I've noticed something bad....

[Lucky1406]

I've been picking my locks an awful lot(not my door ones, but the ones that I bought just for picking), and I found out that with the deadbolts, After even a few picks, They become hard to open with the keys. Am I being too agressive with my picking? Some times I rake just for the fun of it to see if I can get it in one go(never really works though), But am i tearing up my lock when I do this? Is it the dust inside the lock? or is it something else, flakes? Would lube fix it, or maybe some graphite? Sorry if this has already been posted, But dang if that search button is hard to use, never finds the thing i'm looking for, even when I put "AND" in with the words. oh well. Maybe I'm just being a heavy picker, and am using too much tension. I prolly just need some more work. Let me know your thoughts,
Nick

[digital_blue]

The best advice I can offer is to tell you to take the lock apart and take a look. If the pins are badly damaged, if there is an excessive amount of brass dust, etc, then you know you are being too aggressive, particularly with your raking.

If there is no significant wear on the key pins (bottom pins), then reassemble the lock and try some 3 in 1 spray lubricant (available at any hardware store). I would stay away from graphite because it's messy and WD40 because it is ineffective in the long term.

If you find a completely mangled set of pins, try taking pictures so we can all point and laugh...

... just kidding.

db

[LockNewbie21]

If you find a completely mangled set of pins, try taking pictures so we can all point and laugh...

... just kidding.

No do it please

[Shrub]

Do your picks have a brass goldie colour on them?

If you are using South Ord picks and to be honest pretty much anyother brand you need to de-burr them with some emry paper to smooth off the edges,

Raking no matter how gentle will wear the pins, if you are agressive then i suggest you have indeed removed enough material from them to damage the keying,

If you lift the key up slightly or pull it out slightly does it turn better? this is a very good indication of damaged pins,

As said strip the lock using the guide you can find by clicking on my picture and go from there, do it in a bag so you dont loose the pins and springs,

[LockNewbie21]

strip the lock

Pervert!

[cheesehead]

you might be putting too much pressure on the keyway with your tension wrench. it is possible you may have actually deformed the middle "ward" in the keyway. I managed to do that a few times when I first started picking, back in the day... of course I was using a small screwdriver, bent at a 90 degree angle...