How I got rid of my mother

My mom came down in the middle of March to see her grand kids (and not just mine anymore!), and while stopping by my house before heading home to Flagstaff locked her keys in the car. It was a Sunday so I was reluctant to call a locksmith, both for their Weekend rates as well as requiring someone to work on the Sabbath.

She had mentioned just staying the night and getting it taken care of in the morning, but I would have none of it :-D. I was determined to get rid of my mom get into that car! I couldn't find any metal bands they use for holding 2x4s together on pallets, so I tried the trusty old coat hanger (though it was a trick to find a wire one, most of mine are plastic). I cut a little wedge out of wood to hold the window seal away from the glass like the one I used in the pro slim jim kit I have used in the past. No luck, the coat hanger didn't have enough rigidity to get a feel for the part I was looking for and after half an hour at it I gave up on that approach. Back when I had my Blazer (and frequently locked myself out) I kept a coat hanger between the leaf springs and could jimmy the door in under a minute! Not sure if I should feel smart for getting in or dumb for locking myself out so often (once out in the desert with Jenny, had to search for 20 minutes to find a coat hanger, thus the truck mounted one :-S).

There was a glimmer of hope still, as the key was on the seat. I remember reading about the diebold voting machines easily broken into by filing the key they had a picture of on their website, so I figured I would give it a shot.

I took a picture of the key and got a blank at the Home Depot (yeah, I know, shopping on Sunday...oxen in mire, trust me...). Out came my files, the one for my chainsaw was the fastest with the triangular one finishing up the edges.



It took a few attempts to get it open, filing, trying it, more filing. I started on one side of the key because most lock tumbers are only on one side of the lock mechanism, but filed the other side after I thought I had filed the first too much. I don't know which side I eventually got working because it only worked one way when I got it, and also only opened the worn mechanism in the driver's door.


Hopefully you won't have to do this one yourself, it got kind of frustrating jiggling the key around without it turning the lock.