Door locks, trunk locks, ignition locks/cylinders....

[Kern Dog]

I have a few cars here that need door locks. A couple have ignition keys but no door locks. I know that I can buy lock sets but I am wondering if there is another way.
With the variable quality of aftermarket reproduction stuff, I wonder what can be done to "re-key" a lock cylinder.
Can a locksmith take an ignition key and reset the guts of a door lock to match the ignition?
I probably have 15 or more door lock cylinders from the late 60s to mid 70s and they all look the same, even ones for trucks.
I have ignition lock cylinders that have no keys and I'd like to have keys made for them.
Since these came new with a matching door and ignition, how hard could it be?
I have the following that need door locks:
67 Dart
69 Dart (Needs ignition key too)
70 Charger
71 Duster (Needs ignition key too)
72 Duster
75 Power Wagon.
I don't know of any locksmiths near me. I could probably find someone if I looked. I just wondered who else encountered the same situation and what you did.
If you used a reproduction, what brand worked well for you?

 

[1 Wild R/T]

Twenty plus years ago re-keying was common... These days finding someone with the skills and the parts is gonna be a challenge... I know one person locally but since she's the only one and she has plenty of other work if she does it it'll cost ten times what it use to....

 

[1 Wild R/T]

People who call themselves locksmiths these days replace parts and use a scan tool to program keys & cars.... Old school stuff isn't how they earn a living...

 

[Kern Dog]

That is yet another thing that sucks to see....the people that knew these cars are often on their way out of the trade or passed on by now.
I wonder how hard it could be....
My as yet unofficially UNdiagnosed A.D.D. tempts me to jump in and take apart some locks to see if I can figure out how they work so I can do it all myself. Yeah...as if I don't already bite off far more than I'll ever be able to chew!

 

[1 Wild R/T]

I'm sure it's not that hard... Just I like you have enough stuff to keep me busy... Re-keying locks is gonna require good eyesight & steady hands....

 

[Jerry Hall]

Maybe you can find a re-keying kit. @moparsaver had some and I bought one. I think I saw in another thread that he may have one left.

 

[YY1]

SUPER EASY if you have an ignition key that works in that lock.

Mopar door and trunk locks are SUPER EASY to rekey.

 

[gkent]

Do a search, this topic was covered in the past week or so. There's a kit for sale on Moparts right now. It seems pricey to me but with the number of locks you need to do it would be a bargain.

Standard Motor Products seem to be the source for a broad range of lock cylinders and they're sold through various places - Amazon included. Go on their website, find the p/n for your application then order from whoever you want. New cylinders seem pretty inexpensive in my opinion and the kits include keys, gasket and the clip to hold them in place.

eCatalog

 

[QuickBpBp]

This was recently discussed..

Can you “re-key” an ignition tumbler?

Anyway, here is another thing if you have loose keys. I have parted out cars with keys and even picked up loose Mopar keys buying box deals of parts at flea markets. There are only so many combinations of keys and sometimes other keys work. Decades ago I bought a '75 400 4 barrel Cordoba and the place I got it from had lost the keys but still had a title. So I took all my keys and a key from a '72 Satellite that was parted went right in and unlocked the column. If you have any loose keys you may get lucky.

 

[WileE]

A local locksmith can do re-coding of lock cylinders. I had one do my work for me up until a few years ago. Not sure if the store is still operating, though.

Do a search, this topic was covered in the past week or so.

 

[Sam69sat]

The only hard part is finding the little pins that match the valleys in your ignition key. Take a door lock cylinder and pop off that little rectangular stainless steel cover. Carefully dump out the springs and pins. I believe there are 5 springs and 10 little pins. Insert your ignition key into the door lock cylinder and then choose one of the 5 holes and insert 2 pins ( 1 blue & 1 pink from the second diagram below) and see if they line up allowing the key to turn. You can see how it all works in the second pic. When the blue and pink pins are lined up with the correct key, the cylinder will turn. The only problem is, it's highly unlikely you'll have all the right pin lengths that match all 5 valleys in your ignition key. This is where one of those rekey pin kits would come in handy or a bunch of donor lock cylinders. I have a couple door lock cylinders where i only used 3 out of the 5 pin slots because i dind't have enough matching pins.

 

[YY1]

Vintage Mopar also has the highest percentage chance of the old "big three" for having a key work in a different car/lock.

 

[gkent]

Sometimes cost outweighs effort. Sure you can spend hours with all that bullshit. Or you can spend around $80. at Roseville Chrysler and get a FULL new set with cylinders, keys, etc. for two doors and the trunk.

 

[1 Wild R/T]

Sometimes cost outweighs effort. Sure you can spend hours with all that bullshit. Or you can spend around $80. at Roseville Chrysler and get a FULL new set with cylinders, keys, etc. for two doors and the trunk.

Accept there are millions of fifty plus your old key cylinders around that still work perfectly.... The aftermarket cylinders often start binding within a few years if not sooner.... I'd rather invest a little time/money in OE parts rather than throw more Chinese crap at my cars...

 

[CoronetDarter]

I don't know of any locksmiths near me. I could probably find someone if I looked. I just wondered who else encountered the same situation and what you did.
If you used a reproduction, what brand worked well for you?

I've had the Coronet locks rekeyed at least twice after buying replacement ignition switches. I used a locksmith in DT Sac while I was still working there. Very inconvenient for us living in South Placer County, but there has to be other locksmiths more local.

 

[Sixpactogo]

If the ignition switch and doors accept the same key blank, a good locksmith could key them all to the same key. Getting more costly all the time but if they call themselves a locksmith, they better have the credentials.

 

[dadsbee]

Like I showed in the previous thread on this...

 

[YY1]

If you have enough spare door and trunk cylinders, you might not even need a pin kit.

...and if you are going to remove the cylinder and take to a smith, you've done 90% of the work.

 

[Tony Tee]

I made most of locks on my 69 charger open with the ignition key. Even the trunk, glove box, and console. But not the gas cap. Take one apart , it's not that difficult. Additionally, I did have to modify the key blank to get the trunk lock to work. I will post a picture when I get back home.

I did this many years ago. I widened the groove in the key so it fit different cylinders plus I believe i modified a door lock cylinder to work for the trunk by adding a long flat tab. This is what I remember what I did back then, I hope this helps ?

 

[YY1]

Most glove box locks use wafers instead of pins.
They also take a different blank.
Not nearly as easy to work on or find parts (including wafers) for.

Trunk lock takes a different blank (same as glove box) and has a different mechanical connection at the back for the slot vs the rod of the door lock. I believe those parts are peened on and my not be interchangeable.