No flames here, just some quick advice: you probably don't need to blow $45 on a lockpicking set. I bought the $80 kit from SouthOrd when I first got started in 1999, and since then I've used about five of the thirty-some-odd picks that it comes with. Well... six if you count the time I used a long rake to cut a PB&J sandwich in half.
The easiest picks to learn on, IMHO, are the short pick, long pick, large half diamond, small half diamond, and L rake. Some people have had good luck with the half round, too, but I find that it's hard to get a grip on what's going on with that.
What you probably want more than a wide array of picks is a wide array of tension tools... those are what you'll use to actually coax information out of the lock. If I had the choice to do it over again, I'd probably get the five-piece kit with book from Southord (
http://www.southord.com/catalog.asp?cat=locksmith), buy a circular tensioner and a couple of other tension toos, and use the balance of the savings to get myself a practice lock or two... and a nice dinner to celebrate picking your first one.
, Ive been told off before for asking questions that are already on here a bunch of times
as i did mention the flaming myself, but you have to admit typing search every time is a pain, and thankyou for taking the time to answer the members question