car keys. We’ve moved into a new flat. The GF managed to shut the car key in the fire door and bent it. Thinking of smacking it with a hammer to straighten it, but don’t want to fatigue the metal and end up snapping it in the barrel. Looks like it may bent slightly horizontally too?

Hints/tips?

Personally I’d straighten it in a vice…

+1 for using a vice.

You’re bending it back no matter if you use a vice or a hammer. Just make sure you do it on a solid, flat surface. Hammer with a nice flat face with gentle taps letting the hammer weight do the work.
Or get a new key.

Whatever you do, once it’s broken, don’t put the broken end I to the ignition barrel as a ‘way of getting home’ it doesn’t work (according to a friend of mine 😳 )

Renault key? Even if it’s not, the metal part can probably be copied at any normal key cutter. So straightening it out then getting a replacement made may well be fairly quick n easy

A pair of pliers or molegrips should be enough. Make sure you order another key ASAP!

I wouldn’t use it unless I really had to. It may last forever, or snap first time you use it.

As kayak says. But if you can do it across the angle on a vice or some such one small bit at a time it shouldn’t fatigue it.

Dial 0800-Uri-Geller.

Warm the metal up a bit before using the hammer etc … or you will break it.

Cheers for all the advice. Will avoid a big hammer.. for now.
Will nip into Timpson tomorrow.

My remote key broke so today I ordered a repair kit from these dudes…

key dudes

You can get the whole fob with a new blade blank so you can then take it to timpsons and just get it cut.

That’s a fairly gentle bend, you could almost straighten it with your fingers, but gentle taps on something fairly solid like a chopping board should do the trick.

Warm it up and you risk melting the electronics.

I doubt it will break if you follow Kayaks advice and be gentle, top link to key dudes BTW

I had something similar last year. Straighten it and get it copied while still in one piece.
I kept using mine and it snapped in the lock.

I’d suggest a vice AND a pair of liners for the vice – A couple of bit of angle-iron or similar. You only want to bend it BACK, not beyond – the more it bends the more it will fatigue, so try to get it right first time.

Regardless, brass is not know for fatigue resistance, I think it’s used in keys because it it “self lubricating”. Get a new one!