Here's one place.........

Here is a link that might be useful: try here

here's another....scroll down

Here is a link that might be useful: and here

I think what you are calling skeleton keys are also called bit keys. They are easy to find and most "real" locksmiths (as opposed to just hardwarewstores that can cut modern keys) will have them. Often they are the same pattern in the entire house, so if you took one lock to the locksmith, you could purchase as many keys as you needed.

We use them in our entrance doors; I like having that key on my key ring, though I realize it wouldn't stop a 3-day old burglar.

HTH

Molly~

Are all skeleton locks alike? (No, they can't be. What's the purpose of having only one lock design and keys in all the stores?) How do you know which key fits your lock?

camp10,

I just tryed a key that is in our bathroom door on several other doors and it worked on them. I keep it in the door with a tassel on it. I would go to a antique shop and buy just one and try it in the different doors. In fact, if it didn't work, you could exchange it for another one and just keep trying them. Sometimes at garage sales, you will find a box of them.

Mary

You could try buying keys at an antique store and trying them but it would soon prove to be a lesson in futility.

Back in the early 80's I took a locksmithing course and the very first lesson in the course was how to duplicate a bit key with a hand file.

When examining a bit key the first consideration is the diameter of the key shank, then you must consider thickness and shape of the bit which may be oblong, wedge shaped, an el to the right or left or even a tee shape.
Then you must check the side view of the bit. The length from the shank to bottom of the bit and then we have the width, depth and spacing of the slots. When all things are considered there are actually more possible combinations for a skeleton key than there are for the common flat cylander lock keys that we are so familiar with.

Given that you have located one key that will fit your locks you can take that key to any boni fide locksmith and he or she can duplicate it for you.

In instances where you do not have a key a locksmith can fit a key to the lock but in most cases it is much cheaper to just replace the lock but on the other hand, if you are restoring a piece of antique furniture that has the original locks it then becomes quite desirable to have a key fitted.

There's a locksmith shop in our neighborhood that specializes in old houses, and they made skeleton keys. Only 2 different ones were necessary; 1 for the bathrooms and the other for every other door. They work just fine. It's handy to be able to lock the doors! We got a total of about 6 keys, though there are a gazillion doors in our big old house.

Thanks for the replies. I don't have any keys, so I don't know about the shank diameter, bit size, etc.

These are very good, functioning door handles, so I don't want to relace them. Maybe I'll ask a locksmith.

In some of the pages referenced in posts above, they sell key rings with about 15 keys. They weren't awfully expensive, on the order of $30. You try the keys until you find the one that fits your lock. Or, at least, in theory!

Here is a link that might be useful: Sample Keys

Antique stores alotof times have the big keys.Does anybody have the locks where you unscrew handle take handle with you?we have a couple.Neat idea.

I have a box of Skeleton Keys at the moment that I am accepting offers for. I am only accepting offer to trade for them if you're interested. Please see my blog for more information and pictures. http://www.onepinchofpocketlint.com

Here is a link that might be useful: One Pinch of Pocket Lint

Dang! That one place has pushbutton electrical switches!

I need one to replace a broken switch in my parent's 1903 Vic.!

THANKS!

I just wondered if Camp10 had solved the problem of how to lock the doors in their house because I have the same problem! I think calling a locksmith would be pretty expensive and I wondered if the suggestion of buying a 'skeleton key sampler' had worked. I don't want to replace the doors and/or locking mechanism either because the house is 110 years old and I think these locks are original to the house.

Thanks!

fayp,

I have the same problem, and I was just going to take the lock out of the door, and bring it to the locksmith for a key to be made. If I can not get the lock out of the door, then I will just take the whole door. It can not be that expensive to make a key.
I will let you know ASAP how much it cost.

Hi fayp,

No, I haven't solved the problem yet. Our front door can be locked w/o a key. Pushing a button on the side of the
door makes it lock from the outside only.

We have a 70's vintage lock on our back door, and we use that 95% of the time!

Old fashioned skeleton keys are not that hard to find - better still - its easy to modify many of the locksets (not the keys).

The old keys worked because they had grooves(notches) cut to fit the raised ribs in the mortised locksets (pre 1940/30), all you need to do is pull out out the lockset (from the door) and use a grinder to remove the ridges from inside the lockset's cover plate.

Heck, most old skeleton keys could be filed down to fit locks for which they weren't intended.

Now, I hope I'm on the right track for this post (I live in an old house 225+, I grew up in an old house (built 1908), and I summered in an older house (300+) yrs old (granddad's house).

If the key you are talking about looks like an old fashioned key - oval end, straight shank, and a blocky (one or two cut) square shaped head, with a couple of notches in it - the solution is relatively easy, modify the lockset, if I'm offbase; a 1970's (new house), would have a better lockset - you need a good locksmith.

I just took my locking mech to the locksmith and he made me a skeleton key for $2.85