ARCHIVE 2003-2013 Introduce yourself HERE if you are new. :)

[stapuft]

hi
i'm a newb here and i am just intristed in learning to pick locks and ways to make it easier

[andi92]

hi
new boy here , 10 years as carpenter with local council , last 3 as resident
lockie after a quickie course in bypassing.
lucky , as with council backing i can get nearly all the toys but problem is now i got more tools than talent !
hoping to be able to pick your brains , if thats ok.
will search for info before asking so i don't repost
thanks

[TriannaX]

Yup, I'm new....kinda.

I've recently registered and decided to start posting!

I've been lurking for.....almost a year now, reading things, collecting all the sweeper bristles I've come across (I must have about 30 by now)

I've just opened my first Masterlock No3 It was cake. I used a sweeper bristle that I bent into a tension wrench and the straight part of a hair pin.

So yea, I'm here.

[geo2]

Hello. I'm completely new to lock-picking, but do a lot of lock rekeying and repair on a daily basis. It has always been something I wanted to learn. I have some experience in gunsmithing, which I used to love, but haven't done any (nor do I plan to) in years.

[digital_blue]

Welcome all new members.

I'm in a pleasant mood, and perhaps a little on the bored side, so I'll do something a little more than my traditional "Hi there, click my sig" post.

I'm glad you've all decided to sign up here at LP101. You'll find, if you stick around, that we've got a great community of very knowledgeable people who put a lot of time and effort into answering questions and discussing all things related to lock picking.

Hobby lock picking is great fun, and once you've got the bug, you'll while away countless hours with tools and locks in your hands. It's infinitely challenging, so there's really no reason to get bored with it. You'll NEVER master it. There will ALWAYS be a lock out there you can't pick. ALWAYS. That's part of the "coolness" factor.

If you take some time to explore the site, you'll find that many of your questions have already been answered. Clicking on my sig image will take you to a post designed to give you the introductory tour. You'll also find that post at the top of every forum on the site. We try to make it easy around here.

If you're not familiar with a forum such as this, you may wish to spend some time getting to know the workings of the search function. There are FAR too many articles on this site for you to read them all. Far, far too many. I've tried. I've probably covered 80%. I've been here a while. But the search function can lead you to many fun, informative, and interesting things.

If you're new to lock picking, you can gain a lot by reading documents such as the MIT Guide, and Matt Blaze's work on lock picking. All this can be found linked within this site, so I won't spoil the fun by linking these docs here.

There are also a wealth of tutorials here. You could spend the next week just reading tutorials and find that your knowledge has increased tremendously.

All this stuff has been put together collectively by an awesome community. Please be respectful of this community by reading and following the rules.

Good luck and have fun. If you have questions along the way, we'll be here. And, as always, happy picking!

db

[omgxraycat]

Hi everyone! I've always been interested in this art. Finally ordered my first lockpicks (just a $20 5 piece set from south ord). I have read virtually every guide I could find on this site and I feel confident that I know whats going on inside basic locks. Should get my picks 6-16-06!!! Can't wait!

[Shrub]

Welcome to the site everyone.

[pie muncher]

hello everyone,

my name is adam i am 25. was bought one of those kwik pick tools as a present a while back, tried and managed to pick zero locks yet. however i have enjoyed trying so much its now my hobby and im looking into becomming a locksmith.

Bringing me to my next question can anyone point me in the right direction of a good starter set of picks, and books i should be reading?also, Learn direct are persuing some training courses for me however, can anyone tell me how much a good self employed locksmith can earn a year?

All advice much appreciated, cool site, adam.

[Shrub]

Welcome all new members.

I'm in a pleasant mood, and perhaps a little on the bored side, so I'll do something a little more than my traditional "Hi there, click my sig" post.

I'm glad you've all decided to sign up here at LP101. You'll find, if you stick around, that we've got a great community of very knowledgeable people who put a lot of time and effort into answering questions and discussing all things related to lock picking.

Hobby lock picking is great fun, and once you've got the bug, you'll while away countless hours with tools and locks in your hands. It's infinitely challenging, so there's really no reason to get bored with it. You'll NEVER master it. There will ALWAYS be a lock out there you can't pick. ALWAYS. That's part of the "coolness" factor.

If you take some time to explore the site, you'll find that many of your questions have already been answered. Clicking on my sig image will take you to a post designed to give you the introductory tour. You'll also find that post at the top of every forum on the site. We try to make it easy around here.

