a must

[samfishers]

I was wondering: is lock picking a must for becoming a locksmith or do you just need to know how to use a pick gun?

[SEVEN]

In England the answer is no you do not need to pick lock's or use a pickgun it depend's on which area you wish to specialise.

[maintenanceguy]

I think you need to know how to pick a lock, but probably not for NDE. There are always other ways to get into a locked house (although not as "elegant" as picking the lock.

But there are lots of times when picking a lock is useful. It's the fast and easy way to disassemble a lock to rekey it if you don't have a key. I picked 3 locks just today to remove a few LFIC cylinders that I had keys too but no control keys. I use my picking skills at the bench working on locks more than I do to gain access.

[freakparade3]

Do you want to look like a competent professional or someone who only cares about making money with a drill. Your answer to my question will answer yours.

[Eyes_Only]

If you can pick locks it can help make extra income doing emergency lockout services when your other jobs like ones from commercial accounts slows down. And personally I think it helps your professional image.

[JackNco]

I know i wouldn't be calling the locksmith back if he went from the gun to the drill.

its not THAT hard of a skill to pick up to some extent. Its like Blackjack...

Minutes to learn (well how it works) a lifetime to master.

[Eyes_Only]

In the US we have a growing problem where unlicensed phony locksmiths gets called out for a simple residential lockout work and they "try" picking the lock for 5 to 10 minutes and then tell you that the lock isn't pickable so out comes the drill and you get charged $1000 for the drill job and replacement lock. So I wouldn't want to call back a locksmith who depend on the drill too much either.

[lockpick1968]

I suggest to learn to pick, shows your professional side, the drill is the LAST resort if all else fails, which in most cases there is always another way.

[Jaakko]

I have to say this: Only drilling done in here. No picking, except cars. All the little brass padlocks get chopped with bolt cutters, usually by the owner.

Why? One word: Abloy

In somewhere else, I would say that drilling is only for installing mortice locks

[Servalite6354]

I was wondering: is lock picking a must for becoming a locksmith or do you just need to know how to use a pick gun?

I think you'd be okay if you could only use a pick gun. That being said, there's a lot more to being a locksmith than picking locks. Depending on whether or not you specialize, or what in, you may need carpentry skills, business skills, and design or mechanical skills.

I'm sure you could be a lock smith and not know how to pick at all, but it certainly wouldn't hurt.

If you can use a pick gun, it shouldn't be that much more difficult to learn how to pick by hand.

[FFVison]

There are other forms of NDE though, not just picking or using a gun. There is also bumping which works well, from what I have seen. I have not tried it personally though. So, it is true that you do not really need to learn how to pick, but I would still think that the more skills you have, the better you will be when encountering a new obstacle. Among the many things I learned from picking locks is this: What works for one lock may not work for another. If a lock doesn't open for you using a pick gun, perhaps picking might be a better option. I think the best tactic is to become as well rounded as you can, that way when you need to use another technique, you don't have to resort to the drill.

I suppose you could specialize in the other aspects of locksmithing as well. However, I think it's generally pretty common to think of a locksmith as someone who can open a door without the use of a key. Perhaps if you were to go into business as a locksmith, you might have another colleague who might specialize in NDE and you might rely on him to open doors for clients. However, if you were starting up your own business, that would be one more person that you have to pay just for a skill that you didn't want to try to hone.

On a side note, I have also learned that picking locks can be an expensive habit. My girlfriend makes fun of me because of my little "obsession." I sometimes feel myself getting excited while driving by a hardware store and thinking about how much cash I had in my pocket and would it be enough to go in there and buy a new lock. It's a rush and I can all but guarantee that you will enjoy it. I also recommend learning raking as well. Raking may not be as rewarding, but it can be a LOT quicker when it works which is important when someone wants to get back into their house.

[kg4boj]

There are all kinds of different circumstances. I learned how to use a pick gun early on as a locksmith, and what it does is buy you the one thing no amount of money truly can buy.... TIME. When you have 5 calls on hold 2 of them say auto lockouts on the other side of the county, you cant afford to spend 30-40 min to pick a house lock. Around here I am in luck, many of the houses are EZ set, defiant, old skool kwikset and sometimes in some of the newer ones schlage. Most of the landlords that own multiple houses want kwikset standard key in knob (or Ultra brand)... why? they look decent, you can easily replace them when they paint over the door with one with the same footprint (no touchup paint job needed) (you painters really need to do a better job fyi... UNDER THE KNOBS NOT OVER) In the real world, if you work alot, you pick the knob for 5-10 min, and if it has security pins, most of the time you snap it.... anything more costs extra or you drill it..... time is money, you should keep it to 45$ an hour including travel time or so.

[ilmr]

If you break the lock while letting a customer back in, you can sell him/her a new lock == $profit$. But using that as the only excuse wouldn't be that ethical.

[samfishers]

that is not so kind to charge a guy for something he didn't do!

[chip]

I've never known how someone can have the front to charge a customer for a new lock they the "lockie" drilled or snapped as he didn't have the skill to get in NDE.

drill Must always be the last option. Fine, we all come across something you can't pick at times but to go for the driil first does come across as very professional!