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randomness(No, not simultaneous bartending and locksmithing, although I imagine that might be amusing.)
I've wanted to take both courses for quite a while but have never gotten around to it. I wonder if anyone on my flist has any recommendations.
I've wanted to take both courses for quite a while but have never gotten around to it. I wonder if anyone on my flist has any recommendations.
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(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 12:40 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 05:02 am (UTC)Many folks train via a mail-order course; I'm not sure there are any in-person courses left; I know there are not for cameras, except for staff training by manufacturers, and I think I remember hearing that the last watch repair training school closed down as well.
A mail-order course used to (and probably still does) include a key copying machine and one of those tiny demonstrator doors like they have in locksmith shops, plus a few other locks. Try to cover: medeco, best, ace (the circular keys used for alarm systems and vending machines), cars, filing cabinets, padlocks. You travel enough that you might also want info on ASSA Abloy and other lever locks (common in Europe, but here usually seen only in payphones and parking meters). I've no idea if you have interest in electronic stuff like hotel card key systems, alarm systems, and so on.
The other locks I see on a regular basis are Simplex (five buttons), and warded locks (the old-fashioned "skeleton key" kind, which hardly anyone uses but which are still in many of the doors around here), but these are easy enough to learn even if a course doesn't include them. A few hotels still have mechanical Ving locks, the cards with holes punched in them; most Vings are electronic these days, and there aren't even very many of those around. You should ask me about Ving stories, and about MRI magnets; a course is unlikely to cover either of those :)
I think some of the Frobs used to have a copy of a mail-order course kicking around, and if not, or if you want something newer, I'd expect you could find used copies on Ebay. The lock industry has shrunk and consolidated a lot in the past two decades; I don't think much has changed besides automobile locks.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 05:42 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 06:56 am (UTC)I never was interested in that school, and managed to learn by volunteering my time, practicing and eventually picking up jobs at locksmith stores. I wonder where in New England they'd teach such a thing? FWIW, last I heard, New Jersey was the only state with a locksmith's union.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 07:00 am (UTC)One basic skill that anyone can practice, is just to pay attention to locks. The manufacter name is on the side of almost every door you pass in throughout your daily routine. That could be dozens of door locks you're ignoring every day. Instead of ignoring them, note what types of locks you see.
Kwikset locks are popular nationwide, and of pretty low quality. But here in San Francisco, Schlage is prevalent. Schlage's HQ is right here in town, so maybe that explains why they're available cheaply.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 07:21 am (UTC)I've always wanted to take both courses too!
(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 03:17 pm (UTC)The canonical mail-order course is from Foley-Belsaw, and it's still around and now costs $769. I went through someone's now-30-year-old version of this and it's a pretty good course; you'll also come out of it with a decent set of tools. Don't buy supplies from them after-the-fact, though; they're usually stupid-expensive for stuff like locksets and key blanks.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 07:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-16 07:50 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-05-17 11:42 pm (UTC)*hugs*