First Pick A Success?

[hippy5749]

I don't think I ever got my first lock open. I tried picking around 20 years ago, no luck. Forgot about it until a couple of years ago. Then I opened a master lock in about 5 minutes. Was able to open a few more locks, but then lost interest. A year ago I picked it back up and have been doing it every since..... I would say I have opened approx. 15-20 different types of locks by now. The brinks shrouded still gives me fits, but I got it open 3 times in one day. Haven't been able to since

[evox786]

Well I just got into lock picking a few weeks ago here at school in my apartment. It started when I wanted to open the circuit breaker box. Read up on how locks work and picked open the box in under three minutes. Turns out it was just a simple three pin lock that opens after one pass of my "rake" which is just a straight T pin. Since then, I've been able to open all the hatches in the ceiling going to ventilation ducting and one opening up into the rafters. All of these were four pin locks. Just yesterday I finally opened the doors to the a/c unit. It was a six pin Schlage lock. I'm still not sure how these work because I could only open it all the way with another Schlage key. It would turn to a certain point, then just stop turning. My other key did something that let it keep on turning the rest of the way. My only tools so far are three T pins. One as a tension wrench, one is sort of half a ball (think that's what they're called), and then just a straight pin for a rake and to count the pins.

[hippy5749]

All these locks are in your apartment? Please don't open locks that don't belong to you. You will get into trouble if caught, and that just gives everyone a bad name. A charge of B&E from your school will not do wonders for your life......

Sorry for sounding like an old guy, but picking should be a personal hobby only, or a legal business.

Thanks,

Old GUY (hippy342 )

[dcnatedawg]

My first lock was on my old Sentry fireproof safe. It took about 20 seconds with a lifter. The latch is made of low-grade aluminum and could probably be destroyed by a nail file...at least it looks tough.

[blademaster222]

Hehe i had one of the best first pick experiences. It starts of me goign to the burlington mall and i found myself at my friends shop he has rented. he of course lost his keys so i decided i would pick his lock for him it toke about 10 minutes but i had it. to bad i hd no i dea what it was but it was the same lock as the one the mall security used to keep the money in. fun!

[Lord]

Today I picked my first lock!

I bought a dremel tool, a master lock (advertised as pick restistant too, false ad?), and a thin sheet of steel. I made a tension wrench and a simple pick (i'm unhappy with it now, but I say not bad for first attempt.) It took me about a minute and a half to beat the lock with prod and poking around at the tumblers. I was extremely excited. tomarrow I'm going to make two more picks based on the problems I ran into trying to pick other locks.

(I have too much of a curve to my pick, so if the tumblers are long enough its difficult to get passed the second or third one. the so-called pick resistant master lock I got seems to have shorter tumblers compared to an older master lock I have and a deadbolt lock I bought with it.)

What i like most about how I've made my picks is that I made them to fit comfortable in the sleeves of my wallet right next to my credit cards.

[pimpfuu]

the first lock i picked/raked was today it was a yale deadbolt (same as the kwikset kw1) i made a tension wrench with a 1 inch nail and the pick with a paperclip

it felt so good :]]

i am instantly hooked, i ordered a bumpkey and should be here any day. this week i am ordering a basic 5 peace lock pick set because paperclips bend to easily and up the dificulty of lock picking

tomorrow i am going to attempt to make a lock pick set out of a hack saw and a dremel.

any suggestions?

[Axxis]

I have watched a few videos and scoured the forums on building a set of lockpicks myself, but they all seem to need a grinder/dremmel and all that. I was wondering if anyone had a more simple way to make one. I wouldn't mind if they didnt' last long, I'm just getting started and would rather not go out and buy hacksaw blades and a grinder/dremmel just to make a few picks for right now. Eventualy I'll probably do it anyways, lol.

[raimundo]

you can do it with files, but you have to buy them too.

[medic10501]

Once I made a good hook pick and torsion wrench from a hacksaw blade, as opposed to the Mcgyver crap I was trying. It really only took me about 2 min to open a Master #3. After one evening of practice I am able to open that lock in under 20 sec and open a few others as well.

[11mike11]

I bought 2 locks from the dollar store for a buck a piece and just raked each one open, took a couple seconds. They were good confidence builders cause it just shows that it could be done and i could do it. After that i picked them pin for pin and have just been working my way up from there.

[WOT]

Yes. I picked a 3-pin wafer lock that goes to a cheap, plastic, outdated floppy disk storage box.

[mucky]

the first lock i picked has long since dissapeared from memory but i think it was a cheap padlock of some kind. i then went many years untill recently without opening any, but with my job now as a vehicle breakdown and recovery mechanic i have bought some tools and have had some good sucess, many people lock themselves out of vehicles but none of my coleagues use lock picking but "normal" entry tools, customers with cars that are pickable for me are both shocked and pleased at the ease of which their car locks give up their secrets,
sucess is sometimes slow but rewarding.

[Charodei]

My SouthOrd picks arrived today, so I took a look at what I had handy. I have a bunch of older Master, Yale, and US Lock padlocks, with keys to most. A quick feel found that they're all 5-pin cylinders. A little more searching found a half-dozen 3-pin lock assemblies - the kind used in filing cabinets - all brand new with keys and pinned the same.

I didn't keep track, but I don't think it took more than 10 minutes to rake it open the first time. Now that I've learned how much (or is that little?) tension is needed, I can usually pick them in around 30 seconds with a half-diamond.

I should get something of intermediate difficulty, but I'll try my hand at my harder locks in the meantime.

[Vincent31]

The first lock I picked wasn't really picked per se, it was more of a slimjim type approach, and it worked beautifully on the cheap lock (it certainly wouldn't work on the harder ones) but It has me really excited. I definitely plan to continue with this business, it is simply so much fun.