Foley-Belsaw Order Form

[Lostreb]

After reading this thread, all I can say is that I am in the process of taking the FB course and I am learning quite a bit. One person mentioned about apprenticing but that is not an option where I live. Small town with two locksmiths and BOTH of them think they own the world and have attitudes from H#**. It is a two hour drive to the nearest locksmith who I may or may not get to apprentice under. All that means that I am going to have to bite the bullet and do this on my own.
Another mentioned the MIT Lockpicking book. You can find it by Googling it, but, for anyone that wants to ask, shoot me a request with an e-maill addy and I'll send it to you.

[globallockytoo]

This just proves it. Study at home Locksmith courses are not a good thing for public safety. Not to mention they do not prepare a person properly for this trade or any other trade. I beleive in starting from the bottom like in the old days. Nothing wrong with apprenicing and learning from the tried and true old guys in this trade who know by decades of experience.


Go to any well established Locksmith shop and see if they run their business the Bellsaw Folley way.

ditto

[Slalan]

I have completed most of the FB course. I found it very interesting however it doesn't prepare you to start your own business. I have learned a great deal and feel like I would be a better candidate for a job than someone totally unprepared.

[TigerDragon]

Foley-Belsaw is a good home study course. It doesn't prepare you for everything. You'll mostly have a solid basic understanding of residential, shaky basic understanding of automotive, and very little understanding of many other aspects of locksmithing. But it will give you enough of a baseline to learn more on your own, and it might help you get your foot in the door with one of the local locksmiths to become an apprentice. It IS a good course, but it doesn't deliver everything you need to strike out on your own, unless you really limit yourself in what kinds of jobs you are willing to take on. I'm going to be talking to one of the local locksmiths in my area soon to see if I can't get an after hours/weekends type apprenticeship worked out with him. I feel that I could start my own after hours business with what I have from FB if I just stuck to residential work, but I'd love to learn more than that.

[justinb707]

Hello everyone. I am new to Lockpicking 101, as I am seeking information about the trade and the prospect of a new career. I have spent the past 15 years in warehouse and manufacturing jobs, and I am seriously ready to start a new career....one that does not include being overworked and underpaid until I am worked to death. I am in a situation where I have to choose a distance learning school. So far, from the information I have found online, I have narrowed it down to 2 choices, between Foley-Belsaw Institute and Penn Foster Career College. Foley-Belsaw seems to have a more in-depth and elaborate program, but I wanted to ask for advice and get all the facts before making a decision. I hope that someone with experience in either school can share it with me, and any info for an aspiring locksmith. I am looking at the future prospect of working for myself, not having to slave away for vampiric companies any more.
Any help/advice/tips offered would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much.
Sincerely,
Justin Bell

[wrench1]

locksmithvideoschool.com I just finished the course. 10 DVDs that you can watch over and over. Got a 90% on the test, and the diploma. After months of research, it's the best home course out there.

[wrench1]

Hey justinb707,

You can contact me at

[bobhdus]

I did the Foley Belsaw course and the Locksmithvideoschool.com course and I thought they were both good courses. The videoschool course was nice because you can see Mike the Instructor really breaking drill bits trying to drill out a lock and so you can really see that not every lock just falls open. He also talks a lot on doing quality work and he will support you afterwards. Send him a photo and a call and he will help you if you are struggling on a lock job (even after you graduate). The FB course goes over basic stuff like common hand tools and some other things that may seem too boring for some but also has the things that the videocourse does not cover, like forced entry and security systems although they are basic as well. The video course assumes you know how to use hand tools and has excellent quality videos.

