Boston Locksmiths, a little weak

[MartinHewitt]

But a "Sorry, we do not sell lock parts" instead of some disinterested mumbling might not have brought you to this forum for a complaint.

[billdeserthills]

But a "Sorry, we do not sell lock parts" instead of some disinterested mumbling might not have brought you to this forum for a complaint.

Likely the old guy in the shop is simply not used to people coming in off the street to buy safe parts

[Safecrackin Sammy]

Most commercial lock shops have a walk in counter geared more for commercial customers to drop off items needing work, or get keys cut to provide support for account work the road techs do at the customers site. Think repair people for property management companies, stores with multiple locations, etc.

There really isnt a lot of money to be made cutting keys all day for walk in customers at $2.00 each
Add in that the average private consumer only contacts a locksmith once every 20 years or so.
One company I remember actually had shops with a counter in more of a business/warehouse park environment to avoid private retail customers.

Dial bushings and spline keys for modern safe locks can be purchased separately, but for the most part come as part of a complete lock pack and the need for replacements by themselves are rare. They may have had some used ones laying around in a junk box but would have to go dig thru it all to come up with two bucks worth of parts to sell you.

And yes, I have known a number of curmudgeon type counter locksmiths who have a little knowledge and give customers the whackiest information in response to a question or request. Most are nice people however once you get to know them.

The best I can suggest is shop elsewhere or buy it over the internet.

[cledry]

Most commercial lock shops have a walk in counter geared more for commercial customers to drop off items needing work, or get keys cut to provide support for account work the road techs do at the customers site. Think repair people for property management companies, stores with multiple locations, etc.

There really isnt a lot of money to be made cutting keys all day for walk in customers at $2.00 each
Add in that the average private consumer only contacts a locksmith once every 20 years or so.
One company I remember actually had shops with a counter in more of a business/warehouse park environment to avoid private retail customers.

We actually sell a few hundred dollars in keys almost every day. Keys for cars can be very profitable. We charge $65-$75 for most modern car keys. Not a day goes by that we don't cut a couple at least. We love retail customers but spline keys and a bushing just wouldn't be something we would sell.

[MartinHewitt]

The cheapest cut keys I can buy here are nearly USD 10. So probably nobody want's to sell a key for 2.

[sign216]

The best I can suggest is shop elsewhere or buy it over the internet.

Yep, bought it on the internet.

The locksmith I went to makes a living selling services, not products.
Next time I'll go to a store that's gear toward selling product, not services (or, go to the internet (which is where the world is headed)).

[cledry]

That is precisely it. We do stock a lot of products, padlocks, locks, door closers, electronic locks, keypad lock, safes, desk, file cabinet, cam locks, storefront locks, etc.. We don't sell much in the way of residential locks anymore because that sort of customer has Home Depot, Lowes, Amazon, and the internet to shop prices. We cannot compete on price with these giants. We even get people who come in, look at our safes and then say they can get it on Amazon for $50 less.

The best I can suggest is shop elsewhere or buy it over the internet.

Yep, bought it on the internet.

The locksmith I went to makes a living selling services, not products.
Next time I'll go to a store that's gear toward selling product, not services (or, go to the internet (which is where the world is headed)).

[sign216]

Jim,

I can't stand that; that someone would come in, see the item in person, and then to save a few lousy dollars go online.
Who's going to help them when they get in a jam, or need a specialty item?
I patronize my local guy, but I can understand it's a different marketplace now.

Joe

[cledry]

I have even had a few commercial customers by online and supply their own parts. It doesn't bother me as long as they know that there is no warranty from us. In fact in some cases I prefer the customer supply their own parts. Namely some service providers. One particular service provider that we do work at Ross stores had us quote out 8 internal door closers. We quoted Jackson HD models and they sent an off brand regular duty closer. All failed within 6 months. Two failed the first time they were used! We made a lot of money on return trips for that one!

Jim,

I can't stand that; that someone would come in, see the item in person, and then to save a few lousy dollars go online.
Who's going to help them when they get in a jam, or need a specialty item?
I patronize my local guy, but I can understand it's a different marketplace now.

Joe

[Evan]

Jim,

I can't stand that; that someone would come in, see the item in person, and then to save a few lousy dollars go online.
Who's going to help them when they get in a jam, or need a specialty item?
I patronize my local guy, but I can understand it's a different marketplace now.

Joe

Joe,

You wanted a piece that a lock shop/supply house does not stock as an individual part. Simple as that.

Let's say that in a perfect world the business in question catered to your need for only a portion of the stocked unit kit those parts come in, why should that business eat the difference in the cost to open up (destroy) the kit to scavenge the parts you needed because you only wanted to buy the specific parts you wanted but not the whole kit.

That would be like Home Depot opening up a $10 deadbolt lock to give a customer one piece that they lost or broke when installing another lock. How many times do you really think a company, any company, can do that and remain in business?

