BEST Lock brand??

[puck]

I had some luck with the BEST locks on a recent expedition. One was an I/C in a round doorknob that opened pretty fast. However, I ended up opening it the wrong way and was without a plug spinner, so I had to repick it. Not so tough. The second was on a bigass deadbolt that took considerabally more time (5-10 min) but I was also able to pick. All in all, a very sucessful expedition.

[sonolocksmith]

Best lock corporation , now called Best access systems is headquartered in Indianapolis, IN and makes interchangable core padlocks, deadbolts, doorknob locksets, etc. They use a standard six pin core and are picked the same as any other system with clockwise core rotation.

[Pheniox]

military bases LOVE BEST locks, every base I have been on has had a LARGE perecent of BEST locks, although I havn't had/don't plan on trying on them. The MP's scare me. For good reason to.

[puck]

College campuses (like mine) like 'em too. I don't mind 'em here, but I don't think I'd run around a military base picking locks. Bad news.

[Chucklz]

Just an FYI.... Best access systems has been recently acquired by Stanley tool works.

You can learn to pick these with a fair degree of success taking them one pin at a time. You can take the pin stacks out one by one by pushing a small wire into the hole in the bottom of the lock. This will push out the retaining pin, spring, and pins. Do it in a plastic bag, and hope you can put them back in in the right order...... if you want functioning keys.

[kosterirrigation]

heres somethin to stimulate your brains!

http://www.crypto.com/photos/misc/sfic/

[lockman]

The two shear lines make BEST (SFIC) locks hard to pick. It's random chance whether a pin will set at the control shear line or the operating shear line, and if you get 6 pins at one and 1 one at the other, it won't open even tho it will seem to be picked.

They're also made to VERY TIGHT tolerance and some of the newer ones have spool pins. Even w/o spool pins they are a and a half to pick.

If its master keyed, there's twice as much chance of a given pin setting at the operating shear line, but the odds are still against you. Sometimes it will pick anyway if there's more friction at the operating core than the control tab, or you could use a special torque wrench that lets you pick the control tab alone.

I suggest you follow the linque someone posted above to Matt Blaze's web site.

[Ray_Air]

.......and I still can't wait to read how Best cores are ripped out of a lock with a single pick.

Best locks come with core removal keys in addition to individual keys or master keys. If you pick the lock to the control key (core removal) you can take out the cylinder. I dont know if thats what he means or if he is pulling the cylinder out forcibly with a tool designed to do this?