Non-destructive entry first, always - and we re-key Schlage, Kwikset, and Baldwin locks on the spot while you watch
You get a price before we start. It does not change when we arrive. No surprises.
Before
AfterFast, Reliable Rekey Locks Across Barstow
If you just closed on a house off Barstow Road or took over a rental unit near Barstow Community College, the first thing you need is a rekey, not a hardware swap. A rekey changes the pins inside your existing lock cylinders so every old key stops working on the spot. In Barstow, a standard rekey runs $65 to $140 for the first cylinder and $25 to $45 for each additional cylinder keyed to the same key, and we quote that price on the phone before anyone gets in a van. Call (956) 275-7388 and you’ll speak to a live person who can give you a real number, not a range that shifts when the tech arrives.
Our technicians know Barstow’s housing stock cold. We know the difference between a 1950s bungalow near the Harvey House and a newer build west of I-15, and we know what happens when Route 66-era Kwikset cylinders get rekeyed by someone who doesn’t check the keyway wear before cutting new pins. That is the work we do every week here.
Why Ridley Locksmith & Security Is Barstow’s Preferred Rekey Locks Company
Ridley Locksmith & Security operates under the Garrison Partners family, and every tech on a Barstow call works to The Garrison Standard. That means a written price delivered before any work starts, a uniformed technician who has passed a background check, and a written guarantee on the repair for one full year. If the rekey fails inside that window, we return and make it right at no charge. That is the 365-Day Done Right Promise, and it is not a verbal assurance. It is a document you get with the invoice.
Barstow homeowners have dealt with bait pricing for years. A phone quote that sounds too clean often turns into a surprise when the tech sees the cylinder. We do not run that operation. Drew Kowalski, who leads Ridley Locksmith & Security, holds every tech to a phone-quoted price that matches the invoice. The price you get before dispatch is the price you pay when the work is done. No arrival surcharge, no “this cylinder needs replacement” upsell when it doesn’t.
Beyond the price, you should know exactly who is at your door. Our techs drive marked vehicles and carry identification. When they arrive in Barstow, they will identify themselves by name and company before touching the lock. If you want to verify, call our dispatch line and confirm the tech’s name on the work order. You have every right to that check, and we expect you to make it.
Keyed Alike in Barstow
Keyed Alike is one of the most common rekey jobs we handle in Barstow, and it means setting every lock cylinder on a property to turn on the same key. Instead of carrying three keys for the front door, back door, and garage side entry, you carry one. On older Barstow homes especially, where doors often carry mixed-brand hardware from decades of piecemeal repairs, getting everything keyed alike is the cleanest way to take control of your keys after a purchase or a tenant change.
We see this constantly in the neighborhoods north and south of Main Street. A house may have a Schlage deadbolt on the front door, an old Kwikset entry knob on the side door, and an aftermarket keyed handle on the garage. Those cylinders are not matched from the factory, so keying them alike means pulling each one down and repinning to the same cut. It also means checking wear on each keyway. A worn Kwikset keyway will not behave like a fresh Schlage, and forcing a single key across badly worn hardware is how you get a key that sticks or fails within months. The same key on mixed hardware costs $25 to $45 per additional cylinder in Barstow, on top of the first-cylinder fee.
Pinning to the Same Key
The work is precise and takes longer on older hardware, but it is almost always cheaper than replacing cylinders. We repin each cylinder using pins matched to the cuts on your new key. Because the key itself is new and the pins are new, the old keys cannot turn the plug. It is a smart, low-waste job that preserves the hardware you already have.
When to Key Alike
Keyed alike makes sense after a closing, after a tenant who didn’t return keys, or following any period where you don’t know how many copies of a key are floating around. Barstow rental property owners do this between tenants as standard practice, and we schedule those jobs during the week before move-in.
Rekey Deadbolt in Barstow
A Rekey Deadbolt in Barstow means repinning the deadbolt cylinder so it accepts a new key and rejects the old one, while the deadbolt hardware stays mounted in the door. Deadbolts are the workhorse of Barstow home security because the housing stock runs older and doors are solid wood more often than not. The deadbolt is the last line on the front door, and rekeying it is usually the first job we do on a new move-in.
Most deadbolts we see in Barstow are Schlage or Kwikset, and the job is straightforward: remove the cylinder from the deadbolt body, disassemble the plug, swap the pins to match a new key, reassemble, and test the turn. On a single deadbolt, expect $65 to $110. If you want the deadbolt keyed alike to the entry knob below it, that is one new key and a matched pinning across both cylinders, and the additional cylinder runs $25 to $45. The hardware stays on the door. You’re not buying new deadbolts unless the existing one is damaged or you want an upgrade.
Deadbolt After a Turnover
When a Barstow house changes hands, the deadbolt is the first cylinder we rekey. The seller’s agent, the buyer’s agent, the prior owner, the prior owner’s kids, a contractor who did punch-list work. Any of them may have had a key. Rekeying the deadbolt cuts that list off cleanly. No one who held an old key can turn it after we finish.
