In the past, most locksmiths got their initial training just by working as an apprentice. But these days, due to the more complications and varieties, they must take a correspondence course. For a better result in residential, commercial and automotive locksmith near me service and being an expert, reading books and watching training videos are mandatory.
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Types of Keys That Any Locksmith Must Know
What is the key? It is an easy question to answer. It is the device that operates locks and comes in different shapes and sizes. We use typical keys in homes and cars; they come in eight basic categories.
A lock technician doesn’t need to know every detail about all types, but it is good to be acquainted with principals. The eight basic types are as follows:
- Bit
- Barrel
- Flat
- Corrugated
- Cylinder
- Tubular
- Angularly bitted
- Dimple
Bit Keys
A bit key is used for operating locks and is usually made of iron, brass, steel, or aluminium. The main parts are the bow, shank, shoulder, throat, post, bit, tumbler and ward cuts.
Barrel Keys
The barrel keys have different sizes and styles. The barrel key has a hollow shank and doesn’t have a shoulder, post, or blade.
Flat Keys
As the name implies, a flat key is a steel or nickel silver, flat on both sides. Such keys have different parts like bow, blade, tip, stop, throat cut and often used for operating a lever tumbler lock, a type of lock used on luggage and safe deposit boxes.
Corrugated Keys
Many corrugated keys look like flat keys. They allow the key to fit into correspondingly shaped keyways and used with warded padlocks. Corrugated keys have cuts on both sides of blades, unlike most flat ones.
Cylinder Keys
The most famous key today is the cylinder key. It is for operating pin tumbler locks and disc tumbler locks. You probably have cylinder keys for the front door or car door. A cylinder key has parts like tip, bow, shoulder, blade, tumbler cuts and keyway grooves. The shoulder performs as a stop and specifies how far the key can enter the keyway. Some cylinder keys don’t have shoulders; they use the tip as a stop. The keyway grooves along the key blade’s length, let the key enter a keyway of a corresponding shape.
Tubular Keys
The tubular key has a tubular blade with cuts/depressions around the end of the blade. It is on vending and coin-operated washing machines. Today many companies manufacture tubular key locks and keys.
Tubular keys have different parts like the bow, blade, tumbler cuts, and nib. The purposes of these parts are similar to the goals of corresponding portions of a cylinder key.
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Angularly Bitted Keys
The angularly bitted is a good match with some high-security locks. The key has cuts with a 90-degree angle from the blade. It causes pin tumblers within a cylinder to rotate to specific positions.
Dimple Keys
We use a Dimple key to operate some high-security pin tumbler locks. It has drilled or milled cuts into its blade surface; the cuts typically don’t change the blade silhouette.
Swift services | locksmith near me
Here in Swift, we offer mobile lock-related services in Melbourne. We offer residential, commercial and automotive locksmith services in Melbourne and surrounding suburbs (Carlton, Doncaster, Coburg, Bundoora, Malvern, McKinnon, Sunshine, Burwood, Prahan and Heidelberg)
Need automotive locksmith service throughout Melbourne? Just call us, and we send our closest team to your location.
