It Costs a Locksmith Less than $2.00 in Parts to Re-Key an Average-Sized Home!

It may surprise you to know that the costs associated with re-keying six house locks, not including the locksmith's overhead, is probably less than two dollars.

But - always the but, right? - you pay a locksmith because he knows about locks. He can tell if a lock is worn out and needs to be replaced. He can tell you about other locks, locks that are better made and bump-resistant. He can tell you if the holes in your door jambs are deep enough to accommodate the length of the latch and bolt. He can also tell if someone has been trying to get into your house using a credit card or screw driver.

What can you expect to pay for a house re-key in Middle Tennessee? It will depend on your location and the number of locks. On average, you can expect to pay a $65 service/overhead charge and anywhere from $12 to $18 to re-key each house lock. I have seen locksmiths re-key locks for as low as $5 each and as high as $35 each. I wouldn't hire anybody on the extremes. Instead, I would opt for the locksmith in the middle to middle-high range.

Locksmith Refuses to Turn Over Master Keying Information to Customer - What to Do?

Example of Master Key Chart

Too many locksmiths are holding their customers hostage, especially when it comes to turning over the master-key codes and bitting lists after the keying job is done. The reason locksmiths will not offer to give you the keying information to the lock job you paid for is because they want to keep you from being able to hire another locksmith. It is really that simple. I know a locksmith who does this:

1. Promptly changes the locks at a business.
2. Gets paid.
3. Stops showing up promptly for the little jobs.
4. Is asked by the customer to turn over the keying information and refuses.
5. Doesn't care because he knows the customer is now at his mercy.

Why should you require the lock keying information before the job is started? Because, if you don't, you will never get it. Without the keying information, you will not be able to expand your master key system. Why? Because, without it, the next locksmith may create a key that will inadvertently unlock a lock it is not supposed to unlock. If this happens, everyone can get sued.

Now, you know the truth and, hopefully, you know to ask for the key bitting charts before the locksmith begins your job. Oh, by the way - your locksmith will say, "The lock chart is intellectual property." Hogwash. The guy has a computer program that does it for him.

What does the bitting chart and codes sheet have on it?

1. Key numbers. In our illustration, the key numbers are 1AA, 2AA, etc.
2. The key cutting information (adjacent to the key number. 6AA - 546767).
3. The bottom and master pin numbers, pins used in the key cylinders.

Without this information in your possession, the locksmith who did the original work can give you shoddy service and raise his prices.

How do you get around not having the master key charts and bitting lists? A good locksmith can take a pair of calipers and measure every cut in every key you have and determine the system. That, however, takes time and money.

The moral of the story? If you are an office manager or a maintenance supervisor, you must ask for and receive from your locksmith, in writing, before the job begins, that he will turn over to you all of the keying information. If he refuses, call HL Flake in Memphis, Tennessee, and ask them to design a key system for you. Then, look for another locksmith.

Retrofitting Narrow Stile Storefront Doors: From Adams-Rite Swingbolt to Deadlatch

By David Calvin

Available at Amazon Books. Click the title!


Aluminum, narrow stile, glass doors are everywhere! In fact, I've made a mint servicing them over the years. I install continuous hinges on them, rekey the locks in them, replace the thumb turns in them, replace the lock bodies, lubricate them, and install door closers on them. But when it comes to replacing the Adams-Rite Dead Bolt or Hook Bolts with the Adams-Rite Dead Latch, I'm making a great profit for less than two hours work.

So, just how bad is the money? I buy aftermarket parts. The latches are $15, the levers are another $15, the Adams-Rite strike is another $15. Okay - if I am installing a paddle, those run around $30. So, for $50 worth of lock hardware, I get a $65 service call and up to a $295 install. If I have to install a door closer while I'm there, it's another $100 profit. So, gee - this is really bad, right? I quote the job, I get the job, I get half a trip to Cancun out of it. But who the heck wants to go to Cancun, right? I don't.

The big question is this: can you use a drill, a screw driver, and do you know how to thread a drilled hole with a tap? You can. 

