Manhattan locksmith since 1988
New keys, same locks. We open the cylinder, change the pins, and cut you a fresh set. Every key that used to work stops working. Most apartments are finished in a single visit, at your door or over our counter.
The short version
Nine times out of ten in a Manhattan apartment, rekeying is the right call. The hardware on your door is usually fine. The problem is who has a key to it.
See all locksmith servicesRekeying
We take out the cylinder, swap the small pins inside to a new combination, and cut keys to match. The lock, the face plate, and the door stay exactly as they are. Old keys go dead the moment we are done.
Replacing
Sometimes the cylinder is worn, the key drags, the deadbolt was forced, or you want to move up to a high-security cylinder with keys that cannot be copied at a hardware store. Then we install new hardware instead.
When people call us
If you cannot name every person holding a working key, the lock is not really yours yet.
The last tenant, their friends, and whoever borrowed a key over the years may still have one. Rekeying on day one settles it.
Keys get copied casually. When someone leaves the lease, changing the pins is cleaner than asking for the set back.
A bag taken on the subway often holds a key and an address. Rekeying makes the missing key useless.
Quiet, quick, no drama at the door. We rekey the apartment and hand you the only working keys.
Renovations, painters, movers, a cleaner, a dog walker. After the work is finished, reset the lock to a key only you hold.
Landlords and managing agents rekey between tenants. We handle single units and whole floors, one key per door or one key for all.
Built for NYC doors
Manhattan apartment doors are their own category. A tenement door might carry a mortise cylinder that has been in the plate since before the war, a Segal jimmy-proof deadbolt on the inside, and a high-security cylinder added by the last tenant. We keep pins, blanks, and the right tools for all of it.
35+ years of cutting keys and pinning cylinders for Basics Plus customers in Manhattan.
How it goes
Come to the counter with the cylinder in your hand, or have a locksmith come to your door. Either way you leave with new keys the same day in most cases.
Find our three shopsTell us the address, how many locks, and what brand is on the door if you know it. Not sure? Send a photo of the lock face and we will work it out.
A licensed locksmith works at your door, or you unscrew the cylinder and bring it to any of our three Manhattan shops: Union Square, Upper West Side, or Midtown East.
We repin the cylinder, cut and test your keys in the lock, and hand you the set. Need extras for a partner, a parent, or the super? We cut them on the spot.
Questions we get daily
Still unsure what your door needs? Call and describe it, or stop by the counter with the cylinder.
Check your lease or house rules. Many Manhattan buildings, especially co-ops and condos, require the super or managing agent to keep a copy of the key for emergency access, and some ask to be notified before hardware is touched. The lock stays in place when we rekey, so the usual requirement is simply handing a new copy to the building. We cut that copy while we are there.
A standard apartment cylinder is quick work. Most single-door jobs are finished in one visit, and counter jobs are often done while you wait. More locks, stiff pre-war hardware, or a high-security system can add time, and we tell you what to expect when you call.
Yes. Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, and other restricted-key cylinders are rekeyable. Those systems control who may order keys, so bring your key card or ownership paperwork if your system uses one. If you do not have it, call us first and we will tell you what the manufacturer requires.
Usually, yes. If the cylinders accept the same keyway, we pin them to one combination so a single key opens the top lock, the bottom lock, and often the gate or mailbox. Mixed brands sometimes need one cylinder swapped to match the rest. We check the hardware before we quote the work.
If the lock turns smoothly and the building is happy with it, rekey. Replace when the cylinder is worn or damaged, when the door was forced, or when you want a high-security key that cannot be copied at a hardware counter. We look at the door and give you the honest answer, including when the cheaper option is the right one.
Call the shop and talk to a person, book a time online, or send us the details and we will come back with a quote. Emergency lockouts are handled 24/7.
24/7 for emergency inquiries
