Raking or single pin?

[SlimPickens]

I've spoken to a lot of people who say they prefer raking to single pin because they find it easier. I've tried raking but I've yet to open a single lock with this style!

So how do pick?

[Kaellman]

Definatly single pick to get the feel. Raking to just set the lock is like having sex with a girl you dont know. You dont get the feel

[digital_blue]

How come nobody thinks of an "all of the above" option when starting these polls? Both techniques are useful skills to have. Sometimes a couple quick rakes and the lock pops open. For the purist, there IS no other form of picking except pin-by-pin. There's no question that you will increase your understanding, feel, and skill of lockpicking far more picking a pin at a time. Just don't rule out raking or scrubbing. These techniques work, and sometime they work well.

db

[AUTOLOX]

Definatly single pick to get the feel. Raking to just set the lock is like having sex with a girl you dont know. You dont get the feel

Yes but the end result's the same

[raimundo]

kaellman, you should single pick the locks you intend to live with and rake the ones your just fooling around with.

[digital_blue]

kaellman, you should single pick the locks you intend to live with and rake the ones your just fooling around with.

Now that's funny!

[dry132]

Usually if I'm trying to get in fast, I'll rake a few times, then increase tension a little bit and set the rest of the pins and any security pins. So I guess both. Usually I use the snake rake for raking, and short lifter for setting pins.

[dry132]

In other words, I rake the lock until I get to know it better, then settle down to single picking when it gets too touchy to handle with the ol' snake rake.

[JoR]

Both are good. Raking is a quicker form sometimes.
I can open all my padlocks bar one with a good rake - a Tri Circle 266, a Master No.3, an Abus 60/50, a Draper etc. etc. I use the snake for the Master and the Abus, for the Draper and Tri Circle a ball rake works wonders, less than 10 seconds and she's open.

For single pin the hook pick is the lad to use. The half diamond is useful as well. I like both methods but I have to take time to single pin pick and not get carried away raking all the time.

[JoR]

No edit

I have warded lever locks on my doors, so I can only practice pin and tumbler door picking at my friends. Again, raking opens his back door. He has one of those cheap Italian makes, like Vivo.
I must buy a decent cylinder to practice on myself though.

[Ives]

I always pick 1 by 1, If I rake a lock, I am not as proud as when I pick it pin by pin.

[Kaellman]

! that gave me a laugh Raimundo, however, i think i will leave the raking to lockpicking, or wait.. maybe that was what you were talking about.. im getting off-topic-confused here

[NDEFreak]

I dont know Kaellman -

Raking - lock opens.
Single Pin - lock opens.

Making love to your woman - orgasm.
Shagging a local tramp - orgasm.

I guess it comes down to mentality!

[chopitup]

I actually have used my snake rake enough that I can lift individual pins accurately with it, so I just rake and then search for any pins which need to be set and get them from there.

[stick]

I can do that too, but only with cheaper locks. Unless you have a very strangely shaped rake or a strangely pinned lock, you're not going to be able to reliably lift a single pin with a snake rake; the snake rake was designed to interact with multiple pins, and will do so in almost every case.