Medeco, key stuck in lock

[DOORDOCTOR]

Hello all, I know I don't post much here, my friend in Hong Kong has a problem, his dad puts key in lock to his apartment, goes to turn it and nothing happened,

lock is 4 years old

key is the one for the lock, he's tried wiggling it, tried turning key, no luck

there is 2 screws on keyhole side of door, but they just only hold a faceplate on the door,

I suspect the pins are worn, he said the key was not harder then usual to insert into lock (no idea when lock was last lubricated)

any suggestions other then calling a locksmith??

thanks

-Jess

[Squelchtone]

When you say the key is stuck in lock per your title, do you mean the key was inserted and not cannot be removed from the lock?

If that is the case, have him press on the face of the cylinder with his finger and then pull the key out.

Not sure what to tell you if you meant that the key can be inserted or removed but it will not turn in either direction and it used to. Did it work just fine until today? when was the last time that key worked with that lock, does it get used daily?

I've had this issue with newly pinned up medecos when the pins and key are .. "sharp" and need to get worn in at the shearline. Sometimes they'll rotate in one direction, and I quickly change direction and get the plug to turn the other direction and the shearline remains and allows me to turn the direction that was previously stuck.

Can your friend post a photo to http://imgur.com and send you the link? I'm curious to see if it is a euro profile cylinder or a mortise cylinder.

Also, is the door open right now and can the cylinder be removed from the door to see if it is the cylinder or if it is an issue with the door mechanism?

Thanks
Squelchtone

[DOORDOCTOR]

Hello Squelchtone, sorry I ddint see the comments after my post,

hours later the friend did get the key out, forgot howhe did it, (he forgot) but he got the key out,

during my facebook chat with him we tried that method, to push on cylinder and pull key, didn't work,

long story short he had a lock tech come out from Medeco, they took it apart found out it had a seized pin holding the key in, they replaced the lock cylinder and keyed it to his keys.

and yes, the key was stuck in the lock and could not pull it back out

from seeing the pics he sent me, I suspect it is the euro profile M3 (the one with sidebar)

last time I interacted with him I asked about the lock, all working good now and no longer a problem,

-Jess

[Squelchtone]

Thanks for the update, those are always appreciated!

I'm glad the outcome was favorable for your friend.

Cheers
Squelchtone

[dll932]

Medecos are sensitive to lubrication or the lack of it. Aside from pushing in on the core face, I would have squirted WD-40, Tri-FLow or Houdini into the lock and then tapped the head of the key sharply with a screwdriver handle a few times on the end.