Old Lock Repair & Restoration

We have a 1928-​vintage original-​owner house with a front door mortise lock that is perfect for Johnathan Rosales’ (proprietor of Old Lock Repair & Restoration) expertise. To our knowledge, the lock had never been maintained or repaired, and the only part of it that still worked was the dead-​bolt. The rest was a wreck from 88 years of enter and exit usage.
My opinion, from requesting and receiving (excellent) service from Johnathan, is that this man’s an artist as well as a very good technician. He quotes you a price to bring the lock back to working order. If he can’t, then it costs you nothing for the consultation.
He is based in Berkeley, CA, so he had to drive over on a Sunday to conveniently meet with us. He was early for our appointment. He brought all his tools up and worked on the lock for the better part of half a day.
Now, the lock is working great. He replaced springs, and bent parts back to the way they were originally. He repaired the thumb latch to freely move they way it did when the lock was new. He worked, tested, worked, and tested. He took it apart completely, and when it was reassembled, it works very nicely. He aligned the lock to work with the strike plate, which required working with the door’s wood that surrounds the lock.
I recommend Johnathan to you, if your lock is out of production, old, in terrible condition, and your local locksmith says he can’t repair it.
He accepts cash and a check, but not credit cards.

I was looking for someone that could fix/​repair our front door lock (mortise lock). Johnathan was quick to respond to my initial inquiry over email, offered a free consultation (at a convenient time for two working professionals!), diagnosed the issue, and offered an appt in a few days. He just completed the job and the door works better than ever. Since we bought the house, the door never locked easily. Now we no longer have to lift, jiggle, and pray that we completed the door closing dance properly to have our door lock!
If you’re looking for an effortless repair of your lock, call Johnathan.

Really knows what he’s talking about. Polite courteous and very helpful. If you have an issue this is the gentleman you want to call.

I’ve written few reviews over the years, but feel compelled to recommend Old Lock Repair based on the outstanding service I received.
I contacted Jonathan in a final attempt to salvage the broken mortise lock on my front door, after another well-​respected local locksmith was unable to do so and recommended a replacement.
Jonathan, however, was confident he could restore the old lock. Over the next two hours he calmly and meticulously did just that, even fashioning a new spring and soliciting feedback when a couple cosmetic choices needed to be made. The rebuilt lock is rock solid and actually feels improved; I don’t recall it working this well even before it broke.
Jonathan quoted me a very fair flat rate up front, which removed any time pressure from the job. I found him to be extremely personable and never rushed, and it’s obvious he puts an enormous amount of integrity into his work. This was honestly one of the best home repair experiences I’ve ever had, and I’d unreservedly recommend him to anyone grappling with a finicky or broken antique lock.

We were very excited to find someone who could restore the vintage lock on our 1930 Mediterranean home in Oakland. Jonathan specializes in this type of work. He meticulously rebuilt the springs in the mortise lock, repaired the thumb latch and adjusted the relationship of the lock to the strike plate. For the first time in 20 years the door handle and lock feel substantial and fully engaged. He also applied a patina to a still shiny deadbolt that had been added to the door in the 60’s to blend the look of the door hardware both inside and out. Finally he re-​keyed the front door lockset and deadbolt and the back door lockset and deadbolt for use with a single key and fixed a loose interior door knob by shortening the connecting shank. The cost of doing this type of work was somewhat more than I had initially expected but after considering the alternatives it was a fair price for quality workmanship. Jonathan is personable, hard-​working, and diligent.

Jonathan is easy to work with and a true expert in old locks. We had a very difficult old locks that he was able to make functional again, and I’m so grateful!