Anatomy of a Key

Article Written By: kathybreneman09

When a locksmith works on a lock they are required to understand both how the lock works and how the key works with that lock. Fortunately a key is often simple to understand and they all have a basically similar anatomy to work with. Casual examination of any key will yield roughly the same parts and most of us have stereotypical images of keys in our mind.

We all know what a key looks like and most look similar, but for a locksmith it goes deeper than that and recognises that there are in fact many different types of keys and locks and that this is a result of how those common factors are combined and assembled.

The first and most obvious part of a key is the handle. This is the part of the key you hold when you insert it into the lock and when you twist it. Already though these can tell a locksmith different things. For example a very plain or very ornate handle might suggest that it is a skeleton key. Some key handles also have grips to prevent from slipping and to make it easier to get traction to create torque. The majority handles are round or square.

Depending on the kind of key, there will then be a neck or a blade coming directly out of the key's handle. The blade is the part that contains the teeth or ridges that interact with the locking mechanism. However on certain keys this will come out of the handle rather than directly out of the key, which allows to be inserted further into the door making it marginally harder to pick.

Those keys with long necks are usually either church or lever keys. The former is a mostly obsolete type of key used mainly in old churches and gates, while the latter it is used more regularly for internal locks in homes – toilet and bedroom doors etc – providing a more complete security solution but not as much as other types.

The blade then is the crucial aspect of the key, which contains the teeth designed to interact with the tiny pins in most lock mechanisms. These then push the pins out of the chamber allowing the lock to be turned unhindered and must be the perfect height, shape and number to interact with those pins meaning there are hundreds of possible combinations.

These teeth are sometimes included in the blade in different ways – for example they can be on either side of the blade to create double edged or even on four sides to create a crucifix key. In a sidewinder key however, the pins are actually embedded into a groove along the inside of the blade.

This describes most keys and how they are assembled, but a locksmith can now also deal with other types of keys that are keys only in the sense that they provide access but are otherwise anatomically completely different, such as PIN codes and swipe cards.

About the Author

A locksmith can deal with any type of key, so no matter what your problem is they should be able to help. Follow the link for Seattle locksmith services including emergency locksmith Seattle.

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