practise lock almost ruined

[nails]

when i first got my practise lock after reading the MIT guide (long ago) i decided to do as the guide said (to take all but one pin from lock and go further and further up tp 5 pins) and i figured out how to take the lock apart but when i pulled the plug out of the housing the springs went flying trough the room... used one hour finding them but i only found 4... all went well, i put the spring in, i put the driver pin in and, put the key pin in and ready to put the plug into the housing, turned the plug 90 degrees so that the driver pin and the spring didnt go into where the last key pin should be... pushed the plug into the housing and somehow i missed where the first key pin was and the driver pin and spring got stuck where the second key pin should be and chaos happened... and at last the dark side of came out and i forced the plug out of the housing and i saved the driver pin but the spring was all messed up so now i have 3 springs... wich means that ill have to buy a new one maybe when ive got to the level where i can pick a lock with 4 and 5 pins

[illusion]

if you know a local locksmith, then ask them.. I got given a load of old pins and springs when I asked - might be worth a try?

[nails]

if you know a local locksmith, then ask them.. I got given a load of old pins and springs when I asked - might be worth a try?

woow didnt think of that thx

[prof]

I'm new here so excuse me if I don't make sense!!!!! but I am reading up through the forums and elsewhere & I have read that a locksmith when re-keying a lock will take out all the pins (12 in a 6 pin (6 pair) plus 6 springs. well I learned how to do this many years ago from a locksmith that was local to me at the time. (though please note that I am a newbe to the forum & to picking) his method was to push out the plug using a peice of dowel. therefore keeping the driver pins & springs inside the hull. then when replacing use the plug to push the dowel out. I have found this method very easy.
also if you WANT to remove all, use the same method and release the pins under control one set at a time and put them back in reverse order.
by doing it this way one can easily drop the pins out under control into a cup or tumbler & it is relatively easy (& secure against loss) to replace them.

[illusion]

good info,

well known methord, and has been discussed a fair bit in this forum.
what you are describing is known as a plug follower, and is VERY helpful when you repin locks. can be made out of a toilet roll, an AA battery, dowel etc... a must have for repinning locks.

[Chrispy]

.... a crayon wrapped in electrical tape.

[illusion]

.... a crayon wrapped in electrical tape.

fair enough
if you wanna get REALY weird you could use tampons...

stupid chrispy trying ruin my glory.... j/k.. nice idea

[digital_blue]

I swear there's nothing better than 1/2 inch dowel. You can cut a groove into one end that makes adding the pins and springs back in much easier. Sometimes a lock is not flat at the back of the plug, and it's easy to shape a special follower for it (as I just had to do on my Scanlock the other night). 3 feet of 1/2 dowel will make a lot of followers and cost you next to nothing.

Cheers!

db

[Chrispy]

Glory is fleeting....

[digital_blue]

LOL... I missed that the first time around.

db

[Mad Mick]

I swear there's nothing better than 1/2 inch dowel...

And I swear there's nothing better than a broken carbon-fibre golf club shaft turned down on a lathe. Adds to the high-tech appeal.

[vector40]

I have never seen a plug that WAS flat on the back. There's a notch that the tailpiece fits around.

[digital_blue]

My Sargent is flat at the back. It has a little piece that's attached, but when you take it off, the back of the plug is flat... ish. Flat enough that you can just use the flat edge of a piece of dowel anyway.

db

[Buggs41]

I think I see where the goof was. This must have been a six pin lock, keyed to five pins. I destroyed one spring this way. I accidentally loaded a spring in the 'empty' chamber, but did not realize it until I heard an odd sound as the plug was rotated to the locked position. I had to shear off the offending spring.

I don't think I will ever make that mistake again.


Buggs

[digital_blue]

Yeah, that sounds familiar. Actually, in my case it was forgetting to load a driver pin when I did have a spring and bottom pin.... and i DID make that mistake again... and then again one more time....

But I'm feeling much better now.

db