I think I can speak for most locksmiths I know, that When we get asked “is it possible to get some keys and make this old lock work ?” in our head were thinking Dam right and already looking forward thinking what time we have spare and what work needs to be done on the lock before the conversations even finished.

This Particular Lock had lots of problems going on which required parts to be hand made from Warding bridges, key guides, escutcheons, new keys etc, We even made the rivets just as the locksmith over 100 years ago would have done.

I originally posted this on my business facebook page last year but now im getting a bit more web savvy and with the times, I thought it would be nice to put this job on my web page with some more detailed pictures, Customers who know me, know how much I love being a locksmith and if I can share some of my experiences, I can share in my passion. Thank you all for looking

Im not an historian but I would estimate the lock to be from the Tudor period. It has many features leading me to believe it is of this era. The plate décor style moulded over/around the wood would suggest this. along with the hand made rivets and plates and chapel itself has many distinctive tell tale signs.

It was important to get the guides & bridging accurate as this facilitates the key going in perfectly level.

This is also relevant for todays modern day locks.
If your key goes in at an angle or your having to jiggle it to lock or unlock then there’s a slight issue and will result in wear and the lock will end up needing replacing or could fail in the locked position.

After the main repair work was complete inside the lock it is now hidden again in its wooden surround for hopefully a further 100+ years.

Another nice touch was the fact Nik from (Wessex always find what you need Locksmiths) had some original (NOT CAST) keys which needed to be hand filed to suite and lightly cleaned to allow two lovely working keys.
So a full restoration with bonus of original period keys. Cheers Nik

Working on the lock at our own pace with no real pressure on time made this a pleasure to do and took 3 weeks to complete doing 20-30 mins here and there. The owner was really pleased with the outcome and I sent him over some restoration photos for the Chapels history books.
And Who knows there might still be humans working in a 100 years or so and they will be able to see how we did stuff in the 21st century.