High security · Brampton
High Security Locks
A colleague showed you a video of a lock being opened with a bump key in a few seconds.
In plain words
High security locks are cylinders and deadbolts designed to defeat the methods used against ordinary doors. Inside the cylinder a second locking mechanism, usually a sidebar released by finger pins or rotating pins, has to be satisfied at the same time as the normal pin stack, which is what stops picking and bumping. Hardened steel inserts stop drill bits. The bolt is thicker and carries a hardened pin against sawing, and a reinforced strike ties the lock into the wall framing. Just as important, the key is cut on a patented blank that only an authorised person can have copied, so your key count stays known.
How the visit goesThe pharmacy stockroom, the server closet or the cash office is protected by the same ordinary cylinder as the staff washroom. One lost key on a lanyard would open all of them.
High Security Locks
How the visit goes
The bolt, the pocket and the strike
A deadbolt is only as good as how far it reaches and what it reaches into. The locksmith measures the throw of the bolt with the door closed, checks that it fully extends without the door being lifted or pushed, and looks at the pocket it enters in the jamb. A shallow pocket, a stamped strike plate and screws barely longer than a thumbnail are the usual finding on a builder-grade door. Then the frame is examined for splits, soft wood and gaps behind the jamb, since a kick lands on the strike, not on the cylinder.
Heavy hardware for commercial doors
Storefront, warehouse and office doors take heavy-duty lock bodies rather than residential deadbolts. Depending on the door, that means a commercial deadbolt or mortise lock with a hardened cylinder guard, a free-spinning collar that defeats wrenches, and a laboratory-rated cylinder inside it. Narrow aluminium doors get a deadlock made for their stile. The locksmith fits the lock to the existing preparation where it is standard, adjusts the strike in the frame, and confirms that any exit device or closer on the same door still works exactly as before so people leave easily while the door holds from outside.
Proof for insurers, landlords and tenants
You leave with a written record of what was fitted: the cylinder type and its rating, the deadbolt grade, the strike and screws installed, and the key system registration. Insurers sometimes ask for this when a policy specifies stronger hardware, landlords keep it in the property file, and tenants have something to hand back at move-out. It also helps the next locksmith, who can see at a glance what keyway and format the doors carry. Keep the invoice and the key control documents together; they are the paperwork side of a physical upgrade.
High Security Locks
In the van
Pinning kit and plug follower
Wrap-around door reinforcer
High-security cylinder
Graded deadbolt with hardened bolt
Reinforced strike plate
High Security Locks
What affects the quote
Distance and access
A rural property, a high-rise with loading dock rules or a site that must be visited outside trading hours affects travel and scheduling, and the quote says so plainly.
Mortise and older doors
An existing mortise pocket, a thick slab door or an unusual backset can mean a specific cylinder or an adapted preparation, which takes longer than a standard bore.
Key control level
A patented keyway with authorisation cards covers most homes. Geographically exclusive keyways and signature-controlled systems for businesses carry registration and administration that show in the quote.
What to have ready
- How many keys exist today, and are you confident of that number?
- For a business, who should be allowed to authorise new keys?
- What does the door protect, and what prompted you to think about upgrading now?
High Security Locks: questions
QuestionsDo high security locks need special maintenance?
Only light care. Use the dry lubricant the locksmith recommends once or twice a year, never oil, which gathers grit around the finger pins and sidebar. Keep the keyway free of debris and insert the key fully before turning. In winter, warm a resisting key in your hand or use a de-icer rather than forcing it. Check hinge and strike screws each season so the door stays aligned. Treated this way the cylinder lasts for decades.
What are the hardware grades I see on the packaging?
Locks and deadbolts are tested against industry standards for security, durability and finish. Commercial hardware is graded 1, 2 or 3 with grade 1 the highest. Residential hardware carries a letter label for each of the three categories, from C for good through B to A for the top level. Security tests include hammer blows and pulling on the lock; durability covers cycle life and seasonal misalignment; finish covers salt, humidity and scratching. Your locksmith translates the label for your door.
How do I order extra keys later?
An authorised person contacts the locksmith who holds your system, quotes the system reference, and the key is cut from code and numbered into the register. Some systems use a physical authorisation card, others an online validation, and business systems often require a signature that matches one on file. The key is collected or delivered, and the record shows the new total. It is deliberately not something a stranger with your key can do.