Worn Keyways on Older Deadbolts
A deadbolt that has been in service since the Eisenhower administration does not always accept new pins cleanly. The keyway may be so worn that the new pins sit loose, which leads to a key that jiggles and binds inside the first month. We check every deadbolt’s keyway before pinning. If the wear is too far gone for a reliable rekey, we tell you straight and give you a replacement price on the phone before any new hardware goes in. That is the only honest way to handle old Barstow locks.
Trusted Brands We Service in Barstow
We service the hardware already on Barstow doors, which means Schlage and Kwikset are the two brands our techs see most often by a wide margin. We also work on Medeco and Abloy high-security cylinders when a commercial property or a landlord with 20-plus units wants something that cannot be duplicated at a hardware store. Because Barstow is far enough from the major parts houses in the Inland Empire, we stock the common pin kits and cylinder components in our service vehicles so a standard rekey doesn’t turn into a multi-day wait for parts. If we need a brand-specific part for your lock, we’ll tell you up front, give you a written price, and schedule the follow-up. No surprises.
Common Rekey Locks Problems We See in Barstow Homes
- Worn keyways on pre-1960 Route 66-era Kwikset and Schlage cylinders. Barstow’s older bungalows and mid-century tract homes often have deadbolts and entry knobs that have been in service for 50 years or more. The keyway wears down from decades of rough keys and dust, and a straight repin without checking that wear leaves you with a wobbly key that binds in a few weeks.
- Mixed-brand hardware on one door or one house. We routinely open a door in Barstow where the deadbolt is Schlage and the knob below is Kwikset. Both can work on one key after repinning, but the cuts and pins are different per brand, and the job takes more time than a same-brand run. A tech who rushes this ends up with one cylinder that turns and one that sticks.
- Doors rekeyed without the slider or back door included. The front door is the obvious one, but the back door, the slider, the side garage entry, and the door from the garage into the house are all keyed entry points. We’ve walked into homes where the front deadbolt was rekeyed and the back door still ran on a key the seller’s contractor held. That is not key control. That is a hole in it.
- Alleged “rekeys” that were actually a drill job. Some operators cannot pick or shim an old cylinder cleanly, so they drill it and then hit you with a full replacement charge. A competent tech should be able to open a standard worn Kwikset or Schlage without drilling. If someone tells you the lock has to be drilled and replaced, get a second look. We will pick or shim the cylinder first, and if it truly needs replacement, we’ll say so with a written price before the drill comes out.
Pricing for Rekey Locks in Barstow, CA
You should know the numbers before you pick up the phone. In Barstow, a single deadbolt rekey runs $65 to $110. A single entry knob or lever cylinder runs $55 to $95. Each additional cylinder you want on the same key adds $25 to $45. If you need a keyed-alike job across a front deadbolt, entry knob, back door, and side garage door, expect roughly $140 to $230 total depending on brand mix and cylinder condition. If the cylinder is too worn to rekey cleanly, we tell you on the phone call or at the door before any work starts, and we give you a replacement price in writing. We quote the full price before dispatch and it is the price on the invoice. Call (956) 275-7388 for a free estimate; the quote takes a few minutes and commit to nothing.
We Also Serve Cities Near Barstow
Ridley Locksmith & Security handles rekey work across the High Desert. Beyond Barstow, our techs regularly run calls in Apple Valley, Adelanto, Lucerne Valley, and Fort Irwin. Residential and commercial jobs alike; same written price, same Rekey Locks service, same 365-Day Done Right Promise on every cylinder we touch.
Serving Barstow, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Barstow area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Rekey Locks in Barstow
Yes. When you call (956) 275-7388, the person on the line asks you what kind of lock you have, how many cylinders, and what brand if you know it, then gives you a dollar figure for the job. That figure is the same number on the written price you get before any work starts and on the invoice when the job is done. There is no dispatch fee added on arrival and no surprise upcharge. Call for an exact quote; it is free and it’s the only way to know your exact price.
A standard front-door and back-door rekey on a Barstow home takes 45 to 90 minutes, driver time included. Worn older cylinders take longer, and keying alike across mixed brands takes longer still, but most single-family rekey jobs are done inside an hour. We schedule a window and we hold it, and if anything pushes the job longer, the price doesn’t change unless we agreed to more work in writing.
Yes. We repin each cylinder to accept the same key cut, even when the deadbolt is Schlage and the knob is Kwikset. The job takes a bit longer because the pins and keyway tolerances differ, and on badly worn cylinders the rekey may not hold reliably. We’ll test the keyway and tell you before pinning. Call (956) 275-7388 and we’ll walk through what you have on the door and give you a real number.
Our tech arrives in a marked vehicle, in uniform, with company ID. Before touching your lock, they give you their name and you can call our 24-hour dispatch line to confirm that name against your work order. No subcontractor in an unmarked van. Every Barstow job is dispatched through Ridley Locksmith & Security, full stop.
A rekey replaces the pins inside the cylinder so the old key physically cannot turn the plug. The hardware on your door – the deadbolt, the knob, the plate – stays put. You keep your existing hardware and get a new key. In Barstow, rekeying is usually the smarter spend over replacing functional hardware, and it is done in under an hour on most homes.
Written by Drew Kowalski, Owner at Ridley Locksmith & Security, serving Barstow and the High Desert. Ridley Locksmith & Security has been part of the Garrison Partners family since 2007, operating to The Garrison Standard on every job.