While your purchase request seemed reasonable and logical to you, it would have caused a loss to the business to sell it to you the way you wanted. Sometimes you need to buy a whole lock to obtain the parts you need since you are a private retail customer. The other option is to buy it on-line from a faceless warehouse who has all kinds of parts and doesn't care who is buying them as long as payment is made.

The business logistics aspects of a locksmith ordering a small part for you is: one employee places the order for the part, then someone has to receive the shipment of the part, unpack and reconcile the packing list, then set aside the product for you with your name on it in a holding area, then contact you to inform you that it has arrived. Then an employee must pay for that part they received and any fees associated for making a small/special order which at minimum is shipping on orders that do not meet a dollar amount threshold.

This is why a $2.00 supply item won't be sold retail over the counter, as they lost money on the ordering/handling/accounts payable aspect of the order fulfillment process. Why would a business sell you an item at retail for $2.00 that cost them 10-20x that amount in labor time to process that seemingly small order?

~~ Evan

[high_order1]

Basically

What you did was go into a heat and air jobber shop and ask for a run cap.

You went to a lawyer and asked for them to print off a copy of a blank LLC articles of incorporation document.

You went to a hospital and asked them for a suture stapler tray.

Locksmiths (and, the rest of my examples) earn by doing, not by helping someone (who, incidentally probably would never pay a locksmith anyway) do their job.

I bet money that guy had every part you needed, or could alter a shelf stock part to work.

I know I'm coming off snotty, but I'm really not. This is how it is. There is a difference between a big box all-in-one store and a local hardware shop. There is a reason why those local hardware shops are dying; they are not a profitable business model.

The guy you contacted was probably not really a counterman. As said before, most don't make money on walk-ins - they make it on big commercial accounts with recurring business; they order parts in bulk to match that business model. They don't lose money trying to help the one-off walk in who never comes back, but they do lose time. For whatever reason, that guy chose not to share his with you.

It's not just you; I've been run out of practically every locksmith shop in a 75 mile radius just trying to buy locks. There are safe and security doors that will sit in the back of these shops until the auction house sells them out of their shuttered businesses by the pound, because these people come from the Olde School, if you don't have the proper letters and pedigree, they absolutely will not spend a moment on you. Or me. It is fun watching their eyes get big and ask, HOW DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT THAT IS, especially in the pre-internet days...

They are like some ham radio people; content in their ancient ways, fully aware that the industry standards have changed, and not interested in any new technology. It is what it is.

Like the other poster was talking about, the guy that lamented the old, dead locksmith would have just looked it up; that guy probably made his bread and butter cutting front door keys with an occasional store front; what he lost in a sale he would have made up in word of mouth. Safe and vault and commercial / government security container people don't need word of mouth, they are (were, dang internet) probably the only place in a protected region that could even GET a mosler or diebold or 3SI part; now that stuff is on eBay and anyone can eventually figure it out with a few youtube videos and a forum visit and... they are the last generation, they are hurting because they know it's the end of an era, and soon, a lot of them will be like elevator operators or switchboard operators as more and more locks are falling under physical security and maintenance and handled internally.

Or not lol, I ramble

[sign216]

High_Order,

You caught my eye when you mentioned Ham Radio.

Yep, I've got a license, and listen to radio. Even set aside time for the scheduled shows that I like.
I agree, ham radio is stuck in the past. Because radio is no longer the "hot thing."

I heard they needed ham radio operators in Puerto Rico after the hurricane, when mainstream communications were down. But that need was/is short lived.

I, like others, might be living in the past. Someday ..., someday.

Joe

[demux]

There are safe and security doors that will sit in the back of these shops until the auction house sells them out of their shuttered businesses by the pound, because these people come from the Olde School

No competent business man will keep clutter for the sake of keeping clutter. The stuff they keep in the back may look like junk to you, but they're probably keeping it back there because they know one or more of their regular clients uses that type of stuff, and it's been out of production for 30 years and if a component breaks their two options are to either go grab a spare from the junk pile in the back or spend months waiting for one to come up on eBay. Keep in mind, architectural hardware in general can have a very long life span, and keeping hard-to-find parts on hand when you know you might need them at some point is generally a good idea.

if you don't have the proper letters and pedigree, they absolutely will not spend a moment on you.

In my experience, less about that and more about trust. I've been in the same boat as well, and have gotten the stink eye a few times when walking in and asking for some esoteric part or lock, but you also have to see it from the locksmith's perspective, a lot of the stuff they sell is security sensitive and if you just walk in and they don't know you from Adam they don't want that stuff falling into the wrong hands. Also, as has been pointed out on this thread by others, if you're not a big institutional customer you may very well just not be worth their time if that's their primary work.

[billdeserthills]

I usually tell people that I bought all those parts to sell my labor & invite them to have me out for a service call

[GWiens2001]

I usually tell people that I bought all those parts to sell my labor & invite them to have me out for a service call

Well stated, Bill.

Gordon