hoverfishSimon, Author at Ross-Dean Locksmiths

8th June 202019th March 2024

UPVC door mechanism repair – again

We are very busy for door repairs this week. Normally they peak early spring/late autumn. Shown below are parts of a very clearly broken top case. This particular part is long since discontinued but somebody makes a repair part for the case. This make/model full length mechanism is also unobtainable, although the gearboxes can be found.

Because the gearbox (not shown) has an odd PZ (handle-spindle distance) a complete replacement with modern mechanism would have been more expensive than a repair, and also required new handles to fit the modern handle-spindle distance.

Double glazing & UPVC repairs are normally far, far cheaper than replacing the entire window or door. Recently we repaired a door during the afternoon for over £1000 less than the price the customer was quoted for a replacement door that morning.

31st May 20201st January 2022

Garador lock (pre 1984) replacement

Keys were lost to this old (pre 1984) style garage door lock in the Forest of Dean. A key could be obtained to the code on the lock but that leaves the missing key unaccounted for. Simplest and most secure was to pick the lock on the back of the handle to enable it to be replaced for a brand new lock.

Pre-1984 Garador handle — Pre 1984 style Garador lock.

Pre 1984 Garador lock — Pre-1984 Garador up and over door lock.

Although the lock above is Union branded they are commonly seen with the L&F variant instead.

30th May 20201st January 2022

Importance of UPVC door alignment

If your UPVC door is difficult to lock, or hitting the frame – get it adjusted. Leaving it will end up breaking the mechanism and being unable to open your door, or unable to lock it.

Take a look at the part above and how extremely worn it is. It is part of the mechanism of a UPVC front door that eventually jammed shut. This door must have been wearing against the frame for several years. We were called to open the door and carry out repairs. Repeated strain and force required to lift the handle eventually broke the gearbox. A simple adjustment would have stopped this from happening.

Some unusual multipoint mechanisms can cost over £200 just for the part.

15th May 202011th June 2024

UPVC door repair

We were called to repair a set of UPVC French doors. The door wouldn’t lock because the multipoint mechanism had broken. This was caused by the door swinging open with such force against the wall that it was ripping the door off its hinges. This in turn caused the door to drop out of alignment.

UPVC door hinge — Hinges damaged due to door swinging open

Because of the failed gearbox the customer had temporarily secured the doors by tying the handles together with a shoelace.

If you are experiencing any difficulty locking a UPVC door, 90% of the time it is due to mis-alignment. Unless you get the door correctly adjusted the gearbox will fail. This will result in a door jammed shut, or cannot be locked.

30th April 202011th June 2024

Replacement Ford car keys.

Not much going on here at the moment. Most people are already locked down at home so they’re not losing car keys or locking themselves out.

Here are some pictures of the replacement of keys for a ’93 Ford barn find. There were no keys with the vehicle. It is possible to make a key without having to strip the lock but I wanted to clean inside the lock as the old grease was like treacle.

18th March 202023rd May 2020

COVID-19. We are open.

Locked in? Locked out? Unable to secure your property? If you need an emergency locksmith we will still aim to help you whilst maintaining social distancing and taking necessary precautions.

If your routine maintenance can wait until the risk is lower then please wait!

During this special period our locksmith services cover Mitcheldean, Cinderford, Coleford, Ross on Wye and the Forest of Dean in general.

Look after the vulnerable. Help where possible. Stay safe.

25th October 20196th May 2024

Snapped key in truck ignition

This remnant of a snapped key is about to be finally removed from a truck ignition barrel. Whenever the broken key extractor kit needs to come out, it is almost always dark and raining.

Locksmith Ross on Wye. Removing snapped car key — Pulling snapped key from ignition barrel

We use dedicated broken key extraction tools to remove snapped parts of key. Sometimes it may need 2 or 3 tools in the lock to get the part out. Occasionally it will be necessary to remove the lock and strip it down to remove the broken part.

To replace the key it may be possible just to clamp the broken parts together in a trace-cutter. Or failing that the key can be read by eye or software or cut from code. In many cases it is possible to decode the lock and get a reading from that. In most cases it is possible to cut a new key even if parts or all of the original key are missing.

12th October 20191st January 2022

Fitting a cat flap to UPVC door

Not posted anything for a while. Let’s see how long winded fitting a cat flap can be. Customer’s cats wanted a flap fitting but the design of the door prevented a simple installation. The door needed adaptation from a 3 panel/2 bar lower section to a single section panel.

cat flap fitting — Door in original state. 3 panel/2 bar lower section. Panels too narrow to accept a flap.

locksmith cat flap fitting — Vertical panels removed. Beginning to scrape off old glazing tape and fitting new tape.

13th July 201911th June 2024

Non destructive gain entry of British Standard mortice

Mortice lock opening - non destructive. Locksmith Ross on Wye

We picked this British Standard 5 lever lock to open a commercial premises for the client. The main key had been lost and the spare key was several hours away.

BS locks are designed to be difficult to open without the key. They have to have a certain number of possible keys, a minimum specific time for a cutting attack on the bolt, and various other limits. They certainly aren’t easy to pick unless you know what you’re doing. This lock is a Union Strongbolt and is one of the more common locks.

17th May 201913th June 2024

Replacement VW Transporter key.

This job was to replace lost keys for an imported Brazilian VW Transporter. Despite being long discontinued in Europe, this particular model continued to be made in South America. The first stage (before EEPROM programming a new transponder into the immobiliser) is to make the metal key blade.

The vehicle had sat for several years without moving. We couldn’t manage to decode the locks on the vehicle using a special tool or by impressioning. The importers were unable to provide key information so the only option was to remove the steering wheel, remove the steering lock then strip the entire ignition lock.

VW ignition repair — Measuring VW lock for drill point

VW ignition drilling — Measuring VW lock for drill point