I had a local auto locksmith shop make me a key from the tumbler numbers after I lost mine years ago. Also had a copy cut at a “tru value” hardware store and they made a similar machine.
Yes, but here the problem is not that it's a car key or something, the problem is Mackey is bringing his own blank, and locksmiths don't like that. Simply because they make some of their money on the blanks and also can't guarantee the finished product, because it could break tomorrow because of a bad quality blank and it wouldn't be the locksmith's fault, yet most customers would blame it on them, hence why they're not comfortable working on them. It's kind of the same story as bringing the parts you bought on ebay to a mechanic. You can still find people that will accept it, but they're getting rarer and rarer.
Very nice, I think it's worth every penny you paid for it, because if you can't find a solution, be the solution. Now that people in your area know that you have a key cutter machine they may want you to cut some keys for them. Good for you, good for the community.
ACE Hardware used to cut the keys I bring them, but now they don't do that anymore. The guys at a local locksmith store don't want to ruin their machine by cutting my keys. They said they don't know what material the keys are made out of, the keys could be too tough for their machine to cut.
Do they cut the keys customers bring too? I know Menards has a key-cutting machine that only uses its own keys stored inside. It also only offers house keys, not automotive.