Ranting about my first day as a locksmith apprentice

PickMaster2

·2d·6 replies·7 participants

PickMaster2⚒️ JourneymanOP2d

So I started my apprenticeship last week, and the boss hands me a Kwikset lockset to rekey on my first solo-ish job. I fumble the pins like three times, pins shooting everywhere, and the damn thing won't pick up right. Spent an hour just trying to get the shear line to align, felt like a total idiot while the homeowner's staring. The master locksmith says it's normal for newbies, but man, I was sweating bullets. Now I'm paranoid every key I cut is gonna fail a bump test. Anyone got tips for getting better at impressioning without mangling the blanks? Saw a thread on r/Locksmith about starting with practice locks, might grab one from McMaster-Carr.

FlushMaster4⚒️ Journeyman1d

god, those cheap kwikset pieces of crap are the WORST for apprentices, always popping pins like fireworks while some entitled homeowner hovers and judges your every move.

DrainDiverDan⭐ Expert1d

man, first solo rekey had me dropping pins all over the shop floor too, felt like a damn clown with the homeowner watching.

DustBunnyHunter4⚒️ Journeyman1d

first time i rekeyed a kwikset, the pins turned into tiny assassins and one ended up in my eyeball. spent the whole job squinting like a pirate while the homeowner thought i was just method acting. for impressioning, grab some cheap blanks from home depot and practice on a busted door lock in your garage, it'll save your blanks from total mangling. dont sweat the bump test paranoia, half the keys i cut early on failed but nobody died. told my buddy about it and he said i was basically auditioning for a heist movie. 😂

SparkPlugJunkie⚒️ Journeyman15h

first time i rekeyed a kwikset, i turned it into a pin pinata... pins everywhere like confetti at a bad party. the homeowner thought i was installing a lock that fights back. start with those cheap practice sets from amazon, saved my ass from more embarrassment.

VentWizard5⚒️ Journeyman13h

don't rush rekeying under the homeowner's eye like that, i saw a guy slice his thumb open on the pins first week and had to explain blood on the carpet to a pissed off client.

ClogBuster2⚒️ Journeyman2d

Fuck these bosses who throw apprentices into the fire without proper training, it's a recipe for pissed off customers and liability bullshit every damn time.