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1000+ people trained

5 Day Auto Locksmith Course

Run by Tyler Steadman You’ll know him from the Access Denied Car Keys videos

£2,500 + VAT

Course info (video)
A trainer in an Alter Academy t-shirt works through a key programming screen with a trainee, other students busy at the benches behind
Four trainees watch as one programs a key on a tablet at the oak bench, with white cars with their bonnets up in the workshop behind
A trainer points at key bitting data on a large wall screen while trainees follow along at the bench with tablets and tools
A trainee fits a programming adapter to a circuit board at the bench, lit by blue neon, with a red car behind
  • 100% hands-on training: no PowerPoint presentations
  • 3 months’ after support: access our online auto locksmith platform
  • 9 live vehicles: train on real vehicles all week
  • Small classes: up to 6 students per class
  • Course certificate

Alter Academy HQ

Located in Buntingford, Hertfordshire
Not far from Stansted Airport & London

Choose your course date

Select a dateMonday to Friday · Buntingford See dates
Choose your extras Optional
£5,500 + VAT · £500 off with the course
How would you like to pay?

Remainder paid on the course

Watch student video reviews
or call 07521 504245, Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm

Course Details

Five days of 100% hands-on training at our facility in Buntingford, Hertfordshire. Here’s what you’ll do, day by day:

Day 1: Vehicle entry and lock picking

  • Locking practices, tools and equipment, and auto locksmith procedures
  • Lock picking and vehicle entry on HU66, HU101, HU92 and Tibbe, on the bench and then on our real vehicles
  • Harder locks for advanced pickers: HON66, HU83, VA6 and HU162
  • Vehicle entry by airbagging and rodding

Day 2: Decoding and key cutting

  • Key cutting machines, processes and procedures
  • Lock decoding, key cutting and lock stripping
  • Working on HU66, HU101, HU92 and Tibbe locks, with harder locks (HON66, HU83, VA6, HU162) for advanced pickers
  • Ford ignition barrel stripping and rebuilding

Day 3: Transponders and cloning

  • Remote and transponder generation, transponder cloning and key preparation
  • Ford bladed spare key programming
  • Ford keyless lost and spare key programming
  • Vauxhall key programming

Day 4: VAG and MQB systems

  • Volkswagen, Seat, Skoda and Audi
  • Spare and lost key programming: MK6 Golf (ID48) and UDS systems

Day 5: Mercedes and Land Rover

  • Mercedes and Land Rover systems
  • Then your 3 months of app support begin
3 Months Support

You get 3 months’ free access to the Alter Academy App to support you on your first real jobs. It’s packed with hundreds of step-by-step videos, vehicle-specific guides, diagnostic tools and live community support.

We’ll also help you land your first leads, with advice on your website, SEO, Google Ads and B2B work.

More about the Alter Academy App

Tools Covered on the Course

All the tools, cutting machines and programmers are provided. You’ll work with:

  • Lock picks for HU66, HU101, HU92 and Tibbe locks, with harder profiles (HON66, HU83, VA6, HU162) for advanced pickers
  • Airbags and rods for vehicle entry
  • Key cutting machines
  • Remote and transponder generation and cloning tools
  • Key programmers and adapters

Want your own kit? See the Starter Bundle

5 Day Course

Trainees gather around a white car with its driver’s door open in the Alter Academy workshop Watch the course film with sound, 2 minutes 48 seconds

What you’ll do on the course

Watch the course film · 2:48

What about our 1 day taster course?

£149 (£50 discount) See taster day dates

Your week, day by day

Each day builds on the last. Day 1 starts with a lock pick in your hand. By Day 5 you’re working on Mercedes and Land Rover.

The class at the bench on day 1, trainers and students round the tools
A student works a lock pick in a lock held in the bench jig
Tyler shows the group how to use a Tibbe pick at the bench
Students pick locks at the long oak bench

Vehicle entry & lock picking

Your first lock pick in your hand on the first morning. On the bench first, then on our real vehicles.

  • Tools, equipment and auto locksmith procedures
  • Lock picking on HU66, HU101, HU92 and Tibbe
  • Vehicle entry by airbagging and rodding
A trainer takes the class through key cutting data on the big screen
A trainer guides a student on an Xhorse key cutting machine
A student sets up a key in the cutting machine
Two students work on the key cutting machines

Decoding & key cutting

You decode the lock, then cut the key yourself on the machines you’ll use on real jobs.

