what does this button do?!

[angie0307]

ok guys , just starting out here , trying to get a grasp on what different tools and words and bits and gadgets and whatnots do and mean!

been doing a whole lot of reading but theres things just for starters i cant figure out/just make no sense to me!

What do you do with a tap and die set?!
die stamps are part of the tap and die set....or something completely different?.........what do you use them for in any case?
whats the difference between a flat file and a contact point file? , as in what would i use a contact point file for instead of a flat file?
oh , i've got a book here that says a contact point file is used for dressing distributor points tipped with tungsten...........
which leads to the question , what the golly is a distributor point?!

with out talking in technical trade gibberish can anyone explain these tools?

[unlisted]

Sure, no problem.

I'll even provide you with a helpful link, since basically everything your asking about is not directly related to lockpicking.

www.google.com


than, in search, type "what is" followed by the tool name.

You will find all sorts of helpful information.

[Jaakko]

What do you do with a tap and die set?!

You make screw threads to a hole or axle. Tap is used to make internal threads in to a hole and a die is used to make external threads to a round axle.

[angie0307]

thank you jaako , much appreciated.

apologies if my questions arent directly related to lockpicking , i am new to this and in the process of learning what is relevant and what is not.

these are just terms i constantly keep coming across in locksmithing texts and am trying to learn how it is they apply within lockpicking/smithing.

i'm grateful to any of you willing to try helping out a begginer in this.

[unlisted]

My reply still applies, google will help you with many descriptions, explinations, etc.

[angie0307]

now you'll have me running all of google's answers past you for confirmation of the accruacy!

all information sources ( including google ) are a big help to me here!

looking to get all my information right from the very beginning rather than have to unlearn false facts i've picked up from dodgy sources.

[tjweaver84]

Distributor points don't apply to locksmithing. In older cars they have a distributor to direct the electricity to each spark plug individually. There is the cap and then inside is a rotating part which directs the current to the different plugs. The conductive things on the distributor cap are called points. There is one for each spark plug.

[angie0307]

distributor points in cars i get , thats why i was confused as to its meaning in locksmithing.
so , i was confused for a reason....... its not a technical term for a part of a key or lock at all?
nothing to do with it whatsoever?

thanks for the help guys

[unlisted]

Okay, I'm going to direct you to do some things, and I am saying this as a Moderator on this forum.

Firstly, I know you have lots of questions, and here is some help for you. PLEASE read through all of the links below, and any links they provide as well. It will help you quite a bit. (the blue words below are clickable links)


Site Rules

New Users Guide

FAQ

Secondly, your post "title" does not really have anything to do with the questions you asked in your post... And finally, most of your questions you inquired about do not really have anything to do with lockpicking. It would be rare to find a lockpicker using a tap and die set.. And I won't even start on the whole distributor thing.

Maybe you should provide us information (titles, links, etc) with the "locksmithing texts" your researching from- I'm starting to think they may be giving you some bad or dodgy information- the very same thing you were worried about from google results.

And finally, don't take this the wrong way but- we are not here to hold your hand. (really, we should not need to if you read and research from this site.) This community and members are here to help all members as much as possible, but if you start asking random questions and blatantly stating

"I have nooooooooo idea what i'm doing or what you're all talking about!
be prepared for more than a few stupid questions!"

it only shows to us you really have no interest in self learning, and no one will really want to help you. If you read something and don't understand, ask the question. But don't start posting random titles, and asking questions not related or almost not related to lockpicking. (sorry, it gets old really quick)

If you are having issues reading/understanding this site, than you may want to look into taking a locksmithing course. Do you just want to pick as a hobby, or do you want to be a locksmith? They are close, but still two very different things..

Hope you don't take offence to this, and understand where I am coming from. I have seen many new members basically alienated from this forum for the road you are starting to go down.

And finally, welcome to the forums, and hope you have fun being here. Don't take this as a negative.

[zeke79]

Points in an ignition/distributor has nothing to do with the plug wire connection points on a distributor cap and rotor bug setup. Many older cars 60's and 70's had point type ignitions. The point set had to be properly gapped and dwell properly set for the ignition system to fire. The points open and close according to how they are setup and worked with the coil/condenser depending on the size of the engine.

I could go into exactly how a point system works and differs from a high energy ignition system but it has nothing to do with lock picking. Just be glad that cars today have high energy ignitions and not point setups. We take for granted how well new cars and trucks start and run today.

[raimundo]

the points file you ask about is an old tool that used to be available for automotive spark timeing, when cars still had mechanical distributors. Those days are gone, but the little file you speak of would still be useful to a locksmith for several things.
Lock people hear "contact points" and the subject is combination lock manipulation. Thats advanced and you won't need to read about it until you have been here a while and understand the basics.
Taps and dies, (a tap threads the female part and a die cuts threads on the male part)
this is how you make a screw fit in a piece of metal that you have drilled a hole in.
Its only occasionaly necessary for a locksmith when preparing a door and frame in metal.
but as general terms, people who work around mechanics will readily understand the terms and this shows familiarity with tools and metal working. By asking you are making it obvious that you have not had a background in mechanics. Thats not some criticism, its just the way it is, everyone started out knowing nothing, and here we are now, knowing something, not everything
If you are truly interested in this hobby/topic, we will help and there is a lot here to learn
If by diestamps, you are talking about a stamp that will print the locksmiths shop name on a key blank or the sets of numbers and letters used to mark keys from a large system of keys, these are used to stamp codes on keys. Too often, masterkeys have letters like M or X indicating that they are something different from the common system key.
Useful stampsets for trading locksmiths but not directly related to locks themselves.
Stick around and you will start to figure it all out.