The Complete Book of Locks and Locksmithing – Review

Bill Phillips is one of the world’s foremost experts when it comes to locks and locksmithing.

Whether you are a professional locksmith or a lock enthusiast, it is simply not possible that you have not heard of him!

There have been quite a few books that he’s authored on the subject, starting from Locksmithing, published by McGraw Hill Professional in the year 1999. The next book in the series (not directly) is The Complete Book of Locks and Locksmithing, which came out in 2005.

Like the name suggests, this is seriously one helluva book to lay hands on if you are even remotely connected with the business of locksmithing. Everything about Locks – from lock making to lock breaking is covered in so much depth, that the only fear is that locksmithing would change from something beyond a hobby once you read this book!

This is the 6th edition of the book to be published by McGraw Hill Professional, and from 1976, there have been several revisions in this book to ensure that it is up to date. Coming to the specialty of this version, we found it to be the absolute bridge between professional and amateur locksmithing. Though Bill Phillips is among the top master locksmiths in the world today, the book has been written in a lucid and informative manner so that even if a layman reads this, he will understand most of the things mentioned (with the exception of a few technicalities which we will anyway not need).

If you are a regular on the Lockpicking channels of YouTube, you will know how exciting it is to be able to pick your own locks – especially when you get locked out of your home (which is likely to be quite often if you have kids) or you car (which is quite likely even if you don’t have kids!). But then videos serve only a few purposes, and unless you have the exact similar kind of a lock, picking it is a mammoth task – we will bring a few great lockpicking videos onto this blog in a few days time anyway, stay tuned. However, with the book, you are taken into the fundamentals of lock making and then lock picking. So even if you see a lock that you have not dealt with before, you will know exactly how it was made, and that makes picking it easier. One addition that has happened a few editions ago is the safe opening and servicing techniques. Whether you have a simple safe at home for jewelry, or a complex one at your office for documents, you will be able to open and service it quite efficiently with this user friendly guide.

The 6th edition is full of electronic locks and automatic locks, and there are pictorial representations which allow you to understand them better and also to service them in case of emergency. This is one of the greatest assets of this book, as it allows you to get familiar with a complex piece of technology which is now a huge part of our lives – electronic locking systems.

The registered locksmith test has changed, and the book carries the all-new test if you are looking to take one. Be sure that you find the answers in the book itself before you attempt this one!

Another key strength of this edition is the knowledge it gives you to conduct your own home (or office) security surveys. Usually large offices have professional locksmiths who specialize in assessing the amount of security your office needs, and then use that information to suggest the locking systems and levels needed. However, at home, most of the decisions are taken by us, and quite a few times, we are proven wrong. This section of the book enables you to make an informed decision about the level of home security you need.

Finally, since the book is equally targeted to the professional locksmith as it is to the layman (and all those in between); the last section talks about getting started in the locksmithing business and also gives very practical tips on getting hired as a locksmith if you are looking to so self-employed.

At 576 pages, the book is quite bulky, but the topic in itself is so dense that Bill needs to commended for keeping it down to those pages! At $ 29.95, it is surely a must-have in your library if you are even remotely interested in locks.