Need help with bump-keys :P

[NewBee :)]

I read a post, and saw a few videos regarding bump-keys. And I was mighty impressed, and decided to make one myself.
I used an old key and filed it down after som drawings i found.

The problem is this, I only manage to pop 3-4 pins. No matter how long i "bump" it

Here is a picture of my key



Is there any ovbiuos mistakes?
Thanks for any help

[horsefeathers]

I am no expert, though have made a couple myself recently. One for Yale and one for ERA (similar profiles I know but the pin spacings seem slightly different so needed one for each). Your spacings dont seem too evenly spaced. Maybe thats the reason. Plus I did mine on a key machine, using a key with a 9 cut and moving the blank key to be cut back and forth so the cutting wheel cut good clean cuts at the correct points.

Why use a 6 pin key to begin with? Why not make a perfect 5 cut key first then for 6 pin ERAs for example simply copy the 5 cuts onto the blank then add the sixth.

But as I say, it seemed easier for me to use a key cutting machine rather than by hand. A smoother cleaner cut!

regards

wayne

[spQQky]

I read a post, and saw a few videos regarding bump-keys. And I was mighty impressed, and decided to make one myself.
I used an old key and filed it down after som drawings i found.

The problem is this, I only manage to pop 3-4 pins. No matter how long i "bump" it

Your spacing and height seem a bit off. Even though they don't need to be perfect, like from a machine, the closer you get it the better the key will work with different locks.

[NewBee :)]

Hmmmmmm............ got some pritty good answers there,
But i managed to bump the lock a couple of times in a row, and started to wonder, if i have used too much torqe. so how much torqe should I use?

[spQQky]

Hmmmmmm............ got some pritty good answers there,
But i managed to bump the lock a couple of times in a row, and started to wonder, if i have used too much torqe. so how much torqe should I use?

The way that I do it is to just barely touch the key, not really trying to turn it. Just as you strike the key with whatever you are using then start a very light turn, or torque. It's really a matter of timing and touch, and of course the amount of pressure you use to strike it. Start with a mild tap, it doesn't take much. Just a quick sharp strike aimed directly down the keyway and a feather touch of turning the key.

[clayton1123]

Sorry for asking such a newbie question, but what do you guys (and maybe girls) use to measure the width and depth of a 999 key. Barry from toool.com showed a demo of him filing down a key and it seemed like he did'nt even use calipers or a measurement device of any sort. Oh well. Any help would be very much appreciated.

[illusion]

use a pre-cut key for a particular lock - this sorts out the spacing.

Get some depth keys , or simply get the key cut by a locksmith.

[stevelock]

NewBee


on the toool website when he filed the key he had one cut on his key that was a 9 to go by. also looks like you need to cut the tip of the key down.

ps cut to about a 9 1/2 works better

have fun
steve

[clayton1123]

Definetly look at space/depth keys. You can get a perfect cut key and they are fairly cheap.

[qwerty125]

I've noticed though.. like in the video presented by toool.. you can just go out and file down any key that fits in the keyhole and expect to bump the lock. (was kind of dissapointed at that lol) .. It works best if you use a key thats designed for that specific lock. I've been unsuccessful in bumping other locks with keys that weren't made by that lock company (even though it fits)

[illusion]

Yes, it is the pin-spacing which stops a universal bump-key from working.

You will find that often manufacturers use the same pin spacing in a lot of their cylinders, so it will work within the range of models they make.

[creation imperfect]

i have made a few bumpkeys myself and only one of them works, and then maybe once in five or six tries. i take old keys and file the spacings down and try to flatten out the bottoms of them. i find it helps to regulate spacing if you first take an ultra fine point sharpie and draw a straight line down underneath each plateau (sorry i don't know the correct word) where the pins land when the key is inserted.

[vector40]

The entire benefit of bump keys is that they fit the lock so well. If they didn't have that, it would basically be a kinetic pick gun.

[qwerty125]

Also I thought'd Id mention because I've always had an issue with the shoulder..
If you file down too much, I found it useful to stick the key in different lenghts.. by that i mean.. I'll start with the key in all the way, then the key out a little.. adn then the key out alot.. once i've found the sweet spot I'll find some way to pad the shoulder (don't have access to a glue gun and sure as hell im not buyin one).. Once I got that issue down i've been able to bump my front door lock within 2 shots. Might I add that I used a kwickset key on a Yale and 'security' lock (i think thats the brand name)
Gonna try to get my hands a some more locks to see how 'universal' this kwickset key is..

Funny story.. I've been on this forum for maybe more than 5 months or so.. and now I just have a tedency to name people's keys.. and not like i studied which key looks like what but just reading stuff on this forum I can pick out the common keys and makes me wonder how the hell did i remeber all those? cuz i can't remeber where i place my keys every morning.