Rip Off Artists And Con Men Continue To Proliferate Across The St Louis Region

About 4 years ago, the Missouri Attorney General was instrumental in catching a gang of crooks deliberately scamming consumers by impersonating locksmiths.

That particular gang became well known across the country for willfully ripping off unsuspecting consumers.

The locksmith industry is one of the oldest industries in the world. There are a small number of qualified locksmiths across this country who still do business with ethics and morals, but they are seeing the trade brought to disrepute by sheisters bent on ripping people off.

In June last year, #ABC's The Lookout played a segment where they caught and filmed the leader of the scam operations, who has since escaped the country without paying fines and taxes owed.

But the scammers continue to trick customers into using them with nefarious search engine tactics. In fact, if you type "Locksmith Your City", replacing "Your City" with the name of your town, and press search, you will be bombarded with ads that point you to these companies.

(after the break, we will list some of the companies and their websites. we'd appreciate anyone reading this article to list other scammer companies in the comments) All comments are subject to moderation.

Electronic Locks - Wireless Or Wired Are Not A Very Green Oriented Product

 It seems that wireless or wired electronic locks are all the rage today in this rapidly progressing tech-electronic age we are in. Products like the Lockwood 001T, pictured here use a battery pack to offer keyless access control options.

But in recent years, many discussions continue to be held about green, ecological alternatives that cause no drain on power or grid electricity supplies.

Many customers seem to be considering the use of wireless battery powered products or even hard wired lock systems to add so called "convenience" to their lives.

While it is understandable that some systems can add convenience and access control to our homes and offices, the available products are not really "green" alternatives.

 The August Lock, came out a little while back, offering the ability to have a keyless/smartphone connected access control solution.

The product is very intelligently designed and may offer concerned customers the alternative they are seeking, however it is worth remembering that batteries require replacing every so often. What happens when your smartphone battery has run out? What happens when the products battery pack loses power?
How do you operate the product without a mechanical "keyed" back up?

The increasing evidence of smartphone theft and the quantity of known hacks, presents problems that many consumers may not have considered.

 At least Kwikset, are including their mechanical "keyed" cylinder in many of their Bluetooth and wireless battery powered products, even though the Kwikset Smartkey product has a poor track record of quality and is too easily compromised.

The Kwikset Kevo product was released last October. It is a Bluetooth, battery powered deadbolt that can be operated by a connected Bluetooth device (smartphone). It also comes with the Kwikset Smartkey cylinder, enabling a mechanical backup solution, even though there are many published records of the Smartkey problems, in the news.

Certainly there are many and varied options for wireless, keypad controlled, keyless solutions, but the quality of manufacture still leaves much to be desired in terms of quality and sustainability.

Many manufacturers continue to bring out ever increasing product options to whet the appetites of consumers.

But not too many are including the necessary mechanical keyed component as a backup.

I realise that many customers are impressed with the ability to grant access to certain people and then change that access on the fly, but the use of electronic products is not a "green" consideration, is it?

Magna Latch Series 3 - New Visibility Indicator

Magna Latch products are well known worldwide for their specialty security products designed for swimming pool gates and fences.

We have talked about Magna Latch products by D&D Technologies before.

This new design continues the products world leading design and construction while improving demanded visibility. D&D Technologies consulted the market, asking what their customers wanted. In the greater majority of responses, instant visible knowledge of whether the gate is locked or not, is the most desired option.

This Australian designed and built product has served swimming pool owners worldwide for over 20 years.

The locking system has also been updated to allow for key cylinders that can be swapped with other brands of keyways, like Schlage, Yale etc. This means that high security key control systems can be added to pool gates, simply and cost effectively.

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The Fabulous Hooply Manufacturing Facility In China

The Fabulous Hooply Manufacting facilities located in China, uses state of the art technology and practices to create their sensational line of high-security lock products and door hardware.
As shown in the video, the product line is exceptionally well made and offers one of the widest varieties of style and security available in todays market.

We are pleased to become known as a representative of this sensational product line in the USA.

Unlike other stateside companies, who choose to offshore their manufacturing in attempt to save costs, Hooply have always designed and built their products in China, but tailored them for the worlds market.

We have mentioned some of their products already in this blog and intend to write more individual articles about different pieces in their range. Stay tuned!

