Sometimes keys can be stuck in the lock. Here's what to do:
Occasionally, keys can stick in the locks for different reasons.
To help remove the "stuck key" try the following:
- Spray dry graphite powder into the key hole. This can loosen up sediment or other debris that may be trapping the key. DO NOT USE A LIQUID SOLVENT (like WD-40) which could damage the cylinder's internal components.
- Find something like a display peg, screwdriver, or other sturdy object that can be inserted through the keyhole in the key bow to form a t-handle.
- Be sure not to use another key - too much pressure may bend/break both keys.
- Gently use the leverage from the inserted object to try to see-saw the key up and down, back and forth. Do not try to turn the key, just try to work it up and down
- Pinch underneath at the bottom of the key bow and slowly scissor the key out chamber by chamber. This can loosen tension on the pins and springs releasing the key.
- If the key can be retracted and only partially trapped, using the same t-handle, try to rapidly inserting/removing and/or up and down scissoring of the key, otherwise known as “raking”. Occasionally a pin can flip inside a chamber, trapping the key, and this rapid action can reset the pin to the correct alignment.
- If neither of these approaches work, & if the key can be partially removed, pull it back as far as it will go and gently strike the back of the key with a sturdy object as if it were a nail being hammered into the lock. Be sure to hit the back straight into the lock to avoid the key being bent/broken.