Problem with picking a no name lock

[atheossapiens]

I just started picking locks with a SouthOrd MPXS-14 set. The padlock that I am working with doesn't have any name on it. Every time I apply even a littile tension on the plug the first pin becomes unmovable. Sometimes when I release the tension the pin still remains unmovable. Sometimes when I have the pin so that it will move, I can get all of the pins so that they feel like they are set, they have a slight spring to them but I can never get the plug to move an inch. Can anybody tell me what I am doing wrong? Did I get to cheap of a lock that isn't any good to practice on? It is a really cheap, no name padlock which has a blue bumper on it to make it look like a master lock.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

[Chucklz]

You may have a spool pin or two to contend with. I recommend spending the money on a Master #1,3, or 5 padlock. They all have the same cylinder, so which one you should get depends on what you can easily find at the store, and of course whatever is the least expensive. When selecting your lock, attempt to find one that doesnt have a very very deep cut next to a very shallow cut. Other than that, you should be fine with selecting a lock.

Try picking it, and then see if you have the same problems. It is very hard to venture a guess when nothing is known about the brand of the padlock you are attempting to pick. But, it would be a fair assumption that you are using too much tension. Try cutting it down by 3-5 TIMES what you are currently using.

[atheossapiens]

Thanks for the help. As far as the brand name goes, it doesn't say anything on the casing of the lock. I bought it from a street vender in Oxford, England. I think it is a master knockoff. I just tried to press the first pin down without any torqure at all and the pin stuck, so this leeds me to think that the lock is a really bad design. I think I will take your first suggestion and get one of the locks you suggested.

Thanks again.

[Chucklz]

I suggest rereading the MIT guide. You dont always pick the first pin and then the second. In fact, I dont think I own a lock that picks in that order.

[CitySpider]

I suggest rereading the MIT guide. You dont always pick the first pin and then the second. In fact, I dont think I own a lock that picks in that order.

I know that I don't. I have one that _can_ be picked in that order, but it's not the easiest way to do it.

[atheossapiens]

I've discovered that the lock is made by Squires. I have tried starting with the pins in the back and sometimes I get them so that they seem to be set and other times they lock up much like the first pin does or they just keep springing up and down. Sometimes I get all four pins so that they appear to be set but the plug doesn't rotate.

[atheossapiens]

Well, I finally picked it. Unfortunately the pins have disappeared and are now rattling around in the lock. Any idea of what went wrong?

[Chucklz]

Do things stille rattle around once you've turned the cylinder back to the neutral position? If so, my guess is that you've used too much pick force and mangled a spring, or pushed some retaining cap off the top. Either way, too much force was involved.