Locksmith

Locksmith

Josh-the-Locksmith

25 Years Experience

Austin, TX

Male, 46

I've been a locksmith since 1998. I did automotive residential & commercial work from 1998 to 2008. From 2008 to 2018, I did some residential, but mostly commercial work. I have been project managing & estimating since 2018. I used to locksmith in the Chicago area, now the Austin area.

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Last Answer on June 11, 2024

Best Rated

My wife has a 2015 Camaro, when she got the car the key worked fine but the fob wasn’t active. We ordered some fobs online, cut the keys- keys work fob programming failed. Local locksmith orders some key fobs, tried to program them. Same thing No fob

Asked by Jason about 5 years ago

That is strange. I haven’t done automotive work in 12 years, so unfortunately I can’t help. If you’ve already taken it to a locksmith, I would have to say the dealer would be your next option before wasting any more money on more fobs or locksmiths. Sounds like there is a bigger problem. Sometimes aftermarket fobs can be junk depending on where they are purchased, but I would bet the locksmith probably ordered from a respectable distributor.

I have a2003 crown Victoria I recently replaced my ignition and it came with two chipped keys how much would it cost to have a lock Smith come out and program my two keys with my new ignition

Asked by Michael2213 about 5 years ago

Locksmith pricing varies quite a bit by market. I can only guess $100 to $200? A locksmith should be able to quote you over the phone for that a pretty accurate price. If they give you some BS like “starts at $25” call someone else. There’s a lot of scammer locksmith services who hire subcontractors and they get paid by commission based on what they charge you.

Have you ever just had to break something to get in?

Asked by Whyatt about 5 years ago

Of course. We can't unlock everything. At some point, usually when the time spent trying to pick a lock outweighs the cost of drilling/breaking and replacing it; or if a lock has been designed to withstand manipulation, you’re only left with a couple options. Recommend the customer calls someone else of they don’t want you to break & replace something, ask if they can wait for a more experienced tech can come out, or allow us to break it and replace it at an additional cost. Usually they just want to get in, so we tactfully drill it open and replace the damaged parts.

If you where not a Locksmith what job could you see yourself doing

Asked by Question to all almost 5 years ago

I have been asking myself that for 20 years. I didn’t pursue this job, it basically fell in my lap. I said I would do it until I found something I really wanted to do. Still waiting...

Are the Jobstr guys still doing anything on this site or is it a abandoned project? I sent them a email and they said they read everything and NOTHING. I am worried once the last of you who actually still answer regularly once their gone this site is dead

Asked by Donnie almost 5 years ago

No idea, I never hear from them. Kind of just do this to help people out. I don’t even get any kickback by doing this.

I have an old entry handle for my front door that’s seen better days. I believe the brand is EZ-set. Finding a replacement that fits has become very difficult. Can you tell me what options I have and where to go to find the right one

Asked by khalilabuhamdeh@yahoo.com about 5 years ago

Well I would stay away from EZ Set, they're garbage. Apparently they have gotten to be harder to find as well. Assuming you're talking about a long pull handle with a thumb button, every model of every brand is a different length. I would go with Schlage or Kwikset. Much better quality. I I believe it's Schlage that makes them with an adjustable bottom post. That way you're not stuck having to find one that matches up perfectly, it will actually slide up and down to accommodate 1-2 inch differences. It should tell you the range it covers on the box. So measure your door from the center of the 2-1/8" hole to the center of the bottom hole. However, if you're replacing the deadbolt as well, EZ Set uses a Kwikset keyway, and Schlage uses a Schlage keyway. So you wouldn't be able to rekey it to your existing key, you would just have a separate key for your front door. Otherwise, you will have to find a Kwikset handle that matches close enough.

I want to buy a new lock for my RV front door and it has push buttons to open it but I have a universal key that goes to everything I was wondering if it can be deleted to fit my existing key https://www.rvlock.com/collections/frontpage/products/rvlo

Asked by Lauren about 4 years ago

For some reason that link didn’t open up a product. And since I don’t know what your existing key is, I would need to know that before I can even answer your question. Feel free to text me pictures or links- (737) 757-0004