If you're not familiar with a forum such as this, you may wish to spend some time getting to know the workings of the search function. There are FAR too many articles on this site for you to read them all. Far, far too many. I've tried. I've probably covered 80%. I've been here a while. But the search function can lead you to many fun, informative, and interesting things.

If you're new to lock picking, you can gain a lot by reading documents such as the MIT Guide, and Matt Blaze's work on lock picking. All this can be found linked within this site, so I won't spoil the fun by linking these docs here.

There are also a wealth of tutorials here. You could spend the next week just reading tutorials and find that your knowledge has increased tremendously.

All this stuff has been put together collectively by an awesome community. Please be respectful of this community by reading and following the rules.

Good luck and have fun. If you have questions along the way, we'll be here. And, as always, happy picking!

db

[Cango]

Im new, totally no experience. I opened one of those locks on bedroom doors once. Yknow, the ones with the little hole, you throw an unbent coat hanger into the hole, and turn, and the door opens. Yea, I can open those like i'm Hairy Houdini.


Never gave Locksmithing/picking more than a passing thought till recently when I realized, "Wait, this is pretty cool, *and* I can get paid to do it"

So now I'm looking for an apprenticeship or something.

[Eplez]

Hi, looks like a great community you have over here =)

I'm a 21 year old student from Norway, taking my Bachelor in Computer/IT.

Have been interested in lockpicking for a while, but finally took the step and decided to purchase my first lockpick set from lockpickshop.com (thanks for the 10% discount, btw ).

I'm ordering now and the shoppingcart has now the 37 Piece Slim Line Euro set and some automobile tools.

Cant wait until i get the new picks, and trying out in frustration, anger and joy

See you around =)

[theblackninja]

Greetings,
I just started picking. I think it is fascinating. It is like solving a rubik's cube only better. I am a total newbie and I would appreciate any help I can get. This forum seems like it is a community which is stout.

[lowen]

Well, introductions, huh. Ok, here is my stab at it.

I currently babysit a freaky master key system for my employer. Many, but not all, the locks on site are Schlage numbered locks (restricted keyway). There is part of a Best system, a Sargent, and some wierd Schlage C keyways pinned all ones. Oh, and a few corbins, and the ever present S&G 8077 padlocks. The numbered blanks come up on eBay once every two years or so; I got 200 blanks this last shot at it, for about $50.

At my previous employer I designed and installed their current master key system.

I used my limited knowledge of lockpicking (hobby lockpicking is somewhat frowned upon in North Carolina), in designing the system to be as difficult as possible for a non high-security lock to be. That is, a low number pin at the very back of the cylinder, with nearly a maximum adjacent separation to a high number pin in front, and another low number, then another high number, etc. Getting a useful number of masters out of that was tricky, but I got a five-zone three level system out of it.

I certainly do not consider myself an expert, but it is fun learning, and has been fun for these ten years. Got a Foley Belsaw 200 machine to play with, and rekey my own locks. Of course, due to state licensure requirements, I do not do anything for anyone but myself on my own property and for my employer on his property.

Oh, to the poster who likened lock picking to a Rubik's cube; the Cube is much much easier than lockpicking... I can do the regular Cube in a little less than a minute, and a Revenge in about 5. Locks, on the other hand, require much more skill.

[Shepherd]

Yep. Introductions. So. Um.

Well, I'm just 16, and appearently, I'm suppose to be up to no good by learning this. Where I come from, its illegal to be in "possession" of lockpicks "with out...(Blah blah blah)...Or excuse" , wonderful aint it?

What attracted me to this "Dark Art" as Sesame(sp) called it in another thread, was excatly that, that its in the grey area of alot of things, be it society's views on it, actual laws and such.

Well, I'm keen to learn.

[jimorthon]

hello all,
i found this site while searching for general info on becoming a lockpick/locksmith. i`m looking for a change of direction from my current job as a taxi controller in london and fancy the idea of being self employed and self dependant. thought about the usual plumber/electrician/builder tradesman route`s. lock picking seems easy to start (although i`m not doubting the years of dedication obviously required to master) with its quick courses, and just as lucrative as those others for someone who is not afraid of hard work and long hours, and for some reason the world of a lock pick strikes me as glamorous when compared to the other trades (perhaps due to the pink panther or some mission impossible type roles in the movies) i look forward to reading the views of the experienced men/women in this craft with interest.
with regards jim.