Lock Shims

[pyrodude145]

Hey I've done a little homework on LP101 but I can't find too much on Lock Shims. Does anyone have any advice, pictures, or techniques on how to make them and use them. I can pick the locks but I hear that the shims themselves are a lot better. Email me or reply. Thanks Pyro

[Uisgdlyast]

your not really picking with a shim.

If you search you can find out how to make them out of coke cans. There is also a huge thread on them.


Learn how to pick for fun, use a shim if your a locksmith or highschool kid

[funboy79015]

Are you talking about padlock shims or the thin strips of metal that you insert into the rear of a cylinder between the core and the shell to trap the driver pins above the the shear line?

[Kaellman]

Search for "Bypassing" or "shim templates". That should give u a resonable ammount of good threads.

By shimming u dont actually pick a lock, but u by-pass it. It does, however, only work on cheaper and low security locks. This bacause a cheaper padlock has a "pin" mechanism that keeps the lock locked, while manufacturers can pay like one more cent per lock and get a ball mechanism instead. This "ball" is impossible to by-pass the way a shim by-passes a lock with a pin.

I believe thats how it works, but its always best to get your own opinion!

Good luck!

[pyrodude145]

Hey thanks guys for the info check, I guess I thought it was an interesting concept, the shims and all. I love picking though. I have 5 sets 3 homemades and 2 purhcased, and I thought the shims would be a new challenge. O well. If you got any more advice about shims or paddlelock opening, give me a holla! Pyro out

[RangerF150]

I've never used shims , i would think that they are really only for someone "in the business" that want's to open a lock , in a hurry without destruction.

I fail to see the challenge in shiming a lock , im just funny like that

No challenge , no interest

[RangerF150]

Oh, one other thing!
There is a picker that uses the handle pyro, a pretty good pick maker !
I suggest that you use your full handle or change it to something else.

It's a small point , but could annoy some people who respect the "real" pyro!

Good luck !

[WhiteHat]

there's actually quite a few pyro's..

the real one is in all caps:

PYRO1234321

those numbers just roll off the fingers

[RangerF150]

LOL

[WhiteHat]

erm... just re-reading my post - by "real" I meant "famous-one-who-did-the-video" but you guys knew that hey...

[PYRO1234321]

(Blush)

[raimundo]

the two variables in shims are the amount of space on the lock that allows them in and the quality of the metal that they are made out of. Oh and some padlocks, almost all the qualityones cannot be shimed, if you open the lock and see cuts for the locking dogs on both legs of the shackle, forget it. if the locking dogs are ball bearings, forget it. but if its a master dial combination lock, tear the case off of a VHS tape, look for a stainless steel strip spring heat mashed into the case. remove this and look at it, there is a crease that bends the spring down, on either end. and the hole where the plastic mash was. cut it off across at the little hole, to a straight edge. put the cut end on a soft wood board, and place the round shaft of a phillips screwdriver on the metal from the place where you cut it to the crease. let the rest of the metal hang off the edge of the board, hammer this screwdriver shaft into the metal and the metal into the board. Look at a jacknife blade, see the shape near the tip is convex on one side and concave on the other, you will cut a shorter fatter version of this into the curved part of your shim. look at the master combo lock, dial side, the left side of the shackle is where the locking dog lives. cut the last half inch of your curved shim so that the part that will be toward the inside of the loop of the shackle is bellied out but really, this will be almost a 45 degree angle across the end of the shim with a little curvature out. on the other side of the shim, use the tin snips to just cut a straight angle to the tip, the tip should not be to the center of the metal, that should be still curved metal with the curved end, just cut a 15 to 30 degreed slice off the left edge. deburr it with a file, push it into the gap inside the loop of the shackle and press it straight down, press the shackle down too, you will have already bent the handle end out a bit, hold this shim in the hole and pull the shackle out, if it does not open, hold the shim in and push the shackle back in, then hold the shim in and pull the shackle out. it will open.

[Kayvon]

If you're still interested in how the shims work, there is an excellent (short) demonstration on this page:

http://members.lycos.co.uk/optimumonlin ... index.html

Click on padlock shims. Again, this isn't really picking, so I don't know that there's a lot of "fun" in it.

[vector40]

I didn't realize that the quality of the metal made a significant difference, raimundo. Is there a brand of shim that you'd recommend above others?

[gnoff]

ive used shims a few times, when re-keying locks that i dont have the key for. just stick a key blank in the lock, push the shim in (from the back of course) and slide the key in and out.

im not sure that this works the same on padlocks, i think you might have to get the shim around the key hole. ive never used padlock shims before...