can i use the same pins?

[grappler9]

i was taking out all of the pins but the first one, but somehow the lock got jammed or something and i bent the spring trying to pull it out, so can i use the spring or the pin to a different place than they were?

[Chucklz]

Yes, you can switch the order of pins around, but you need to keep the bottom pins as bottom pins, the top pins as top pins and the springs, well are springs.

[GilbertGrape]

Ahh, you let the top pins fall into the empty holes of the plug. I hated it when i did that and got it all messed up.

Im not sure if you can still you it or not though cuz i lost all the springs and pins before i had a chance to put it all back together. I suspect though that it would increase the spring constant fairly dramatically if you managed to stuff it back in, thus affecting the picking process. Can anyone vouch for this?

[grappler9]

i went ahead and tried it and it worked fine for the first four pins, but i got to the fifth pin and i cant get it, i am supposed to do the same thing for that one as the others?

[Varjeal]

If you've bent the spring and distorted it's shape significantly..it's toast. Chuck it. (sorry 'bout the pun.) Your best plan when rekeying a lock to use a certain number of pins is to make sure at all times that you have the same number of bottom pins as you do top pins, and you have both a top pin and bottom pin located in the same chamber.

[Chucklz]

Argh.... I am NOT a verb. (heh, its okay though).

If like me, youve had a few bad experiences with letting springs roll off a table etc, keep all the parts from your trashed locks. The pins probably wont match the manufacturers keyings worth a darn, but if its for picking, who really cares? One stuffed cylinder can give you enough "oops" parts to last a long time.

[HeadHunterCEO]

Argh.... I am NOT a verb. (heh, its okay though).

If like me, youve had a few bad experiences with letting springs roll off a table etc, keep all the parts from your trashed locks. The pins probably wont match the manufacturers keyings worth a darn, but if its for picking, who really cares? One stuffed cylinder can give you enough "oops" parts to last a long time.

YA Just make sure all the bottom pins reach the shear line and file down the ones that are too high.

if you got a dremel all the better

I would not do that at a customers house though!