Combination forgotten, battery dead on an electronic safe, key lost on a Sentry Fireproof, gun safe lockout after a roommate change. Mobile safe opening service - non-destructive 80% of the time on residential safes.
Safe opening across PSL - Sentry / SentrySafe, Mesa, Liberty, Cannon, Stack-On, Honeywell, AMSEC, plus commercial Hayman / Schwab / Diebold / Mosler. Residential gun safes a specialty.
Non-destructive 80% of the time on residential safes. Drilling / cutting required for commercial-grade safes (B-rate, TL-15, TL-30) - we have the equipment but always quote upfront.
Cost: $140-280 for residential safes, $280-680 for gun safes, $480-1,200 for commercial fire safes / vaults.
Most residential safes - AMSEC, SentrySafe, Liberty, Stack-On - can be opened without drilling if the tech knows what they are doing. Manipulation, scope work, or factory reset codes will get most home safes open with zero damage to the lock or the safe body. The contents stay intact and the safe still works after.
The wrong call is hiring someone who reaches for the drill first. A drilled safe needs a new lock, often a new door, and sometimes ends up as a $400 paperweight. Our flat-rate for residential safe opening is $180 to $380 depending on brand and lock type, manipulation attempted before any drill.
Call (772) 284-5142 before you let anyone touch your safe with a drill bit.
We try every non-destructive method first. Most AMSEC and SentrySafe units open in 15 to 45 minutes without a drill.
If the safe is a model with recoverable factory codes, we pull the code and you keep using the same combo.
Most residential safe lockouts we handle same-day, often within four hours of the call.
No moving the safe. We open it in your closet, your garage, or wherever it lives.
You hear $180 to $380 before we leave the shop. Drilling is a separate quote if it ever comes to that.
Safe work is where the difference between a real locksmith and a guy with tools really shows. The wrong tech destroys $1200 of safe to recover $200 of contents. We have opened hundreds of AMSEC, SentrySafe, Liberty, and Stack-On units across PSL with the safe walking away in working order.
Group 2 mechanical dial work, electronic keypad bypass, scope-and-pick - the techniques most generalists do not own.
Many SentrySafe and gun safes have recoverable factory override codes. We have the database, most do not.
TL-rated commercial safes are not our specialty. We say so up front and refer you to the right person rather than fake it.
We open the safe and step back. We do not inventory. We do not photograph. What is inside stays your business.
Residential / consumer-grade fire safes (Sentry, SentrySafe, Honeywell, First Alert). Most common PSL safe. Combination lock or electronic keypad. Easy to manipulate, sometimes pick, sometimes drill for cheap models. Open non-destructively 80% of the time.
Gun safes (Liberty, Cannon, Browning, Stack-On). Rated RSC (Residential Security Container). Heavier than consumer fire safes - typical job involves either bypassing the electronic lock keypad (dead battery scenarios) or manipulating the mechanical dial. Higher-end Liberty / Cannon safes with UL-rated S&G dial locks are harder.
Commercial fire safes (Mesa, AMSEC). B-rate (1/2" steel door) safes - heavier construction, sometimes mechanical relock devices that activate if drilled wrong. We have the diamond core drill bits and X-ray scope (yes, really) to do these properly.
Commercial high-security (TL-15, TL-30, TRTL-30x6). Bank-grade. Rare in PSL outside of jewelry stores and banks themselves. These require specialty work, sometimes 4-8 hours, sometimes a full safe replacement. We refer the bigger TL-30 jobs to a specialist if our shop isn't the best fit.
Older floor safes (Mosler, Hamilton, Diebold). Pre-1960s mostly. Combination-only, often without manufacturer records. Manipulation is the standard approach - can take 60-180 minutes by an experienced safe tech.
Forgotten combination. Most common call. We manipulate the dial to find the combination (most consumer / residential safes) or, if it's electronic, replace the dead battery first (40% of "combination forgotten" calls turn out to be dead battery).
Inherited safe. Probate / estate situation - safe came with the house, nobody knows the combination, sometimes it's been bolted to the floor for 30 years. We open and re-key for the new owner.
