barrel key replacement help

anniex5

I have a 10 year old German-made wardrobe/armoire that looks antique but isn’t. The key is missing and I’m having a hard time finding a replacement. The keyhole from top to bottom is 1 in. long; The circular part of the top part of the keyhole is ½ in. across; the pin inside is closer to 4/16 than 3/16……seems like all I can find is something in 3/16 sizes. Any advice on where I can look? Thanks!

Alan Morgan

With a pipe key it is the internal diameter that is important, it needs to fit the centre pin (drill pin) and turn easily but not be too sloppy.

Sounds like a huge key compared to normal for this application, may be better to carefully take the lock off and post a picture.

Dean Nickel

Any locksmith can order blanks. It may take a while to get the size you need. We have several locksmiths on this site, myself included. But I agree that if you take a picture it might help us help you better.

anniex5

HAHA…..problem solved! We finally decided to unscrew and pry the top of the cabinet off….fortunately the custom paint job held up well with no obvious damage. Anyway, lo and behold, we found the key….taped to the inside of the locked door! We just moved back to the states from overseas, and I can’t for the life of me figure out how they managed to secure the key to the INSIDE of the cabinet….and still lock the door! Either way, I have my key back! Thanks for your input.

Dean Nickel

Now do yourself a favor. Take a SCAN of the key. This way you have something to hand to a locksmith to make a key from. A good locksmith should be able to produce a key by looking at it. If you keep a scan of the key then you never loose all the keys… you have the picture of it. I have been faxed keys by someone that had left for a month and then made them at our shop for someone that was still there and needed the key.