86 St Locksmith

They cut keys digitally from Mul-​T-​lock serial numbers. Fast service, key worked first time.

First of all, this place is not called 86^th street locksmith. It’s not on 86^th so idk where this Unilocal page originates from. The name outside says lamp locksmith. The place is ok. Sometimes they are friendly sometimes they are not. What drives me insane is they don’t list the prices of anything! Normally this would make me turn right around and leave a place but there really are no other alternatives close by on 2^nd Ave so it is what it is. If you’re in a pinch for something you can only get at a hardware store this place will likely have what you’re looking for.

Rude & unprofessional. Came in to buy sandpaper. Got ignored and when I asked for help, I seem to bother him. No one was in the store and he wasn’t busy. I told him to show him which type of sandpaper is good for my need and he again was bothered. I told him to forget it and walked out. I will never go there again.

I went into this place to get a key copied and was brusquely told it would take several months and would cost $ 200. I thought he was joking and laughed, but he looked at me like I was an idiot and told me I wouldn’t find a better deal anywhere in town. At this point I was thinking the guy was actually insane and tried to tell him it was a normal key, not a high security one, but it didn’t seem to matter to him or he didn’t care enough to listen. He told me to leave and see if I could find anywhere else that would do it. So I did. It took 3 minutes and cost $ 5. Pretty crappy way to run a business.

long story short I lost my apartment keys on a night out, so the next morning I got up early to take my roommate’s keys down the street here to get a copy made. On the bright side, the key was made very quickly, and the price was right ($ 3.95)… however the key didn’t work!
I went home and of course tried to use the key to enter my building and it didn’t work. I had to use my roommate’s key. I tried several more times, still didn’t work and then I closely examined the new key and realize there was a section of the teeth that was completely off from the original key.
I was really frustrated and ready to go back there for a new copy, but luckily after calling the bar I was at, they had found my keys.
Anyway, for a simple service as key cutting I would only expect for it to be accurate– so I can actually use the key. Alas, won’t be returning here.

Love this place… one of the guys that works there — who may or may not have spoken English — took one look at the non-​standard lightbulb I had in my hand (of which i needed 4) and wordlessly guided me to the shelf with a pile of exact matches. In and out in under 5 minutes.

Crappy interior. Come to think of it, crappy exterior. Their business card has, like, six different business names and phones listed, none of which align with Unilocal.Best of all, «86^th St Locksmith» is not actually on 86^th Street. I don’t know about the «locksmith» part either; they seem like a hardware store that also does lamp repair.
However, they have the weird lightbulbs no one else in the neighborhood has. And the guys, who initially seem very gruff, are quite sweet and funny. One gave me a brief course in Jewish numerology, based on my bill’s total and his own name.
I love this town.

Don’t know their hours. Walked there at 8:22 pm and they were closed. Saw a guy inside so I knocked on the window. In 2 minutes I had two key copies done for 5 bucks!

Little pricey and didn’t have exactly what I needed, but they had a few other things I did need. Not bad experience, I’ve just had better.

Good, old fashioned hardware store. Has pretty much anything you need for do it yourself projects. The place is stocked tight with all kinds of tools, nails, paints, equipment, lighting, etc. If you need keys made this is the place to go in the neighborhood. Carries a supply of keys, locks, security bolts. Very convenient.

BTW– this place is on 2^nd btwn 88^th and 89^th even though the name says 86)
If you have a key that cant be made this is the place to go! I have one of those deadbolt keys with the dimples in it, I went to at least five other locksmiths and no one had they right key or they couldn’t do the cut. I finally found one place (Abbey on 80 and 2^nd) they said they could do it, but I had to go back 4 times because they keys never worked, they finally just gave me my money back. I go to this place and presto all is good!
Its also a pretty decent small hardware store. I’m not surprised by the other review about the workers being abrupt, at first I thought they were kind of rude but after waiting a couple minutes for the keys, they turned out to be hysterical and just hard-​nosed new yorkers. They will answer everything and help you out, they just wont go the extra mile.
I still gotta give these guys five starts because I trudged through many key makers until I found these guys.
Prices are ok — but not a deal

This place does have a ton of supplies packed into a small space.
Went in looking for wood screws and found drywall, machine, masonry, concrete, brass.. .everything but. After finally giving up and asking, all I got was «back there,» and a thumb jabbed at the rear of the store. Another few minutes of fruitless searching and I left for one of the other several hardware stores within walking distance of my apartment.