What Does it Mean to “ReKey” a Lock?

There is actually much more to a mechanical lock than just the doorknob. Mechanicallocks have small hunks of metal commonly called tumblers, latches or levers, depending on the type of mechanical lock you’re dealing with. When the door is locked, these pieces of metal fit inside holes inside a bolt mechanism, which prevents the door from being opened. If you look at keys, they will be serrated in specific patterns. This is intended to raise the pieces of metal in specific configurations that will allow the bolt to slide. If the wrong key is inserted, the metal pieces will not move in the proper configuration, and the door will not open. Inserting the correct key, on the other hand, allows the bolt to slide, thereby allowing the door to be opened.

Tubular locks work in a very similar way, except for one minor difference: the lock can be configured with either a tumbler mechanism or a special button will be placed inside the lock for the proper key to press to allow the door to be opened.