Sphero

[Krypos]

ARG! i got into popping open master lock combos for my teacher (who had a key but no combo) <-- easy to find combo! BUT my buddy hands me his master lock Sphero lock. it's a pain in the butt! like 7 sticking points and no keyhole. posting pics below. any suggestions appreciated!

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h99/k ... 020003.jpg
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h99/k ... 020002.jpg
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h99/k ... 020001.jpg

there is the lock. ANY help appreciated!

thanks!

[Shrub]

To do hat? open it or manipulate it for fun or find the combo?

Shim it and look down the shackle hole with a torch.

[Krypos]

im looking to get the combo ultimately- i ahve shimmed it a bunch very easy, but what will looking down the shackle hoel accomplish? can i get insight towards the combo that way? and also i am assuming a torch is what you guys call a flashlight in...wherever you are. right?

[frollard]

I wrenched open my old master combo lock.

Looking down the shackle hole will reveal nothing of the combo, because the locking mechanism blocks direct view of the combination mechanism.

There are several writeups out there for reducing the permutations from in the tens of thousands to just a few hundred possible combos. I've not searched lp101 for it, but google will certainly yeild results.

[Shrub]

Yes a torch is a flash light.

I have yet to play in any detail with any sort of such dial combination padlocks but i read on a thread on here somewhere that looking down the shackle hole will allow you to see at least one of the wheels, perhaps its a wire thats inserted to feel around or perhaps im mistaken.

[mcm757207]

You can get the combo from the hole, you just have to hold back the latch with something something while you read the wheels.

[Shrub]

I thought it wasnt time for me to go mad yet lol

[Krypos]

so...can it be done?

[mcm757207]

Yes, it's exactly like a normal master lock just with a different dial. Shim it open, hold the latch back, alight the wheels right a bright light, transpose the numbers to make up for the distance from what you are seeing and where they actually need to be (subtract 10 from each number I think), and your all set. Or find the last number (lots of stuff on this on the internet already), and plug it into the 'master lock cracking widget' (I have an excel doc that does this, but there is a website out there that does as well I think) and try out each of the 100 combos till it opens.

[lockedin]

To find the unknwon combination all you do is shim it, line up the wheels so that the indentations match up (you should be able to easily distinguish it from the false gates in the third wheel), note each number, and transfer them to the opposite side. I mark the other side with a marker (preferably one that washes away easily), and keep track of the numbers then make note of the numbers at the top center. The only time I have had trouble seeing the indentations is in Master Locks that use keys, or in certain locks that have an unnecessary metal piece obstructing the view. I use a little flashlight (the kind doctors use to look in your eye), to increase my visibility. Like mcm151201 says, you hold the latch back. One way to prevent having to shim it over and over is to apply upward pressure on the latch while you try what you think is the combo (there is an element of imprecision that requires some checking), it should go all the way in when you have the right one. Good luck.