Auto Locksmith & Car Keys Replacement Services
The introduction of transponder-equipped vehicles has shaken up the auto locksmith industry. Auto locksmiths in London are desperately trying to keep up with the new technology, but it keeps changing. It can be tricky figuring out which keys are and which are not enhanced electronically.
Smart keys or transponders are crucial gadgets for car security. They're a bit complicated, and you need advanced equipment in order to diagnose, modify or repair them. If you have been searching on Google for a “locksmith for cars near me” and need help with your smart key, we are here to help you! We have the know-how and necessary tools to do so, with the ability to access your vehicle's computer system to edit your key database. Our locksmith for auto can diagnose problems with key issues and fix them at the roadside. Dealing with immobilisers is no longer reserved for dealerships. Auto locksmith companies provide quicker, cheaper and better auto locksmith services as they can come to you using the same quality staff as dealers do. Carprogrammer is a company that is very dedicated to giving the best auto locksmith services throughout West London and Surrey or surrounding areas. We have a long list of loyal customers due to the high quality of services that we give to all our customers. We have skilled auto locksmiths in London and Surrey who make sure that they do not leave you with an auto locksmith problem that has not yet been addressed.
Car keys replacement
Car keys replacement can be handled in several different ways. You can go to the dealership, do it yourself, or call a locksmith for auto. Each one of these options has its own pros and cons. Dealerships will be the most expensive but are trustworthy. The do-it-yourself (DIY) option will be the cheapest, but it relies on your ability and the quality of the products you purchase. Locksmiths for auto offer a nice middle ground of price and trust. In addition to the skills that they have, auto locksmiths in London have clean backgrounds with no criminal records hence you can be sure that they would never do anything that will compromise your security in any way. At Car Programmer, we offer a wide range of car locksmith services including car keys replacement, car key cutting services, car programming, and more, hence you can be sure that you will never come to us and leave without any disappointment after failing to get the services that you need.
On top of that, we make sure that all these services are given with the highest possible level of service delivery so that none of our customers leaves us with any trace of disappointment after receiving sub-standard services. The best method for car keys replacement is to call your local auto locksmith. This protects you from unscrupulous third parties who sell faulty equipment and will have better pricing than the dealership. Consulting with an automotive locksmith takes out all of the guesswork and makes sure that the work is done right for a fair price.
Car Key Cutting Services
One of the most important pieces of equipment for any auto locksmith is a car key cutting or duplication machine for fast and efficient car keys replacement and car key cutting services. A good auto locksmith can also pick the lock by impression, which is the fastest way to fit a key. Another method is to remove the door lock or ignition and read the bitting numbers from the tumblers. There are several ways to cut car keys. Car key cutting services can be done with the use of an existing key, or it can be cut by code. The code can be procured by using the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number), by decoding a key, or even by decoding the ignition cylinder. The fastest way of car key cutting is to simply duplicate the key by using an existing key. The slowest method will be to decode the ignition cylinder. With that being said, experienced auto locksmiths in London will be able to do such a task very quickly. With no complications, this will only take minutes. If the key cutting is requested after the auto locksmith has arrived to service the vehicle, then they may need to find the appropriate key blank. If the blank is not the right dimensions, then the key will not work. By choosing a automotive locksmith to deliver their high-quality car key cutting services, you are getting experience, dedication, and craftsmanship. You also have all of the available knowledge of a security expert. This will allow you to get multiple services, all from the same professional. You will be able to get your car key cutting accomplished, and if you need a transponder or key fob programmed, this can be done altogether. The auto locksmith will also be able to tell you what you need. Having an experienced professional will give you some direction beyond the research you have put into your service request.
Emergency opening
Car opening is a lucrative part of an auto locksmithing job. To offer automotive locksmith services, we need plenty of expensive tools as well as several years of experience. Many locks are easy to impression or pick open. Our auto locksmiths in London can also gain entry through special techniques called emergency entry procedures. It may not seem like a good auto locksmithing practice to force a lock open. When you need a car lockout service, you need it now. Our mobile automotive locksmiths can be at your location in 15 to 30 minutes. This depends on a few external factors, such as how busy our technicians are with other customers at the time, the technician’s location in relation to you, how remote a location you are in, etc. There is no need to worry though, because we will be there to help no matter what. You can be sure that our technicians will arrive as soon as they can, and inform you of their estimated time of arrival before you fully commit to the service. A traditional car lockout takes approximately 5 minutes to remedy. After that, you will be back in your car and on your way to fun and excitement. If your car has more complex security than a standard vehicle, then the time needed to gain entry will adjust relative to the difficulty of the job. However, there is no need to worry, because our auto locksmiths will get you in as quick as possible without harming your vehicle.