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Repairing Sliding Patio Doors - An Increasing Call For Our Expertise

We typically receive a large quantity of requests to repair sliding patio doors for many customers.

Many of these requests come from the popular Home Advisor network.

Just yesterday in fact, we attended to repair a 30 year old door in use at a customers home, where the front wheel was missing completely.

There were no remnants of a disintegrated wheel anywhere inside the track, underneath the door and I cannot explain how the door was working all these years.

Getting the door off the track easily is/was very difficult and we were on a limited time schedule due to the customer requiring to pick their kids up from school.

Thinking outside the box (which we have to do quite often), enabled us to devise a simple and quick repair that, while not a perfect solution, holds the door higher at the front of the track and allows it to ride smoothly and the door can now be locked and operated much more easily, until the customer purchases a complete new door.

The solution we came up with was to install a small right angle bracket to the bottom of the frame, with the angle resting under the door. We lubricated the track with Teflon based lubricant thoroughly and the door now slides easily and lines up nicely to be able to lock.

Keyed Pocket Door Lock Will Soon Work With Thicker Doors Using Easy To Install Modification Kit - Exclusive Supplier

Our fabulous keyed pocket door lock is especially designed for 1-3/8" thick doors.

Until now, that is.

We are in the final stage of production of an expansion kit that will allow you to use this fabulous lock on 1-3/4" thick doors.

You can now even get cylinders that will allow you to re-key to Schlage (or almost any key-way) 6 pin tumbler key-ways.
We were the only dealer in the USA until recently, but we are the only dealer with the modification package allowing installation up to 1-7/8" thick doors without the difficult modifications offered by other dealers.

The modification kit will be able to be purchased in almost any brand key-way, so you will be able to use Schlage, Yale, Kwikset, Sargent or just about any restricted key or high-security key control systems like Bilock, Primus, Abloy etc.

We are the exclusive manufacturer of this modification kit. It is not quite ready for public release but we expect to make it available in about 2 months.

To maintain our exclusivity on this modification kit, we will not be tabling our technique for using this fabulous product on thicker doors, much to the angst of our wannabe competitors.

EDIT 2/22/14: Lockwood just informed us of a price rise of 15% for the product, effective immediately. This may have to be carried over to our next inventory orders. If you want this product, now is the time to order it prior to the expected price increase.

Clay - Introducing Cloud Controlled Wireless Access Control

Clay are proudly introducing a Salto inspired access control solution across Europe, the UK and Australia.

This intelligent access control solution will work with just about any type of mortise or rim lock, narrow style frames and padlocks.

The intelligence of the Salto systems is being heralded across the world as the new frontier in keyless access control solutions.

We say keyless, although you still need to carry a fob, if you are an authorized entrant. Remote control from any platform, be it Android, Apple iOS, Windows, Linux etc allows for cross platform operation that minimizes inconvenience, allows you to use an app to control your systems so that you can still let in your technician or plumber or anyone you choose, without actually being at the location yourself.

There is a fabulous video on the company's site that I encourage all to view, to better understand how it works. Visit the website in the source below.

Salto, have been mentioned in this blog before and are slowly becoming a major player in the hotel arena and other industries intent on maximizing control of their locking hardware systems.

The intelligence is in the handle not the lock and because of this, there are many options available to the customer.

We anticipate becoming a local dealer of the fabulous Salto - Inspired Access Control systems in the near future. We have already recommended numerous enquirers and owners of CISA hotel access control systems to upgrade to Salto. (No word on the North American release dates)

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Meroni UFO+ Installation Video - Superior Security For Sprinter Trucks

We recently wrote an article about the fabulous Meroni UFO+ super secure lock system designed in consultation with Shipping companies and fleet managers and auto manufacturing engineers.

We have been inundated with inquiries and people are lining up to pre-order the product.

Above find an installation video that shows the correct procedure for fitting the product.
The UFO+ comes with a unique key cylinder that is copy resistant and virtually pick proof. Keys can be registered with the factory (us) for future origination. Locks can be keyed alike, master keyed or keyed to differ. Fleet managers can use their master key to access multiple separate vehicles as needs require.

There are few quality options available that secure Sprinter trucks and the UFO+ is quickly becoming the sought after solution for companies and owners wishing to protect their valuable tools and equipment on board.

We still anticipate releasing them commercially in the USA this summer. Stay Tuned!

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