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A few days ago the locksmith in Greenwich had a customer ask if they would make him up a key for an old horizontal 2-lever sashlock. There were no keys in existence.

This is an area of the Locksmith companies business that they really enjoy, and get a great deal of satisfaction from, so the challenge was duly accepted. The following is a short tutorial for those who want to know more about this and the process required.

First find a blank key of the correct gauge, making sure that the flag is large enough. Depending on which blank you select, you may need to remove a fair amount from the height (and possibly the width) of the flag.

The important thing is that the shaft fits snugly. Try and choose a key with a flag close to the size of the keyway, to avoid unnecessary filing, and if possible use a brass one as this is much quicker to file.

Measuring the height of the keyway can help. I decided not to use the 'Universal' blanks in the photo below, and went for Era blanks, which were a closer fit, and brass.

A little hand-filing was required in order to narrow-down the width of the flag, and also the height so that the bolt talon was picked up.

This particular lock had some warding around the keyway, so although the flag was within the confines of the lockcase, at this stage it was still not possible to turn the key.

The follower is also in the incorrect position. Rectified! Note how far the follower needs to be turned before the arms touch the plate which withdraws the latch. What with this, and a bent bolt. We at the locksmith in Greenwich have a feeling the Customer 'had a go' with this lock before we got to it!
 
The first stage is to get the key to turn smoothly in both directions from both sides and throw the bolt back and forth. Open the case up, and remove the levers.

Opening the case up and putting the key in the keyway, makes it more apparent which sections of the flag needed removing to allow the key to rotate and clear the warding. I carefully filed away a little at a time, until the key rotated.

Important points to remember are to try and file away only what is needed to allow the key to turn smoothly, filing more away will weaken the key unnecessarily. Try to keep the cuts symmetrical and always file and check frequently.

It's easy to file away, but harder ( impossible) to put metal back. Once this had been carried out correctly, the key should rotate fully from both sides in both directions. Next I put one of the levers back in place, pushing it 'home' onto its pillar, with the spring correctly in place.

It doesn't matter which one in this case, because no keys existed. Screw the lockcase back together, and carefully try the key from one side, but don't force it.

This particular lock had a blanket slot which is a big help as it allows you to see how high each lever needs to be lifted to allow the bolt stump to pass through the gate.

If there is no blanket slot, the same effect may be achieved by removing the cap from the lockcase, and turning the key to gauge how much height needs removing in order that the lever reach the correct height. Cheers from the locksmith .n Greenwich shop.

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