r/Locksmith

Howdy. I own a tow company on the west coast where we only really have one locksmith. I’ve been in the industry for almost 27 years. They don’t do vehicle programmed keys etc. we really only get keys made for decent running vehicles that we’re going to sell. We get a lot of DUI and abandoned vehicles or vehicles that are in a light accident, but people take the keys. The “abandoned” vehicles are usually running vehicles but get parked on the street and left there. A lot of the time, they don’t want to bring us the keys after the fact.

We get a wide array of cars. Everything from 80’s-today… I’ve impressioned fords, older Toyotas, Hondas, etc. replaced ignitions, all the fun stuff.

What would you recommend for something like this where we’re just cutting and programming universal keys to get them running? Essentially AKL generation for some.

We do everything from ford, gm, Chevy, dodge, Honda, Toyota, Audi, bmw, VW, MBZ, etc.

As the title says, I want a deadbolt lock for a side entrance to my garage that has a keypad and allows for codes longer than 4 digits. It seems like it would be easy to find that detail about the number of digits in the access code but basically none of the manufacturers mention it in the basic description of the lock.

I was originally hoping to find an option in a Schlage brand only because I have another simple key lock on the house that I need to have re keyed anyway and I could then have all the locks easily matched up. Unfortunately from what I can tell all of Schlage's locks are 4 digit passcodes. At least from what I could tell. Whenever I try to find out it seems the only way to tell is by pulling up a lock on a major retailer site like Lowe's for instance and then pulling up the user manual for the lock and reading the programming instructions so it's a tedious process. But either way, all the Schlage locks I found are 4 digits.

I did, while searching, find a reddit post where someone asked a similar question when they were looking to have a lock for an escape room and they pointed to a Kwikset lock. After looking it does seem like Kwikset does have multiple locks that allow for up to 8 digit passcodes. So that is perfect. The only downside as I said was that the existing lock I have in the house is Schlage so it would make it more difficult to match keys to the new keypad locks I am looking to buy. It's not a complete deal breaker however. The Schlage lock in question is on a door I really don't need a key to if I have the side door setup with a keypad because of how the house is laid out. It would just be nice. (The Schlage lock key has been lost to time. It's a family house and no one seems to have the key for it)

Does anyone have any suggestions for a deadbolt lock fitting the description? Something with a decent security rating. I also do not want a smart lock (one with wifi and an app). I just prefer a code and a key backup. I'm not a smart device person.

Any links or information people could offer would be greatly appreciated. Thanks ahead of time.