How does Multipick work?

[kendale]

Hi
Just sat and read all the crap on the multi-pick gun, I can honestly say i have never read rubbish like it, firstly most posts start with i have never used or seen it but im gonna explain it anyway, ? how exactly?. ok its over priced? what makes it over priced its 6 openings and paid for, the blade moves 0.5. ok i take it u mean 0.5mm when i saw this used it looked more like a blade on an electric fan so fast you hardly see it move ,more like 5mm of bounce, if the blade hardly moves why is it supplied with 50 blades inc round blades for dimple locks (without side pins). I assume its going to batter the hell out of the pins and brake a lot of blades, this pick gun is 24v it is going to have some serious power in it. what is the hpc pick gun a 3.4v black and decker cordless screwdriver with a converted head, yes I can undo locks quickly with the hpc pick and have found very few I cant undo with it, those that dont want to pick can usually be undone once you spray wd40 in the lock. If you are serious about locksmithing this is surely a good envestment to add to all the other investments, it does not matter whether it works its just another big boys toy to add to your arsenal of other toys, if it opens a lock that you cant open with another toy its been a good investment.
Regards
The gadget oap.

[Romstar]

I'm glad you like it.

I've had it in my hands, used it, examined fresh new locks that were opened with it, and I can tell you that I am not impressed.

It is over priced, the motor is way over powered, it's a destructive tool, and certainly no major improvement over the HPC, Fed Corp. Cobra or even the SouthOrd.

The most impressive development with this tool is the control module, and anyone who builds electronics as a hobby will quickly come to realize that the costs of that part are very small.

The lead acid batteries do have the advantage of long shelf life, and high amperage, but they are far overshadowed by their weight, and expense. The pack I used actually got warm during use. I am not sure why, as I don't expect that to be a common thing, unless the current drain from the pick is even higher than it should be.

Because I firmly believe that the motor in the multi-pick is far over powered, that motor and of course the requirement for that much amperage is not required. That brings us back to a much more compact and managable system.

I've never debated whether the pick does the job it says it does. That conclusion is without argument. It is the method by which it acomplishes this task, and the impact the tool has on the lock.

If you are determined to replace every lock you have to open, then I am sure this pick would prove to be a boon to your business. If you are involved in emergency and law enforcement openings, this pick is very useful.
If on the other hand you want to service the lock rather than tear it apart, the multi-pick is not going to assist you in this task.

Yes, even manual pick guns cause damage to springs. Sometimes to the point of crushing them. However in most cases they do not. Nor do the HPC, SouthOrd and many other electric picks. Those are the picks to have, unless you have a vested interest in getting in right now, or five minutes ago.

Romstar

[kendale]

Hi Romstar,
I have a question for you, when you were using the pick gun did you break many blades in the cylinders, the reason I ask is the fact it comes with 50 blades ok some do vary in thickness but it is still lot of blades
Regards
Ken

[Romstar]

Oh, I broke a few.

Under normal usage, I would expect each blade to last several openings. Especially after more practice.

Another problem I had with this gun is the lack of feedback about where exactly your pick is while it is in operation. This is part of what contributes to the destructive nature of the gun.

As you know, with a slower gun, you have a bit more feel that your pick is bouncing off the wards, or hitting the rear of the cylinder, or other problem. With this gun, it's frequency rate actually hampers the feel you get from the picking blade.

This results in shaved wards, scared cylinders, beat pins and of course crushed springs. This contributes hugely to the breakage of the picking blades.

One of the neat things that is available for the multipick is the assorted blade pack. With holder. This is a neat set allowing for use of the same blade in both manual and automatic picking. I'd have to say though, that many of the blades in the assorted pack are unsuitable for mechanical openings. Still a neat toy to have.

Romstar

[steveny]

i have read the reports posted on the multipick control, and although i agree that if the blade was used in the cylinder for a long period of time, it would inevitably cause a small amount of damage, i have found that it opens the cylinders in less than two minutes anyway, thus minimising the erosive nature of the pick gun.
i had previously struggled to pick many euro cylinders without an electric pick gun, but upon trialing the multipick, can now open locks such as Wink Haus and Iseo, which i know are not the best on the market, within two minutes.
Quite as to how it compares with other electric pick guns, i am not qualified to say, but i would recommend to anyone, as it has certainly made my life a lot easier, and paid for itself within the first month!

[NDEFreak]

I think we can all agree on every point here. Yes, it is very effective, even on overly restrictive keyways in high quality locks ( Ziess - IKON - Winkhaus - EVVA etc etc ), yes it is harsh on the mechanism, but only when used in excess of 1-2 minutes constantly or by a user that has not had alot of practice. Let us take the Multipick demonstration video, the cylinder is first sprayed ( inundated more like ) with a liquid Teflon lubricant, then picked ( I have not viewed the video for a while but I dont believe it includes time-elapsed cut frames ). I think the idea was to produce a tool that had the quickest possible picking time of a number of different high quality pin tumbler mechanisms, that was able to be programed to pick certain brands ( at users desire, once frequency was found ) and or types of mechanisms ( inline key and or dimple key type ).

I agree with all points.

But I think there is one point we may have missed. It is just a testament to German ( or Swiss - whoever made it ) engineering, they fulfilled a design criteria for a device that -

A: Is user friendly, once practice and / or training has been achieved.

B: It is very effective on probably 100% of pin tumbler mechanisms
( inline key and dimple key mechanisms ) with or without security features.

C: It is flexible in that once you find the optimal frequency required to open a certain type of cylinder you can store that frequency and use it at a later date ( time saving, considering if you pick, for example, an EVVA cylinder, store your frequency and find yourself not coming across an EVVA cylinder again for a while, preventing the "what did I do last time" syndrome as every lock brand has its own personality etc etc. ).

D: It is able to be used by even the most mechanically challenged people that may have a need to pick locks ( military, police - with all due respect, not everyone is good at working with locks ) when training times are minimal, this being the case with certain agencies on a very tight training schedule etc.

I personally think that they have answered alot of requests about the requirements of what an efficient picking tool should have and do. Most picking techniques damage locks, wether it be in a minimal way or a substantial way, thats what practice is all about. Speed and efficiency is a result of practice and I bet that with enough practice you could get the picking speed with the Multipick down to seconds to avoid damage associated with use times around the minute mark.

I also hope that I am not breaking any forum rules by posting such a long message, I know that this is normally Romstar's trademark.

[Jlo]

Hi,

I Assume when you say it opens the Evva locks you are talking about the pin tumbler locks not the laser cut locks like the 3ks?

Also how does it get along with sidebar locks like Biaxial Chubb M3 (Medeco) Assa etc?

Cheers

Jlo