How fast should i get

[FSSARD]

Just a quick question, about how fast should i be able to pick a lock before moving on to a different difficullty? i have gotten the lock in 20 sec but not consecutivley.

[master in training]

speed is not really the aim (unless you're looking to become a pro locksmith), when picking your aim should be to familiarise yourself with picking, so that you can accurately feel what the pins are doing, which are set, which are security pins, that sort of stuff.

get yourself a new lock with a security pin in, then take some pins out, work on picking it and when you can happily pick it with all the pins in, mix them up and see if you can pick it as easily, after you've got used to picking the new lock, pick up the older one once in a while and see if you can still pick it.

[FSSARD]

i would, but the cash flow isn't as good as before :-\

[digital_blue]

FS: You should seriously consider putting the lock down and moving on to another as soon as you begin to familiarize yourself with the picking of that lock. As a beginner, when you pick a lock a few times you will find that your increase in speed may not be coming from increased skills, so much as from a familiarity of that lock. In other words, you begin to learn what works for that lock. This is not an asset in lock picking, unless all you want to be able to do is pick that lock.

As soon as you begin to memorize the steps involved in a particular lock any further practice (at that moment) with that lock is not gaining you skill. Put it down, pick up another lock, and go back to that first one a few days later.

If you can't afford a healthy selection of practice locks, search the forum here for advice on obtaining all the locks you ever wanted for free.

db

[master in training]

db is right, there are so many posts about obtaining free locks. a few examples... local locksmiths, ads in the paper, UPVC installers...just use your head and if you see a lock that is going to be thrown away, ask for it

[FSSARD]

thanks, i think i know where i can get some.