need a bit of guidance in Atlanta.

[ricksconnected]

i have a few questions not sure what area this thread should have been placed.
sorry if ive picked the wrong spot but here goes..........

i live in Atlanta Ga. currently in the mechanic field and hate it. have for a while now.
im sure i could bore you with the details but im just tired of the same ole crap
day after day week after week in this business. the red tape, the politics,
the controlling of how much money we tech make etc. when i was told that i was
to old to be sent to school and the company rather spend the money on the younger
guys who are wanting to make a career for themselves i knew i was in trouble.
that was some time ago and im still in the business and still hating every day of it.
time to make the slow switch to a new and better field of work and something i can control.

im very interested in the locksmith field. always have been. just always afraid to make the leap.
the more ive been looking into it the more and more im finding out and like what im seeing.

so im wondering how to do this switch. my idea was/is to do the move in steps.
i ordered up a pick kit from HPC and started to play with a few locks here and there. watching
as many videos to see how things are done. next i ordered the reload kit from Sparrows and one of the
suggested locks. seems like a ok learning kit to see a few basic ideas in the trade and how they are done.

my thoughts are to focus on entry residential/auto for the moment to see what i can do with it.
maybe i can do a little something to get my feet wet and learn more as i go and put what i might
make back into the business and pretty much rinse and repeat. your thoughts on this so far?

if my idea is a decent thought, what tools would i need to just cover the short plan above?
its just that if im gonna do this i want to do it right, learn it right, and have a plan and work the plan.
would love to talk to any Atlanta area locksmith or two if possible if there are any on here as well.

[ricksconnected]

so basically im just looking for a bit of guidance and advice from anybody willing to give it.

[ricksconnected]

12 views and no replies.......nobody has anything they can add or answer here?
did i post in the wrong spot?

[MartinHewitt]

This is a lock picking forum and not a locksmith forum, so from 12 views were 3 from you and 9 from non-locksmiths. Even so it is a lock picking forum there are also locksmiths here, which do probably have to work on Monday. So you might give them a bit more time.

I am not a locksmith, but some ideas for you to think about:
There are very different types of work for a locksmith, e.g. emergency services (locked door), just sales of ready made stuff (padlocks, standard locks, safes), pining and masterkeying of locks, copying of keys, installation of locking hardware on doors (mortice locks on new doors), safe services (opening, maintenance), alarm systems, car locks (emergency opening, key copying, key encoding), securing of homes against burglars.
What do you think you can start with?
Is there in your location a lack of service in one of these areas, where you could have an easy start to find customers?
Are there any training sessions for locksmiths in your area from associations?
There are great books out there for locksmiths which give business advice and have a lot of information on how to do what a locksmith does, e.g. "The Complete Book of Locks and Locksmithing".
And don't forget what the law and regulations expect from you
.

[Safecrackin Sammy]

Before you make that jump you may want to see if you can work part time for a local shop to gain some experience. Check into local associations for both the knowledge and the networking benefits.

With little to no industry experience, it would be hard to go from novice to make a living out of it. Its a good idea, but make a plan to be successful.

Good luck.

[billdeserthills]

As a locksmith in a small town, picking locks is only about 10% of my income. Most of my calls are for rekeying homes/businesses and to do that you'll need a universal pin kit & a key machine and some blanks. Today I installed a couple of cam locks into a custom file cabinet--that took me 2 hours and I charged $250--I needed a couple of cam locks & some metal to make a couple of strikes from along with all the tools I used

If you want to make $$$ as a locksmith you'll need advertising to pull in jobs. That means you'll need a website along with a Search Engine Optimization (seo) to make sure your website gets seen by your new clients but that will be after you buy a set of auto opening tools, if you are going to be unlocking cars (I quit opening cars 3 years ago)

[ricksconnected]

sammy

thanks so much for your reply.
thats what im trying to do is set a plan and make the transition over a period of time
and with careful planning.

[ricksconnected]

thank you too bill for your reply. you got the time to allow me to pick your brain a bit?
no pun intended of course lol.

[ricksconnected]

as well thank you martin.
i cant find any locksmith anything in my area at all.
had hope that somebody here might be able to help
or even know where to look for my area that im not
thinking of.
i was thinking for now just doing residential and auto entry. rekey homes
re pinning locks to match, making residential keys, things like this just
to get my feet wet and to pick a direction and work a plan.

im looking right now on the book you mentioned.
found it free on PDF but cant seem to download it.

seems a lot of folks are getting away from auto entry. im wondering why.
.

[billdeserthills]

thank you too bill for your reply. you got the time to allow me to pick your brain a bit?
no pun intended of course lol.

I don't mind helping you out

[ricksconnected]

PM sent to you.

if anybody else has an idea of comment please throw it out there.

[GWiens2001]

Be sure that you have insurance that covers any errors that you will make.

I don’t say “may make”, because a beginner will make mistakes. Even experienced people make mistakes. So be sure you are financially protected.

There are ways of becoming incorporated for surprisingly little money. A corporation is not a big building. It is a piece of paper. But that piece of paper can keep you from losing your home.

Gordon

[ricksconnected]

GW.

thank you for your reply.
good points. accidents do happen. my current field we see them daily.
what type insurance would you suggest me look into?
any ideas as to what a 1 man operation should expect to pay roughly?

[billdeserthills]

GW.

thank you for your reply.
good points. accidents do happen. my current field we see them daily.
what type insurance would you suggest me look into?
any ideas as to what a 1 man operation should expect to pay roughly?

My business liability package costs me $500/year many homeowner associations want to see 100,00/300,000 coverage for my auto insurance as well

[ricksconnected]

GW.

thank you for your reply.
good points. accidents do happen. my current field we see them daily.
what type insurance would you suggest me look into?
any ideas as to what a 1 man operation should expect to pay roughly?

My business liability package costs me $500/year many homeowner associations want to see 100,00/300,000 coverage for my auto insurance as well

looking at this right now. TY
keep it coming folks. i need these replies and thoughts.


still no Atlanta guys yet?