How-to: match ignition lock and other locks to any key (even with lost key!!!)

[TobiasM]

This should help anybody of this board who wants/needs to match keys to a door/trunk/ignition-lock of your Challenger/Barracuda, even if you don`t have a (proper) key.

This tutorial will come in 2 parts:

1st part is to apply on door and trunk-locks of our cars. That part is text only and I did originally post that content at my restoration-thread of "shaky SHAKER"...but I thing this specific lock-information is quite hidden there, so I opened this new "how-to"-thread you are reading in this moment.

2nd part does apply to the ignition-lock, does contain photos and will be posted immediately after this 1st part.

So here we go:

- to start you need to take out your door/trunk-lock
- if the key to your lock is lost, just get any USED (=cut) key of the proper style for our cars, that you intend to use in the end for this particular lock.
- if you want to match the trunk-lock to your ignition-lock, get your ignition key
- put your key aside, you'll need it later
- with the lock in your hands, put a bowl or sth. alike under it, cause small parts from the inside might otherwise get lost
- then pry off gently the silver metal-cover atop of the lock so you can reuse it and be carefull not to loose anything under it!
- now you can see 5 barrels/bores,
-each barrel/bore contains 3 parts, namely

a) atop a small spring,

b) below in the middle a small metal-piece ("driver") which`s top-diameter is smaller than its bottom-diameter, cause the top slides into the spring, and finally

c) down at the bottom another small metal-pice ("tumbler") in a "bullet-shape", with the hemispherical side pointing downwards to the key and the flat side sitting butt-to-butt with the larger-diameter-end of b).

- you`ll find that the metal-parts b) and c) have different lengths...mine were 2 short, 2 long and 1 medium of each b) and c).
- to make the lock work with any CUT mopar-key of the correct style for our cars, you have to take a look at your keys profile
- important are the "valleys" in your keys profile...there will as many valleys in your key as there are barrels in your lock =>5
- the basic principle of the lock is, that the metal-piece c) sinks into its counterpart-valley in the keys profile. If this is the case in all 5 valleys, the key can turn the lock
- you have got to mix and match your metal-parts c) accordingly to your keys valleys
- depending on what configuration the metal-parts c) of your lock on the one hand, and what your keys valleys on the other hand are, you might not be able to mix-and-match ALL 5 barrels. If so, just leave the non-matchable barrels out...I could mix-and-match 4 of the 5, so I just left the 5th one out...by this your losing a little security, because only 4 of 5 barriers working, but it will technically work
- after you mixed and matched metal-parts c), put your lock back together
- important here: the metal-parts b) need to be of opposite length than metal-parts c), with metal-part c) being the dominating one! So if c) is short, b) must be long and other way round. If c) is medium-length, b) needs to be the same!
- If you didn`t use a metal part c) in a certain barrel/bore, their must not be any parts b) or a) put into that certain barrel/bore, of course!!!
- put part a) atop of the smaller-diameter-end of metal-part b)
- finally slightly bend the latches of the metal-cover-plate back in their original position and last but not least re-attach the metal-cover-plate atop of the lock
=> Mission accomplished!

[Cuda Cody]

Thank you for the tips.  I've gotten lucky and my local locksmith does them for me for pretty cheap.  But this is good to know.   

[TobiasM]

Here is the 2nd part, which applies to the ignition lock.

I hope it is as usefull for you as it was for me to know that you can re-use your ignition lock even if you lost that key to it...didn`t find any info on this at youtube, so I figured out a solution myself.

At youtube you will find a very good tutorial from @cudacody as how to get your ignition lock out of the steering column first. I highly recommend Cody´s video!

To be able to match a key to the (keyless) iginition-lock, you need to have that lock in your hands, so this will be our starting point. For removal /installation watch the aforemetnioned video, please.

