Moving to some more advanced picking

[h00l1gan]

Hey folks, I think this is my first time posting - don't let the name fool ya - I'm not a troublemaker it's just my gaming nick.

Anyways I've been picking padlocks and some deadbolts I find used/trashed. I'm not going to say I've gotten super good, but I'm okay enough. I would like to try some more advanced picking, I read about Abloy and I'm wondering how difficult are they? So I went on a little trip to various stores and I saw some locks (for cases, vending, etc) that's Abloy and ESD (?), some of them were tubular and most of them looked like regular (think front door, padlock) locks...so what kind of locks are those? B/c I would like to buy a couple, mount them and try my best to pick them. I can TRY to take pics, but I don't want some manager getting all paranoid...

Thanks guys!! (I need to order a new pickset, so with your info on the locks I can really specialize it).

[vector40]

Abloy isn't... isn't really something you just "progress" to. I mean, even if you have a flash of superpower and manage to pick one, you're probably not going to do it with regular pin tumbler picks.

[datagram]

Hey folks, I think this is my first time posting - don't let the name fool ya - I'm not a troublemaker it's just my gaming nick.

Anyways I've been picking padlocks and some deadbolts I find used/trashed. I'm not going to say I've gotten super good, but I'm okay enough. I would like to try some more advanced picking, I read about Abloy and I'm wondering how difficult are they? So I went on a little trip to various stores and I saw some locks (for cases, vending, etc) that's Abloy and ESD (?), some of them were tubular and most of them looked like regular (think front door, padlock) locks...so what kind of locks are those? B/c I would like to buy a couple, mount them and try my best to pick them. I can TRY to take pics, but I don't want some manager getting all paranoid...

Thanks guys!! (I need to order a new pickset, so with your info on the locks I can really specialize it).

Abloy are known for their exceptional Disc locks, and I don't know that I'd recommend them until you are very good at lockpicking. I'm also guessing that your experience has been with pin tumblers, so going straight into disc systems against an Abloy would probably be a bad idea : )

If you want to pick harder pin tumblers, check out Medeco (Biaxial), BEST (SFICs), Corbin (Emhart), Schlage (Primus), American (2000 series padlocks), ABUS (Diskus padlock), ASSA (v-10, Twin), Lockwood Twin, Scorpion CX-5, etc.

Most of those locks are extremely hard, with the Medeco, Scorpion, or Schlage models being at the top of that list, but should give you a very good challenge and introduce you to locks with much higher tolerances, advanced security features, etc.

[devildog]

Get some regular, standard schlage mortise cylinders and go to work--check ebay, they're a dime a dozen on there and I see lots of 4-10 coming up all the time, matter of fact, I think theres at least two auctions for a lot of 5 of 'em right now, which would be perfect for you.

After that, try Russwins, then some Yales to get used to paracentric keyways, then Sargents, then Best SFICs, then finally you can start thinking about high security stuff like Medeco, Schlage Primus, Multlock, Abloy, etc.

[h00l1gan]

Awesome info.


Hey from I'm Louisiana too, rock on... but I live in Los Angeles now. I'm bi-coastal.

I'll post pics of some locks I saw, seriously the ESD didn't look difficult. But I'll take your word for it!

[h00l1gan]

Medeco (Biaxial), BEST (SFICs), Corbin (Emhart), Schlage (Primus), American (2000 series padlocks), ABUS (Diskus padlock), ASSA (v-10, Twin), Lockwood Twin, Scorpion CX-5, etc.


What kind of tools are recommended for these? Better yet what kind of locks or these and do I need a double-sided pick for these and abloys/esd?

[pinsetter]

My personal opinion:

For around 10 bucks each you can go to any Wal-Mart and get a Brinks R-70 discus padlock and a Brinks 6 pin-stack shrouded shackle padlock. Both of these locks contain security pins and will be challenging if you haven't dealt with them before. The shrouded padlock can even induce fits of desperation, so it's not a real piece of cake! Anyway for about 20 bucks you've got two excellent practice locks. I wouldn't move on to the harder stuff till you've got a good handle on these locks, as you'll likely just burn yourself out.

Also, these locks can be opened with just standard picks and won't require you to buy or make specialty tools. A couple good half diamonds, a couple good hooks with varying reach, and a good tension tool is all you should need for these.