Broken key in ignition

[Justin]

I only have one key, and half of it is in my hand, and the other in the ignition of my bike. I ride an 88 Katana 600, and in order to get the key blanks from Suzuki dealer, i need to find my code, they say it is on teh bottom of the iginiton, and i have to take it out, but i am not very mechanically inclined, and do not want to mess with my igintion at all, does anyone know where to look for the code? Maybe i can just use a mirror or something to read it? I have 3/4 tank of gas left to get this figured out, after that my riding is over till i get new keys made. Someone please help me out here.
THANKS

well you still have to get the other half of the key out
if you can get the key out they can read the key bumps for the code
i think there is just 2 bolts holding the ignition in
you should be able to get to them by going in from under the the head light farring , with a long extention and maybe a 10 mm socket

[nevanerviss]

Good thing you filled up before this happened...

[St0nkingByte]

Disconnect the battery before you try pulling the ignition off!

[Justin]

I took it to a shop, and they said they aren't sure how to get the igintion out, they said it looks like it was rivited in or something. I had a locksmith look at it, and he said he could get the key out for sure, but i need to get the blanks from a dealer, however, in order to get the blanks "they say" i need the code, but shouldn't they just be able to look at the top half of the key to get a matching blank? Are they just being lazy or what?
This is by far the most frustrating issue with my Kat as of yet!!!

[SuzukiGirl1]

That might just be their policy or something to try and deter would-be theives??

[ElBandito]

88 kat 600 huh ?
every self respecting hardware store has a key cutter and blanks.

get the broken part out of the slot with a small jig saw.
(the kind you buy in bundles to fit the u frame you used in elementary)
now I don't want you to saw the ignition off ,
just break off the end of the saw (the part without serrations) then insert it next to the broken end into the slot, pull the key out using the serrations.

I tried it before, works every time.

now take the old broken key to the hardware store and have it duplicated.
Doesn't matter it's broken, they align it in a small vice anyway.

Tip:
let them make two keys while the're at it

[NewEvolution]

Originally Posted by ElBandito

get the broken part out of the slot with a small jig saw.
(the kind you buy in bundles to fit the u frame you used in elementary)
now I don't want you to saw the ignition off ,
just break off the end of the saw (the part without serrations) then insert it next to the broken end into the slot, pull the key out using the serrations.

Woah. Sneaky ninja method.

I'm going to have to file that one away should I ever need it.

As for your ignition, If you DO need to remove it, I know the one on my Kat has a one-way bolt on it. In order to get it off, you're supposed to take a punch, smack it a good one to put a decent divot in it, and then angle the punch a bit and tap it in the direction it loosens to get it off. But anyway, the hacksaw method sounds like a pretty good idea.

[Clint]

That's called a coping saw, El. I'd give superglue a try, too. Be careful not to get any in the mechanism!