I installed in the past, you do not need to purchase another sidebar.

ASSA locks are intended for warehouses and other applications where aesthetics are not important, so your lock is not going to have any trim and the only available colors are silver and shiny brass. ASSA cylinders are intended to go in commercial deadbolts, levers and mortise locks. If you do not have a commercial deadbolt on your house, you must buy one. No deadbolt sold in hardware stores can accept an ASSA cylinder so, if this is a residential installation, assume that you will have to buy a deadbolt. Beware of cut-rate locksmiths who quote the price of just the new cylinder on the phone and then – surprise! – discover that you have a residential-grade lock on your house and must buy a commercial deadbolt.  All houses have residential-grade locks – that’s why they are called “residences.”

This is all the information I release on the subject of high-security locks. Please don’t waste my time with endless questions about how high-security locks work. Also, if you have had high-security locks installed in the past by another locksmith and now insist that “someone” is still getting into your house,I am going to assume that you are paranoid and refuse to work for you.