Help Please! Schlage problem.

[MrBuz]

I wish to thank Varjeal and all of the rest of you for just being here. I do not post very often because the wide diversity of inquiries made often answer any questions of my own.
I find myself in a delemina with Schlage deadbolts I picked up new recently. I find the springs unusually strong and wonder if I am not applying enough torque. The best I have been able to do is open one with a sawtooth. With individual picking I never get past setting two pins.
I could really use some help.
Thanx,
Mr Buz

[Wolf2486]

There are many possibilities. Some that come to mind is that if anything, you're using too much tension and the pins are binding so hard it makes them cumbersome to manipulate. Another possibility is that there is some kind of security pin in chamber 1 or 2 and when you set that, everything binds up, hence making it seem as if the springs are strong. The final possibilty I can think of is that when that lock was keyed, the driver pins were too big for the chambers and it is compressing the spring too much.

[n2oah]

There are many possibilities. Some that come to mind is that if anything, you're using too much tension and the pins are binding so hard it makes them cumbersome to manipulate.

That's probably it. I heard schlages are easy to take apart, so you may want to take out the pins and examine them. Hope I helped

[Varjeal]

Thanks for the kind words...if this is the first Schlage lock you've tried, then I'm not suprised by what you've found. Schlage locks generally have tighter tolerances (especially on the shearline) than standard kwikcrap or weiser locks.

Your not likely to find overcompressed springs in the lock. Factory assembly is done with the same length of drivers across the board. It may feel, however, like the springs are overcompressed if your particular lock has a lot of deep pins such as #7-#9.

As mentioned already, try disassembling the lock and getting a good look at the innards.

[Shrub]

If you find nothing wrong with the lock try using the overlifting technique where by you lift all the bottom pins just up past the shear line and then carefully drop them all down to the shear line with your tension on and feathering it slightly,
You may not have any joy this way either but i find it easier to set security pins this way.

[robert-e]

I've been a locksmith for over 20 years. When I started, I found Schlage to give me whats-for also. I overcame the problem in one of two ways. -- Believe it or not, I found that picking Schlage counterclockwise was easier than clockwise. ( could be just "me") I would then use a spinner to go the other way if that was what I wanted. The second way is to use a pick gun. You'll find a lot of negative responses about a pick gun however, one has gotten me out of many fixes. I use both of these methods to this day.

[MrB]

Although a pick gun is really helpful for the working locksmith, it isn't quite the same for the hobbyist. Resorting to a pick gun means you haven't really overcome the challenge of picking the lock; you haven't solved the puzzle. Being able to pick difficult locks manually says a lot about your skill and sensitivity of touch. It's a bit like learning to juggle. There's little practical use for that skill, but it is still fun to learn.

[MudSlinger]

I recently did an under the table locksmithing job(not licensed so everything is under the table) but it was on a schlage key in knob, I was having alot of trouble which bothered me because I am usually a fairly profficient picker.
I, like him had toruble setting pins. Eventually I took out my ground down hex wrench tensioner as a last resort, and having such a ridged, non-springy, wrench really helped the feeling of the pins. It wasnt more pressure that helped but more direct results cause by a ridgid wrench. Im not applying it to this situation because I know that even 2 locks of the exact same make and model and keying can pick completly differntly but just a though.

-Muds