So, what's the deal? Well, for starters, I hate instruction manuals, especially the ones written in China. So I will tell you right now that installing the Adams-Rite knock-off dead latch is more art than - hmm - science and math.

And why do people want a dead latch anyway? Because they want their storefront glass door to close back and LOCK every time somebody comes in by key or leaves by lever. And you need to know how to do this and not be like the locksmiths who runs from such jobs.

My book, which is full of pictures, tips, and know-how, will get you off and running. No, this book is not a field manual. This is a book you read through three times and then hit the road. The same as my other book, The Locksmith's Lever and Panic Bar Retrofit Book. 

I am sorry to say that we will not offer this book in print for a number of valid reasons. You can buy this book, read it on your computer via the Kindle app, or read it on your smartphone or Kindle tablet.

And yes - I include my email address and website information so you can email or even call me.

And do call me! -- Happy hunting! -- You can do this!

The Locksmith's Lever and Panic Bar Retrofit Book
by David Calvin
Copyright, 2017

At Amazon Books

There are some things I won't do for any amount of money. I won't jump out of airplanes, do scratch-and-sniffs, eat sushi (fish bait), or -- well, you get the picture. But buying a thousand dollar lock for a customer, marking it up to retail (about $1900), and putting it on his door in less than two hours is another story altogether! Even if I have to install three and wear myself out doing it!

If you want to pursue commercial lock work and put levers onto doors where there used to be panic bars, or vice versa, this is the book for you. Sometimes contractors put the wrong doors in, doors prepped for mortise panic bars, when all the customer needed was a door prepped for a lever. I can show you how to do this. Or, sometimes you get called to work on a panic bar that is beat up and obsolete and you need to replace it with a new one. What do you do? How do you do it? I can show you. I do it all the time. I taught myself. And let me tell you - it's more art than science. Part tape measure, part template, part eyeball.

Offer this service in your area, and you just might be the only guy or gal doing it. And what does that mean economically? It means you can get the money you want for the job - but within reason, of course. Should you charge by the hour? That's up to you. I charge by the job. You can buy your locks for half off retail, mark them up to retail, and be in and out of many jobs in an an hour, maybe two. 

Don't like the price of the book? Believe it or not, I don't either, But there are nearly fifty pictures in this book and I get charged data when you buy it. 

How do you use this book? Well, first of all, it is not a field a manual. You don't need a field manual.You just need to see how the jobs get done. Hear it explained. Learn the tips. That's it. Read the book through three times, get the theory and philosophy down, and that's it. I will tell you the tools you will need, the small miscellaneous parts, and I will talk about a number of brands and types of devices you can pick up at any lock wholesaler. 

You can do this. And since this is the single most profitable job in locksmithing, you would not be wise to overlook it. If you can measure, drill holes, use templates, and turn a screwdriver, you can do this!

And call me.

Earn Extra Income by Re-keying House Locks!

David Calvin's book, The Dollar A Minute Locksmith, is designed to help you get started in part-time and, hopefully, full-time locksmithing.  (Click on the title above to go to Amazon Books.)

If you have always wanted to know what a lock job looks likes, this is the book to get.  As of today, this book is rated 5 Stars at Amazon Books, and it sells for $7.99.

This book is targeted to the person who wants to earn money servicing locks without having to become a full-blown locksmith.  Will you have to learn how to pick locks like a professional?  Absolutely not! 

If you would like to make a few hundred dollars each month doing lock work in the evenings and on weekends, this is the book you begin with. 

David Calvin, a locksmith for almost thirty years, avoids all of the hyped-up locksmith skills and products that people on the internet celebrate. 

What can you earn by re-keying locks, replacing a few latches, and adjusting the doors and jambs so that the locks line up correctly?  How does $150 for an hour's worth of work strike you?

David Calvin is presently assembling the The Dollar A Minute Locksmith home-based study that will teach you the skills you need to make money working on house locks.  Be sure to check back with this blog for updates.  He hopes to have the course ready in early 2016.  This course will include tools, books, and DVDs.

If you have any questions about the upcoming course, or any of his books, feel free to email him at a-bestlocksmith(at)gmail(dot)com.  As always, David welcomes phone calls from those who purchase his money-making books!