Practice locks

[fcoyne2]

Would you recommend any of the cut-away and clear practice locks, or purchase a standard door lock and disassemble to create a practice lock? I've taken one apart to practice with (need to build a jig to hold it) but it seems like there would be some benefit to seeing where you are having problems with binding or security pins. As opposed to just feeling it and guessing what the problem is.

I've been practicing with some Master padlocks, and have both a deadbolt and standard door lock set up on a board for practice already. Success seems sporadic, sometimes I get through them quickly several times in a row, and other times I struggle a bit before getting them. So I was thinking being able to actually see where I'm getting stuck might be helpful.

Any thoughts? Thanks!

[Korver15]

I dont know any good cutaways, the one I have is from China and deem it worthless, but what I will suggest is that you should buy a practice lock of ebay. The practice locks I'm talking about are the kind that you can easily disassemble and repin to however many pins you want.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LOCKSMITH-PRACT ... 33a54181bd

While looking for that previous link I also came across the the same kind of repinnable lock that was also a cuttaway.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SCHLAGE-CUTAWAY ... 339d4f027d

by starting at two pins and adding more one by one will give you a great way to get your skills up

[FuzzyChopz]

My first two practice locks were a Southord Clear/viewable 5 pin and a generic clear/viewable padlock 5 pin. I purchased both of them on Amazon. The padlock even came with 3 tension wrenches and about 10 picks. Go to Amazon and type in training locks and then check out the reviews. I have read that you should steer clear of the viewable locks as you use your eyes to kind of cheat (meaning you can't see inside a regular lock). But, if you'd like to understand the inner workings of a certain lock they are perfect.

[Journeyman]

I bought a few cut away locks from Amazon and have found them initially helpful in visualising exactly what is happening in a lock but very quickly moved in from them. There are a couple which had spool pins in them and they were the most helpful since it helped me know when my fingers should be picking up feedback about them.

The Southord one made from perspex I found didn't behave like a regular metal lock and was more of a hindrance in learning to pick than an asset.

[FuzzyChopz]

I bought a few cut away locks from Amazon and have found them initially helpful in visualising exactly what is happening in a lock but very quickly moved in from them. There are a couple which had spool pins in them and they were the most helpful since it helped me know when my fingers should be picking up feedback about them.

The Southord one made from perspex I found didn't behave like a regular metal lock and was more of a hindrance in learning to pick than an asset.

Can you please post a link or picture of you practice lock with spool pins. I have been looking for one as I am about to start trying out the spool pins. Like you, I would like to know what it is doing visually as I am picking it. Thanks!

[Journeyman]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/4 ... SY400_.jpg

The description from Amazon is:

1x6 Pin Euro Cutaway Practice Lock with key
1x5 Pin Rim Cylinder Cutaway Practice Lock with key
Each Lock comes with 3 or 4 Standard Pins and 2 Security Pins
Locks have been expertly cutaway to expose pins and shear lines

Alternatively what i've recently done is buy a Yale lock from my local Clas Olson. They have 2 spool pins and 3 standard pins and are held in by a top plate that is really easy to remove and replace so you can make your own training lock. It''s not cutaway but I know where I put the pins.

[FuzzyChopz]

Great, thanks. That looks like a pretty cool practice lock set up.

[knowspicker537]

Practice locks are good for visualization purposes, I never used one when practicing because you have to aquire the feel of pins and problems like binding etc.

-knowspicker537

[FuzzyChopz]

Practice locks are good for visualization purposes, I never used one when practicing because you have to aquire the feel of pins and problems like binding etc.

-knowspicker537

knowspicker537, I agree with you. Although, it may be helpful for beginners to see what the spool pins are doing as they are moved up and down. Once the lock picker has a good concept of the lock they should not use the visual aid as a crutch. You could also put tape over the viewing portion to block the sight of the pins, so you don't have any temptation. Or the lock couple be left the way it is and be used as a confidence booster when dealing with a stubborn lock.

[knowspicker537]

I sometimes like to look into the keyhole to see if I am making any progress, is this a bad habit,? It seems to help sometimes because I can gauge how much tension I need my lifting all the pins applying a lot of tension and then slowly relaxing tension till the pins snap back in place.

[FuzzyChopz]

Personally I wouldn't consider peeking into the key way as a "cheat". I do the samething, I would consider it to be making do with what you are given. Although, sometimes I won't even look at the lock and I try to visualize the pins and pick in my head.

[GWiens2001]

Blocking the viewing part of a cutaway does not help with real-world feel. A cutaway lock picks differently than a non-cut lock.

Gordon