[ronchurch]

In regards to the above mentioned locksmithvideocourse.com that they help their graduets,I'd like to say that I am a graduate from foley belsaw and whenever I have a Question I dont hesitate to call them ,their always ready to help wether its technicalities or pricing info. another thing about foley belsaw which surprised me is that the diploma was recognized by the state of new york for a valid school although its based in missuri

[bobhdus]

In regards to the above mentioned locksmithvideocourse.com that they help their graduets,I'd like to say that I am a graduate from foley belsaw and whenever I have a Question I dont hesitate to call them ,their always ready to help wether its technicalities or pricing info. another thing about foley belsaw which surprised me is that the diploma was recognized by the state of new york for a valid school although its based in missuri

That's awesome. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the Foley-Belsaw course, and I have had a few times where I had contacted Tom Compton and he was able to help me out with finding some parts/ tools. It is tough to recommend any one course to someone with out knowing how mechanically inclined they are. I have a coworker who took the Penn Foster Locksmithing course and I thought his stuff looked pretty much the same as Foley-Belsaws. He even got an ILCO Key machine, but for some reason he felt like he would have gotten more out of it had he taken the Foley-Belsaw course. I don't know what he felt like he missed out on.

[ALLS London]

I did the FB course about 6 years ago. I worked for a division 8 company- hollow metal doors and hardware, and the course taught me more about service and pinning than I could have learned on my own. It did not teach me about master keying in any way that was satisfying.

Now I run my own shop- I would have a tough time hiring someone with JUST the course behind them, but someone with some other kind of security knowledge (specifically about hardware or safes) would likely get a nod from me.

my two cents

[lockjock50]

When i first started i decided to go cheap. I bought the locksmith video school out of las vegas. They sent a handfull of videos i watched on the computer. They sent a paper test and when i returned it they sent me a certificate.
I thought to myself "now what?"
Not being satisfied, i called foley and told them about my experience. They gave me a great deal in the course. I took the basic course, advanced course, master keying, and foreign automotive. Nothing beat the hands on training unless you go to a classroom.
now with my handful of certificates i know it all....
Fooled again. I started doing jobs for friends and word of mouth. I moved here to Georgia in 2005 looking to get out of the cabinet work and punching time clocks. I started hanging out at a lock shop in my town. I was surprised at how much i learned and how much they were willing to teach.
After you take a course or however you learn the basics of how things work, nothing beats hands on training. The tips and tricks and advice i gained has been by far my best course.

[bobhdus]

I don't want to hijack this thread from the actual topic, but seeing as it went off on another tangent, it should also be mentioned that if you do get into the locksmith trade, there are a lot of manufacturers that offer training that although may be product specific, it is still in a lot of cases free and well worth the time... Schlage Commercial division puts on a pretty decent class on their newer stuff and they also have a real in-depth masterkey class (free as well). Others do this also. They feel once you learn their products you will be more inclined to use them. Your local Lock supplier can also help find training as they sponsor these Manufacturers and your local Locksmith Chapter sometimes can help pairing individuals that have a desire to learn. I have also noticed in my area a lot of older Locksmiths are retiring and are willing to part with their vast wisdom and equipment in some cases. Don't be afraid to visit some lock shops to meet some of these folks.

[billdeserthills]

I saw this posting & I wanted to say my Dad took the Foley-Belsaw course back in 1968, moved out west & became a part-time locksmith. I actually went through the same course while he was out on the road and I would be stuck in the shop with little to do. Hopefully it has changed a bit in the last
40+ years
I get the feeling being a second generation locksmith that any course a person takes will not likely do much more than teach ya to be dangerous. In that I mean you will likely learn enough to disassemble a lock, maybe not enough to put it all back together, that part is upon the student. No course can possibly teach every part of the intricate trade of locksmithing.

[zeke79]

I saw this posting & I wanted to say my Dad took the Foley-Belsaw course back in 1968, moved out west & became a part-time locksmith. I actually went through the same course while he was out on the road and I would be stuck in the shop with little to do. Hopefully it has changed a bit in the last
40+ years
I get the feeling being a second generation locksmith that any course a person takes will not likely do much more than teach ya to be dangerous. In that I mean you will likely learn enough to disassemble a lock, maybe not enough to put it all back together, that part is upon the student. No course can possibly teach every part of the intricate trade of locksmithing.

You're exactly right. The courses give just basic knowledge. To be in this trade I personally think you need a natural mechanical ability to some extent to be able to troubleshoot to any real degree.

I hate to say this but if no lockies in your area are open to a free labor apprenticeship then offer to sign a no compete agreement in exchange for the training. This will make them feel better about it on their end. If/when you go out on your own they are almost impossible for them to enforce through the courts.