Gun safe roommate / divorce. Two parties had combination access, one wants exclusive access now. We open and reset the combination for the remaining user.
Dead battery on electronic safe. The override key has been lost (most consumer safes have one) OR the keypad is fully dead even with new batteries (electronics failure). For Sentry / SentrySafe specifically there's often a manufacturer override sequence we can try first.
Locked out of fireproof file safe. Sometimes the key was inside the safe (it happens), or the key broke off in the cylinder. Standard extraction + rekey job.
| Service | Typical Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Residential fire safe (Sentry / SentrySafe etc.) - non-destructive | $140 - $280 | Manipulation / electronic override. |
| Residential fire safe - drilled | $220 - $380 | When non-destructive fails. |
| Gun safe (Liberty / Cannon) - electronic bypass | $220 - $380 | Most modern gun safes. |
| Gun safe - mechanical dial manipulation | $280 - $480 | Older mechanical dial gun safes. |
| Gun safe - drilled | $380 - $680 | Plus replacement lock cost. |
| Commercial fire safe (B-rate / Mesa / AMSEC) | $420 - $780 | Drilled with relock awareness. |
| Commercial high-security (TL-15+) | $680 - $1,400 | Specialty work. May refer. |
| Combination reset | $60 - $140 | Once safe is open. |
| Decision | Doctor Lockout | Manufacturer (Sentry / Liberty etc.) | DIY YouTube approach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comes to your house | Yes | No - ship in or replace | N/A |
| Non-destructive on residential | 80%+ of the time | Sometimes (shipped back) | Rarely - usually damages safe |
| Time to open | 1-3 hours | Days-weeks (shipping) | Hours - failure rate high |
| Combination reset after opening | Yes - on-site | Yes - after return | Sometimes |
| Cost | $140-680 residential / gun safe | $200-800 + shipping both ways | $0 + risk of bricked safe |
Real person on the phone in under 2 rings. Locksmith on-site in 15-30 minutes. Honest price before any tools come out.
Call (772) 284-5142For residential fire safes (Sentry / SentrySafe / Honeywell), about 80% of the time yes - manipulation or electronic override gets the safe open without drilling. For gun safes the success rate is lower (50-60% non-destructive) because the locks are typically UL-rated higher security. Commercial fire safes (B-rate, TL-15+) almost always require drilling - but we drill in known patterns that the manufacturer can restore.
Residential fire safes: $140-280 non-destructive, $220-380 if drilled. Gun safes: $220-680 depending on lock type and whether we can bypass non-destructively. Commercial B-rate fire safes: $420-780. Commercial high-security: $680-1,400 and up. Phone quote based on make + model + age.
Once we open the safe, yes - we reset the combination to a new code you choose, whether the lock is mechanical dial or electronic keypad. For electronic safes that's usually a 30-second procedure; for mechanical dial it takes 5-15 minutes.
We need proof of ownership or authorization - bill of sale, inheritance documentation, or in probate situations a copy of the executor's letter. For inherited safes that came with a house purchase, the deed showing the property transferred to you is usually enough.
TRTL-30x6 (bank-vault level) safes require specialty equipment and 4-8 hours of work; we have the gear but typically refer to a specialist. Very old (pre-1940s) Mosler / Hamilton floor safes with unusual lock mechanisms sometimes can't be opened non-destructively at all - the customer ends up replacing the safe entirely.
Non-destructively opened safes work normally afterward - combination reset to new code, that's it. Drilled safes have a hole that we plug, tap, and paint to match - the safe functions but has a visible repair mark. For fireproof safes, drilling SOMETIMES compromises the fire rating because the fire-retardant insulation may be breached; we tell you the trade-off before drilling.
Safe opening calls come from estate / probate situations (frequent in PSL's snowbird population - primary residence elsewhere, secondary safe in the FL house) plus gun safe owners across Tradition, Veranda Bay, and the rural Hutchinson Island properties.
Last updated: 2026-05-18
