Security is their business

PALMER -- We've all been there. In a rush to go somewhere, or in the midst of a conversation and distracted, at one time or another, most people have felt the sickening realization a second too late of being on the wrong side of a locked door.

Enter Melton Jones and Roy Hoskins. They run Valley Locksmiths, one of numerous locksmithing businesses for whom security is more than a protective measure -- it's their bottom line. Jones has owned and operated the business in downtown Palmer for more than 20 years, and Hoskins has been locksmithing for him for nearly as long. They operate out of a portion of the building that once housed the Matanuska Bank -- fittingly, the portion of the building that still holds the safe where night deposits were dropped, along with the bank vault.

Business has changed over the years, Jones said, and many of those changes have to do with new technology. Pin-tumbler ignitions have been replaced with thin metal wafers and keys containing computer chips. Multiple-component key systems involving several levels of key access were once developed through complex mathematical equations.

Now, with just a few keystrokes, Jones can develop a key system for a large business with multiple levels of security. Although one might expect that most of the money in the locksmithing business is made from going out on calls for vehicle lock-outs, Jones said about 80 percent of his business comes from keying or re-keying homes and businesses.

"When you buy a home … you don't know who has a key," Jones said. Plumbers, electricians, contractors, along with previous owners and their family members, in the case of older homes, could have copies of house keys, he said. Depending on the quality of lock, in many cases, it's cheaper to have a home re-keyed than to purchase new locks.

Jones said the same situation occurs when employees leave businesses they serve. In some cases, he said, it means he or Hoskins visit the business regularly. Getting into locked vehicles has changed considerably in the last 20 years as well, Jones said.

"Slim Jims are no more," he said. New wiring systems, shields encasing the bell crank and other updates have virtually rendered Slim Jims, or the thin metal tool once used to unlock a vehicle, useless and even dangerous. "If you put a Slim Jim in your car and catch one of those wires, it screws up your whole computer system."

When that happens, Jones said, it may mean the car must be towed to the auto shop and repaired before it's able to be driven -- that's why police officers no longer open vehicles for stranded motorists.

And forget about trying to use a hanger, Hoskins said. In addition to not being strong enough to be of use in the first place, they could cause more damage than good. Today's systems, Jones said, are much more complex -- so much so that dealerships send out yearly updates to locksmiths with information about how to safely open new-model vehicles.

Although new technology -- cars that lock automatically after being started -- has added a few customers here and there, most of their lock-outs are still for much the same reasons -- people hurrying from place to place who momentarily forget to pay attention to what they're doing. Most lockouts, Hoskins said, happen during work hours, the hours when people are busiest.

During the years, Hoskins and Jones have seen a few unusual situations -- a car that had to be unlocked several times because the small, excited dog inside stepped repeatedly on the automatic lock button, a new car owner who inadvertently flushed the only key down the toilet, a woman who stopped by the store to have a set of keys made to replace a lost set, only to come back 10 minutes later, having lost the new set already.

And after 20 years in the business, Jones and Hoskins had a few tips for homeowners and vehicle owners:

Always keep a copy of the original key for duplication -- a copy of a copy is never as true as the original.

Deadbolts, lights and noise are the best security items on the market.

Be sure deadbolt plates and door hinges are anchored with three-inch screws, long enough to penetrate the door casing and surrounding two-by-fours.

Keep a light key chain. Newer ignition systems use a lightweight wafer system instead of the traditional pin-tumbler system, and a heavy key chain can cut the life of new systems in half.