A Short History of the Lock
Who Invented the Lock?
The earliest locks are no longer around, and there may be no written records of them. How likely it is for old locks to be found depends on the materials they were made from and on the climate and various geological conditions they have been subjected to over the years. There is evidence civilisations probably developed the lock independently of each other. The Egyptians and Greeks are credited with inventing the oldest known types of locks.
Egypt
The oldest known lock was found in 1842 in the ruins of Emperor Sargon 15 palace in
Khorsabad, Persia. The ancient Egyptian lock was dated to be about 4000 years old.
t relied on the same pin tumbler principle that is used by many of today's most
popular locks.
The Egyptian lock consisted of three basic parts: a wood cross beam, a vertical beam with tumblers, and a large wood key. The crossbeam ran horizontally across the inside of the door and was held in place by two vertically mounted wooden staples. Part of the length of the crossbeam was hollowed out, and the vertical beam intersected it along that hollowed out side. The vertical beam contained metal tumblers that locked the two pieces of wood together. Near the tumbler edge of the door there was a hole accessible from outside the door that was large enough for someone to insert the key and an arm. The spoon-shaped key wa about 14 inches to 2 feet long with pegs sting out of one end. After the key w inserted in the keyhole (or armhole, it was pushed into the hollowed out pan of the crossbeam until its pegs were aligned with their corresponding tumbler The right key and beam so the right key allowed all the tumblers to be lifted into a position between the crossbeam and vertical beam so that the pins no longer obstructed movement of the crossbeam. Then the crossbeam (bolt) could be pulled the open position.
Greece
The oldest known lock was found in 1842 in the ruins of Emperor Sargon 15 palace in Khorsabad, Persia. The ancient Egyptian lock was dated to be about 4000 years old. It relied on the same pin tumbler principle that is used by many of today's most popular locks.
The Egyptian lock consisted of three basic parts: a wood cross beam, a vertical beam with tumblers, and a large wood key. The crossbeam ran horizontally across the inside of the door and was held in place by two vertically mounted wooden staples. Part of the length of the crossbeam was hollowed out, and the vertical beam intersected it along that hollowed-out side. The vertical beam contained metal tumblers that locked the two pieces of wood together. Near the tumbler edge of the door, there was a hole accessible from outside the door that was large enough for someone to insert the key and an arm. The spoon-shaped key was about 14 inches to 2 feet long, with pegs sticking out of one end. After the key was inserted in the keyhole (or armhole, it was pushed into the hollowed-out pan of the crossbeam until its pegs were aligned with their corresponding tumbler. The right key allowed all the tumblers to be lifted into a position between the crossbeam and vertical beam so that the pins no longer obstruct the movement of the crossbeam. Then the crossbeam (bolt) could be pulled from the open position.
Rome
Like the Greeks, the Romans used notched bolt work, but they improved the lock design in many ways, such as by putting the bolt work in an iron case and using keys of iron or bronze. Because iron rusts and corrodes, few early Roman locks are in existence. But a lot of the keys are around. Often the keys were ornately designed to be worn as jewellery, either as finger rings or as necklaces using string (because togas didn't have pockets).
Two of the most important innovations of the Roman locks were the spring-loaded bolt and the use of wards on the case. The extensive commerce during the time of Julius Caesar led to a great demand for locks among the many wealthy merchants and politicians. The type of lock used by the Romans, the warded key locks, are also being used today in older homes. Because the locks provided mobile security, they were typically found in interior doors, such as closets and sometimes bedrooms.
Europe
During the Middle Ages, metal workers in England, Germany, and France continued to make warded locks with no significant security changes. They focused on making elaborate, ornately designed cases and keys. Locks became works of art. Keys were made that could move about a post and shift the position of a more able bar (the locking bolt). The first obstacles to the unauthorised use of the lock were internal wards. Medieval and Renaissance craftsmen improved the warded lock by using many interlocking wards and more complicated keys. But many of the wards could easily be bypassed. In France in 1767, the treatise The Art of the Locksmith was published; it described examples of the lever tumbler lock. The inventor of the lock is unknown. As locksmiths advanced, locks were designed with multiple levers, each of which had to be lifted and properly aligned before the bolt could move to the unlocked position.
