12/02/2019
It's not all opening safes to the amazement of the small crowd that often gathers to "watch". Some times it's the lack-luster task of just dealing with a broken lock.
We now live in a 'disposable society'. "If it breaks, toss it on the scrap metal pile and sell them a new one." And, to be honest, at the cost of labor - and some parts, it often IS the most cost effective solution in the long run.
But sometimes - like on a Sunday evening - on a job an hour from home - you have to "make it work" so the customer can lock up for the night. At least until a replacement whatever can be ordered.
Yesterday I got to do something I don't get to do very often anymore. Good old fashioned "locksmithing"! :)
A small, obscure spring broke on what most people outside the industry still refer to as a "crash bar". (The correct term is "exit device". ) ;)
Unlike a standard door k**b or lever - that pretty much all fit into the same hole in the door, regardless of manufacturer, and you can just toss on a new one that you keep on the truck - exit devices are different from manufacturer to manufacturer. And they are not really "swapable". So it HAD TO be "fixed". At least temporarily.
I was able to disassemble it, re-bend the existing broken spring (without it breaking again), and get it to work - at least for now. And I'll go back later this week and replace the exit device. A new part would take several weeks to special order. And I doubt this repair would hold up that long.
Long story short, we got'er done!
But there was no fanfare of trumpets, or choir of angels singing at the end - like when opening a safe. I the eyes of the customer, there was no "magic" to see. Their door was "fixed" (for now). And all of the staff could go home at the end of the day. (I, on the other hand, was quite impressed that I was able to make it work.) ;)
This is what decades of experience buys.
:)
