Pesky door lock replacement? rekey?

[gdizzle]

66 dodge dart 225. PO never locked it so did not have door keys. he did have ignition key and trunk key. So I bought the LockSmart replacement, worked great on driver door. Tried passenger door and found out that the door is not original to car. And that it is an older door like 65 or earlier. So new lock wont fit. So i removed the old lock thinking I could rekey it, and for the life of me I can not figure out how to open it up? Were these not able to be rekeyed? The outer flange spins, but appear to be machine-pressed on, removing it would ruin it. There is no access to the inner workings of the lock from the outside.

Now I realize I can use the new lock if I ream out the hole and make it fit, which I suppose I could do. But what bothers me more, is the car was painted with the lock in place, so with the new smaller lock there will be 1/4in white around it, and I dont want to repaint the door just for that.

Currently I can unlock/ lock the door from inside. I would like to be able to lock/unlock it with a key from the outside. The picture is showing the old lock I removed from driver door, and the old lock from the passenger door. The larger one on right is the lock in question.

 

[65 Dartman]

The little rectangular thin plate covering the pins and springs can be removed. Use a really thin screwdriver or similar to work it loose. Once rekeyed you'll find that the plate doesn't exactly fit tight anymore. If you can't get the plate to stay, use a small hose clamp or something along those lines to secure it. That lock was last used in 65

 

[AJ/FormS]

The one without the plate looks like a glove box lock?
You need to use the type with the plate, cuz it has the receiver slot for the retainer clip

 

[slantsixdan]

If I were you I'd go through the one-time hassle of enlarging the door holes (per this thread) to accept the '66-up lock cylinders, which are a great deal easier and less expensive to buy and rekey.

 

[AJ/FormS]

So guys, going back to post #1,pic2; am I to understand that the one without the plate is a true 65 and older lock? the one I mistakenly thought looked like a GB lock?

 

[gdizzle]

sorry to be unclear. pic #2, on left is the driver lock which is just for a frame of reference on the difference in size. The one on right is the passenger side, old style 1965, there is no plate to remove, it is sealed. It is not a glove box lock.

the 1st pic is the 1965 Lock placed upside down so you can see the back of it. That is the lock in question. I would like to open it up, but I cant see any way to do it without damaging the outer flange cover.

I also had one other thought, I could take it in to a locksmith and have them make a key for it. though that might be a very expensive option. Then I would have 5 keys for this Dart: 1 driver side, 1 ignition, 1 passenger side, 1 trunk, 1 gas. uggg

any ideas?

 

[AJ/FormS]

Got it. Thx. Will file that info away, in the back of my mind somewhere..... I shoulda known that, cuz I had two 65s in my life; a Valiant wagon and a FB Barracuda 383.Never paid attention to the door locks tho.....

 

[gdizzle]

Ok so sounds like it is basically impossible to recode the older style lock. So that means I need to enlarge the hole in the door. What is the best way to go about doing that?

 

[TrailBeast]

Ok so sounds like it is basically impossible to recode the older style lock. So that means I need to enlarge the hole in the door. What is the best way to go about doing that?

Mototool.

Well, a drill with a stone also but the mototool is easier to deal with and more accurate.

 

[slantsixdan]

Ok so sounds like it is basically impossible to recode the older style lock. So that means I need to enlarge the hole in the door. What is the best way to go about doing that?

Read that thread I linked earlier in this one.