  • Key cutting machines and procedures
  • Lock decoding, key cutting and lock stripping
  • Ford ignition barrel stripping and rebuilding
Trainers help students programming at the bench
A student programs a key on a tablet at the bench
A trainer explains a connection diagram on the big screen
A trainer in an Alter Academy t-shirt programs with a student

Transponders & cloning

Remotes, transponders and your first key programming jobs on Ford and Vauxhall.

  • Remote and transponder generation and cloning
  • Ford bladed and keyless spare and lost keys
  • Vauxhall key programming
A student programs a key from the driver’s seat while a trainer talks him through it
A trainer and students work on an instrument cluster at the bench
A trainer shows a student a key programmer at the bench
Opening a car door with a lock tool

VAG & MQB systems

Volkswagen, Seat, Skoda and Audi: spare and lost keys, in the workshop and in the car.

  • Volkswagen, Seat, Skoda and Audi
  • Spare and lost keys: MK6 Golf (ID48)
  • UDS systems
Tyler takes the class through Land Rover key programming on the big screen
The class gathers round a Mercedes with its bonnet up in the workshop
A student programs a key from inside the car while a trainer leans in
The class with their certificates on the last day

Mercedes & Land Rover

The big systems on the last day, then your certificate and 3 months of App support begin.

  • Mercedes and Land Rover systems
  • Your course certificate
  • Your 3 months of App support begin
A trainer crouches beside a student as he picks a car door lock, then laughs with him

Require extra support?

We’ve got you.

Everyone learns at a different pace. If there’s an area you need more help with, we can spend extra time on it during the course, so you leave understanding the process, not just watching it.

  • Support while you work
  • More time on the areas you find difficult
  • Hands-on help from the trainers

3 months’ App support, included

Video thumbnail reading “The Alter Academy App” with a phone listing car tutorials, community chat support, lock pick search and job booking

The course ends, the support doesn’t

When your five days are done, you get 3 months’ free access to the Alter Academy App: step-by-step videos, vehicle guides and a community of working locksmiths for when you’re on a job.

More about the App

We teach, we show you, then it’s your turn

Every skill on the course is learned in three steps, so nothing is left to guesswork.

Tyler teaches the class the lost key process on the big screen

The theory

First, we teach the theory

The how and the why on the big screen: the systems, the wiring and what each tool is doing.

A trainer demonstrates on a circuit board while students watch closely

The demo

Then, we demonstrate

A trainer does the job in front of you at the bench, one step at a time, so you see exactly how it’s done.

A student works on a circuit board himself at the bench

Hands-on

Now it’s your turn

You do it yourself, on the bench and then on real cars, with a trainer beside you until you’ve got it.

What you’ll do on the 5 day course

Choose your course date

    Can’t make these dates? Call 07521 504245, Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm.

    £2,500 + VAT · £500 + VAT deposit

    What’s in the Starter Bundle

    The tools you need to start taking jobs straight away. Order it with the course and we take £500 off the bundle. You collect it at the end of the course, so there’s no shipping to pay.

    • Key Tool Plus programmer
    • Xhorse Dolphin XP-005L key cutting machine
    • 18 lock picks
    • EIS adapters
    • Multi-function adapter
    • Land Rover adapter
    • 12 Xhorse keys
    • 12 Xhorse blades
    • 10 Super Chips
    • Pin flip tool
    Video thumbnail: The Auto Locksmith Beginner Bundle, showing a key programmer, key cutting machine and adapter case

    £5,000 + VAT with the course

    Upcoming course dates

    Monday to Friday in our Buntingford workshop · £2,500 + VAT, £500 + VAT deposit to book.

      Can’t make these dates? Call 07521 504245, Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm.

      FAQs

      Can’t see your question? Call 07521 504245 or email support@alteracademy.co.uk.

      Do I need any experience to do the 5-day course?

      No. The course is designed to take you from complete beginner to feeling confident enough to start your own business, and we cover everything from the ground up. If you’ve already done some auto locksmith work, you’ll be handed harder locks to pick.

      How much does the course cost?

      The 5-day course is £2,500 + VAT (£3,000 including VAT). You can secure your place with a £500 + VAT deposit and pay the balance on the course. Deposits are non-refundable.

      When is the next course?

      The next available course runs on the dates above. For other dates, call us on 07521 504245.

      Where is the training held?

