Find an old key replacement?

October 1, 2008 12:09 AM

what is the key in the very middle of this image called and where can i find one for my old doors at home? Are they pretty standard or are there lots of different cuts? I broke the only one i had.
posted by dougiedd to home & garden (10 comments total)

Looks like a skeleton key, along with other examples of them. Do you know what company manufactured the lock the key works for? If that's the case you could try contacting them.
posted by ZaneJ. at 12:31 AM on October 1, 2008

Well, they're all skeleton keys. I'd take your broken bits to antique shops, which tend to have skeleton keys for sale at inexpensive prices, and look for a match. I gather there weren't so many permutations that it's unlikely you'd find something close enough to work in your lock.
posted by mumkin at 12:34 AM on October 1, 2008

They're not necessarily skeleton keys (read the rest of the wikipedia section you linked to).
posted by hattifattener at 12:44 AM on October 1, 2008

Most antique shops have a big box full of these from when they buy up old tear-down houses and such. And there are very few permutations.

I have a few of those locks on internal doors in my place, and when I realized I had no keys for them, I just bought $10 worth from a junk store. Two of them worked well enough with some wiggling. I suspect if I was a decent lockpick I could manage with a pen-knife or a dental pick, too.
posted by rokusan at 12:53 AM on October 1, 2008

If you're lucky there might be a serial number on the lock in your door usually just above or under where the bolt comes out. Write the number down, go to a locksmith, tell them you want one (or more) of that number key. Done!

It depends a bit on how old your door is, but like the people above say, an antiques shop might work. Or, if the key is not completely shattered you could take the pieces of the key to a locksmith and see if they can do something.
posted by bjrn at 2:23 AM on October 1, 2008

These old fashioned keys/locks are still common in South Africa. Each key has an ID. The locksmith will sell you a replacement based on that ID code. My house in South Africa had 7 such locks on external doors or gates, every one different. I had to replace one of them, and it was amazingly easy.
posted by Goofyy at 3:03 AM on October 1, 2008

Lowe's and Ace, those sorts of places, often have these in the key section. Often for as low as $1 or $2. That's the same kind in my house.
posted by TomMelee at 5:21 AM on October 1, 2008

There are also stores like the ReUse Center in Minneapolis that sell parts of old houses. I'm pretty sure a place like that would have a bucket of keys. I did see keys like this for sale at my local Ace hardware when I was getting some modern keys cut.
posted by advicepig at 5:57 AM on October 1, 2008

Our local locksmith was able to make us a a new (old) key for an old lock in our house for a few bucks. We didn't even have the original. It might be simplest to bring one of the lock mechanisms with you so you can test it right in the shop.
posted by bonobothegreat at 7:40 AM on October 1, 2008

thanks so much!
I have the pieces of the old key, so the locksmith might be best
few antique stores in my neck of the woods
posted by dougiedd at 11:00 AM on October 1, 2008