Re Keying - Seat Lock barrel

[Paul]

I'm glad this got bumped, I also need to do this

[Kiwi Canuck]

I just did this myself with great success. I had a spare ignition switch assembly with no key, & a spare fork lock to rob the wafers out of. between the ignition and the seat lock, I was one wafer short of matching my original ignition key's new code-cut replacement, & I had to un-stake the fork lock to get the last wafer that I needed. I could have done some filing and dremel tool cutting on the inside and outside of the wafers, but I figured this was the better fix since I had extra locks available. The wafers look very similar to what I remember when I did the same thing with some Volkswagen Rabbit door locks. I bet you could go to a reputable old time lock shop and find several similar replacements.

the fork lock that mounts on the bottom of the fork, not the one that is integrated with the ignition switch housing, those are nearly identical to the seat lock other than the end of the plug has a around actuator instead of a half moon actuator.

it also should be noted that even with a brand new key cut from the Suzuki code, the old lock wafers will be worn down, and this is exactly why people who have the integrated ignition switch and fork lock now and then will be unable to get their ignition switch out of the lock position, and why people on here strongly caution against using that fork lock style. the problem is that the wafers will get worn down where the key contacts them, and will start to slightly protrude out of the plug with wear from the key. with the wafers not retracting all the way when they get worn, switching the ignition on will start to wear down on the plug itself where it is supposed to catch the wafers and not let it turn without the key inserted. the problem here is that the lock will still work in the ignition mode, but when put in the fork lock position which gets used far less, the plug housing in the fork lock position will not have the same wear as in the ignition position that allows the key to work the worn wafers in the ignition position housing slots, & the key will not be able to get the plug rotated out of the less worn fork lock position, leaving the rider stranded.

my original key was worn, and the new key did not even align the wafers perfectly, yet it worked perfectly fine in my ignition switch on my 1977 gs750b that had the switch integrated with the gauges. I removed the wafers and swapped them into the fork lock style ignition switch housing that i had from an 81 gs650g (same fork lock ignition housing as on our 77 gs550b) so that I can run individual pod gauges from a GS400. when doing so, I filed or sanded the wafers down slightly so that they all aligned perfectly with the brand new key inserted. now the key works all 4 locks on my bike, but I do not have the fork lock tabs welded to the top of the head tube on my frame, only on the bottom where the original fork lock was. The GS550B that we have has the tabs welded on the top and the bottom. As does the 1978 GS750EC frame that I have.

I should also note that the lock cylinder with the ignition switch fork lock can be removed by drilling out (or pulling out with a tiny screw jammed inside) the roll pins in the sides of the housing. then with the plug and plugged housing removed, you then just depress the last wafer externally, this cannot be done through the key opening I don't believe. there are only 5 wafers used, but this style of plug has spots for 6 of them.
I plan on using some very small 8-32 or smaller set screws with JB Weld filling the heads of them to replace the roll pins which I had to destroy to remove. Lowes sells a 5mm set screw with the recessed allen head, but I do not have any metric taps that small.

on the 77 GS 750 B lock cylinder, there is just a tiny hole in the ignition switch housing, and you can take a very tiny Allen wrench or paperclip with the key in the right position, and push it in to depress the last way for from the top, and then that plug pulled out. It was not compatible with the other style with the integrated fork lock, but uses the same wafers.

I should also mention that I now understand why there are some key blanks which are much longer than others. The longer ones work with the integrated fork lock style switch, where the entire plug is spring loaded and when it turn, you can depress the hole plug to actuate the fork lock. I had to modify my '77 750b key on the bench grinder so that it would insert farther just too get the key all the way in to actuate all the wafers. If wanting to use the lock feature with the shortest of the Suzuki key blanks, you must grind well into the key head area with the Suzuki logo so that it can be pushed in far enough.the lock shops around here only carry the longest of the key blanks. I think the ones with the plastic on them are slightly longer than the shortest keys, and should probably work on the fork lock integrated ignition switch setup.

I would strongly suggest everyone taking apart their ignition switch and checking the wafers for wear, filing down the wafers to make them aligned perfectly again, and using this as an opportunity to clean with electrical contact cleaner the actual ignition switch electrical contacts.

Adler posted a very thorough thread that I learned how to remove the roll pin retained type of ignition lock cylinder, and also describes how to fix them when they get stuck in the lock or park positions. http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum...h+repair+guide

I just found this while looking for an old post of mine to help some else out with rekeying locks, very nice job on the write-up Chuck78, well done.

[posplayr]

I just found this while looking for an old post of mine to help some else out with rekeying locks, very nice job on the write-up Chuck78, well done.

Thanks for resurrecting this thread. I found my old ignition lock that matches my other locks and see I failed to get the roll pins out.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?175478-Ignition-Switch-Repair-Guide&highlight=ignition%20switch%20repair%20guide