In the fourteenth century, the locksmith's guilds came into prominence. They required journeymen locksmiths to create and submit a working lock and key to the guild before being accepted as a master locksmith The locks and keys weren't made to be installed but to be displayed in the guild hall. The guild's work resulted in some beautiful locks and keys. The problem with the locksmith guilds is that they gained too much control over locksmiths, including the regulation of techniques and prices. The guilds became corrupt and didn't encourage technological advances. Few significant security innovations were made because of the locksmiths' guilds. The innovations included things like false and hidden keyholes. A fish-shaped lock, for instance, might have the keyhole hidden behind a fin.
England
Little progress was made in lock security until the eighteenth century. Incentive was given in the form of cash awards and honours to those who could pick open newer and more complex locks. This resulted in more secure lock designs. At the forefront of lock designing were three Englishmen: Robert Barron, Joseph Bramah, and Jeremiah Chubb.
The first major improvement over warded locks was patented in England in 1778 by Robert Barron. He added the tumbler principle to wards for increased security. His double-acting lever tumbler lock was more secure than other locks during that time and remains today the basic design for lever tumbler locks. Like other lever tumbler locks, Barron's used wards. However, he also used a series of lever tumblers, each of which was acted upon by a separate step of the key. If any tumbler weren't raised to the right height by the key, its contact with a bolt stump would obstruct bolt movement (Fig. 1.5). Barron's lock corrected the shortcomings of earlier lever tumbler locks, which could easily be circumvented by any key or instrument that was enough to bypass the wards. Barron added up to six of these double-lever actions to his lock and thought it was virtually impossible to open it except by the proper key. He soon found out differently. Another Englishman, Joseph Bramah, wrote A Dissertation on the Construction of Locks, which exposed the many weaknesses of existing so-called theft-proof locks and pointed out that many of them could be picked by any good specialist or criminal with some training in locks and keys. Barron's lock had many good points but also revealed some major faults - the levers. Bramah admitted that when in the locked position, they gave away the lock's secret. The levers had uneven edges at the bottom; thus, a key coated with wax could be inserted into the lock and a new key could be made by filing where the wax had been pressed down or scraped away. Several tries could create a key that matched the lock. Bramah pointed out that the bottom edges of the levers showed exactly the depths to which the new key should be cut to dear the bolt.[1] Bramah suggested that the lever bottoms should be cut evenly. Then only a master locksmith should be able to open it.
Using those guidelines, Bramah patented a barrel-shaped lock in 1798 that employed multiple sliders around the lock that were to be aligned with corresponding notches around the barrel of its key. The notches on the key were of varying heights. When the right key was pushed into the lock, all the notches lined up with the sliders, allowing the barrel to rotate to the unlocked position. It was the first to use the rotating element in the lock itself (Fig. 16).
During this period, burglary was a major problem. After the Portsmouth, England, dockyard was burglarised in 1817, the British Crown offered a reward to anyone who could make an unpickable lock. A year later, Jeremiah Chubb patented his lock and won the prize money.
Jeremiah Chubb’s detector lock was a four-lever tumbler rim lock that used a barrel key. It had many improvements over Barron's. One of the improvements was a metal "curtain that fell across the keyhole when the mechanism began to turn, making the lock hard to pick. Chubb's lock also added a detector lever that indicated whether the lock had been tampered with. A pick or an improperly cut key would raise one of the levers too high for the bolt gate. The movement engaged a pin that locked the detector lever. The lever could be cleared by turning the correct key backwards and then forward.
Chubb lock got much attention. It was recorded that a convict who had been a lock maker was on board one of the prison ships at Portsmouth Dockyard and said he had easily picked open some of the best locks and that he could easily pick open Chubb’s detector lock. He was given one of the locks and all the tools that he asked for, including key blanks fitted to the drill pin of the lock. As an incentive to pick open the lock, Mr. Chubb offered the convict a reward of £100, and the government offered a free pardon if he succeeded. After trying for several months to pick the lock, he gave up. He said that Chubb's lock was the most secure lock he had ever met with and that it was impossible for anyone to pick or open it with false instruments. The lock was improved on by Jeremiah's brother, Charles Chubb, and Charles's son John Chubb in several ways, including the addition of two levers and false notches on the levers.
The lock was considered unpickable until it was picked open in 1851 at the International Industrial Exhibition in London by an American locksmith named Alfred C. Hobbs. At that event, Hobbs picked open both the Bramah and the Chubb locks in less than half an hour.​