Ok, ignition lock, get ready for being used again:

- ignition lock is in your hands, no key inside the lock!
- the iginition lock also uses these 5 barrels-principle as the door-lock, but its housing is different, so opening it is more complicated,
- we want finally to get also under that silver metal-stripe/cover, where the 5 barrels hide
- with a small flat screwdriver (about 1/10th" or 3mm) pry off the locking-clamp, first prying at its end
- when a littlebit succesfull in prying that clamp some mm`s upwards, in its centre there shows a "window opening", which you can continue prying it off much more conveniantly end remove it completely
- when accomplished, now get rid of the 4 dimples/ditches that hold that silver metal-coverplate in place above the 5 barrels

[TobiasM]

continued:

- now put a bowl or sth. alike under your lock, before removing that silver locking-plate, to avoid small stuff getting lost
- then remove that silver cover-plate
- put all the small parts from under that plate into a bowl...you will find the same 5 sets (1 set per barrel) of small parts "a" spring, "b" driver and "c" tumbler as in the describtion of the lock of a door/trunk.
- mix and match the sets of a/b/c-smallparts to the key you want to use by following the instructions above of "door/trunk-lock"
- the ignition lock will work as a lock even without any of that 5 barrels filled with a/b/c-smallparts, due to the lever on the bottom of the ignition-lock, which only pops out with a key inside and then allows the lock to rotate. Without a key insertet, the lever stays inside the lock and it can not be turned.
- anyway I highly recommend using in addition to that lever at least 1 set of a/b/c-smallparts, because if you don`t, your key isn`t hold safely in your lock and can fall out and your steering may lock then...you don`t want a locked steering during driving!!!
- after mixing and matching the 1 to 5 sets of a/b/c-smallparts, installation is reverse of removal, including notching the lock-housing a bit atop of the cover-plate to secure this plate.a

[TobiasM]

Thank you for the tips.  I've gotten lucky and my local locksmith does them for me for pretty cheap.  But this is good to know.   

You`re very welcome, Cody! Hope I can contribute a little to this great board.

My solution saves time and money, as you don`t have to order parts...I know that new locks (with keys) can be purchased quite cheap at e.g. rockauto.com, but they definately don`t send you a key to a lock you already have but which is missing its key...also your locksmith usually doesn`t work this way: he will sell you a new "lock+key"-combo or of course will make a copy of an existing key.

Also there is a big gain in convenience, as you can match all your locks of your Cuda/Challenger, so that you only need the same one key for them..."oops, got the wrong key" was yesterday ;-)

Additionally in my case I wanted to keep that matte-finished bezel of the ignition lock, which I learned from your youtube-vids is a 1970-only-feature, as from 1971 up these were chromed and all aftermarkets are chromed, too...here I took a chance to stay original.

[Roadman]

            Awesome, thanks for sharing.   

[Cuda Cody]

Great tutorial!!!    

[MoparDave]

anyone doing this. Needs to make sure the driver as with the tumblers are different and need to be put in as a set. They are not interchangeable.

[MoparDave]

in addition to this. If you have an ignition cylinder and it is stamp with an EP#### or an original trunk cylinder stamped ES #### with a number. that is the actual key code. just need to find someone to cut a key.

[TobiasM]

Cool addtional info, Dave, thanks!

Your material/drawings show, that back in the day people were more into repairing/engineering than in todays "throw-away-and-buy-new-from-China"-society. I like repairing things...kind of smarter.

Ah, and I appreciate you are providing technical-terms for my "a/b/c"-smallparts ;-)

So it is

a) "spring" (surprise, surprise)

b) "driver"

c) "tumbler"

I will edit my posts with the proper technical terms!

[MoparDave]

Good Stuff.

[RUNCHARGER]

Great post: Keys that don't match is something I rectify soon after purchasing a new Mopar. It drives me buggy. I usually have enough parts-locks around to be able to make the doors match the ignition.

[Chryco Psycho]

There are 6 different lengths of bottom pins & drivers pins  there is some tolerance  but if the driver pin is too long you can rushe the spring or jam it so the key will not enter or exit the lock