      At our training facility in Buntingford, Hertfordshire, not far from London and Stansted Airport. We’ll send the full address and directions when you book. Travelling in? You can add a hotel stay at the Woodman Inn, 5 mins away, when you book, and there are Airbnbs nearby too.

      How big are the groups, and who teaches them?

      We keep groups small, with a maximum of 6 students and two trainers, so everyone gets one-to-one time and nobody is left behind. The course is run by Tyler Steadman, Alter Academy’s owner, with our trainer Andy.

      What happens after the five days?

      You get 3 months’ free access to the Alter Academy App, with hundreds of step-by-step videos, vehicle-specific guides, diagnostic tools and live community support. We also give you advice on getting your first leads, covering your website, SEO, Google Ads and B2B work.

      A trainer talks the class through Xhorse remote colours on the big screen while trainees sit at the benches with tablets and tools, the Alter Academy sign lit up behind

      No auto locksmith experience required

      No experience needed. From day 1 to day 5 you’ll be working 100% hands-on, with all 9 of our vehicles.

      Trainees and a trainer in an Alter Academy t-shirt gather at the open driver’s door of a white car in the workshop

      Real cars, not just locks in a vice

      All week you’ll pick, decode and program on our 9 live vehicles, from Ford and Vauxhall to VW, Mercedes and Land Rover, with two trainers beside you.

      A class of students holding their Alter Academy certificates with their trainers, under the Alter Academy sign in the workshop

      Train together, certified together

      You learn in a small group of up to 6 students per class, so everyone gets time on every tool and every car. This is one of our classes on the last day, certificates in hand.

      Tyler Steadman in his van at the key programming bench, an orange Access Denied Car Keys neon sign on the wall behind him

      Taught by Tyler, the face from the videos

      Tyler Steadman runs Alter Academy and teaches the course with our trainer Andy. You’ll know him from the Access Denied Car Keys videos, and he has more than 10 years’ experience as an auto locksmith.

      The Starter Bundle laid out: Key Tool Plus tablet, Xhorse Dolphin key cutting machine, adapter case, 18 lock picks, pin flip tool, adapters, Super Chips and key packs

      Your own kit, £500 off with the course

      Order the Starter Bundle with your course and we take £500 off the bundle, so it’s £5,000 + VAT instead of £5,500. It’s everything you need to start taking jobs, and you collect it at the end of the week, so there’s no shipping to pay.

      See what’s in the bundle

      Hear it from people we trained

      Our students, in the workshop, on why they trained with Alter Academy.

      AlexTrained at Alter Academy · 0:36

      AshTrained at Alter Academy · 0:21

      LeonTrained at Alter Academy · 0:41

      Read our reviews on Google (opens in a new tab)

      What do our students say?

      Read what others have to say about their experience with us.

      By day 5 I have the confidence

      Just completed their 5 day crash course baring in mind on Monday I knew nothing… By day 5 I have the confidence to go out into the field and start my business. Tyler and Andy such great trainers honestly so friendly and respectful.

      Callum Allsopp5 Day course

      Only good things to say

      Completed the 1 day course and only have good things to say. Both trainers are friendly, experienced and knowledgeable, they allow everyone to progress at their own speed. Actual cars to work on rather than just locks in a vice.

      Jayden Butler1 Day course

      Worth every penny!

      I did a 2 day lockpicking and Programming course. Andy and Tyler were fantastic teachers, very knowledgeable… This has taken my business to another level. Highly recommended, worth every penny!

      Stuart Tarrant2 Day course

      Tyler and Andy are amazing!

      Tyler and Andy are amazing! Very knowledgeable and understanding. Highly recommend Alter Academy, definitely will be back for some more training.

      Alex ReesTraining with Alter Academy

      Miles ahead of the rest

      I’ve been signed up with Alter Academy’s online course for nearly a year now, and honestly I can’t fault any part of the process… genuinely a game changer for me. The support, knowledge, and effort they put in is miles ahead of the rest.

      Craig PilleyOnline course

      Well worth the money

      Purchased the starter lock pick from Tyler and the gang. Great package and well worth the money. The online tutorials are brilliant and well informative. Great aftercare sales service.

      NeilStarter lock pick

      Read all our reviews on Google

      Next course: see the dates above · Buntingford, Hertfordshire

      Book your place on the next course

      Five days in the workshop, 9 live vehicles, and 3 months’ support when you finish.

      £2,500 + VAT

      £500 + VAT deposit secures your place

      Book Your Place

      Questions? Call 07521 504245, Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm