New found respect for Brinks

[LockNewbie21]

I see what you saying, i hate some weather worn lock you never know if you pick them som times till you jame tension, i had to dig a key out of my grandparents shed with a simple old school master, i dug the key out and picked it in i'd say 5 min, but continued picking for another 10 till i got pissed and rammed the tension realizing i had already pciked it. So if i ever have to help someone with an out side lock.. out come the silicon lube first!


Andy

[LockNewbie21]

Ok i found a solid way to pick your brink shouded, this seems to be the case with the high low configs. I have three, two are bad one is a sinch. I easier on i can just pop using sequecial binding order. But i notcied a funny thing with the harder cut ones, the order is the same, but you have to life pins not in the order to get the next pin to bind.

Okay for examle this is how i consistanly do my brinks:
First i use a SO s rake that i rounded the peaks, get a false set and use a twisting motion to set pin 6.. that number is first in the order, but to set the next one with is pin four, i have to set pins one and then two in that order, for pin four to correctly Bind, okay did that and pin four is then pushed up, next is 3 and then 5, inbetween each i have to pushup pin one for them to bind correctly, finally the last goes pin 2 which pin one has to be pushed up to correctly set pin 2, then pin one. If i dont do it in this order, the next pin in the sequence will over set because there are to many pins false setting, if i just lift them the amount of counter tension will jsut about reset the lock, sometimes you get lucky but its very rare.


Its sounds wierd with i wuld have to make a video to explain as i go picking it. This only seems to be the case with High low to semi high low, my easy pined one will just open in standard seequncial order.


Now my question, why is it that i have to set pin one also 5 times thought the picking, and sometimes pin two also to get a pin in the rear of the lock to bind completely and be able to lift with out reset of the cylinder? This way is the only way i can get this lock open in 30 sec's or less and remains consistant with all highlows, i have tried 5 4 of which were nasty , i attempted a cutaway on two to see why this happens but.. i suck at cutaways, so its very consistant, does any one else have to do this with there brinks.. or high end americans?


Andy

[Legion303]

I just single-pin picked the ghetto R70 (4 pin Walmart special) I picked up tonight in about 30 minutes. My god, I thought the wrench was going to break! These definitely require much more tension than usual.

Do the 4-pin versions even have security pins? I never did feel a false set, but then I was concentrating on not letting the wrench cut my hand.

Things I learned from the R70:

1. Wrap something around the tension wrench or have some bandaids nearby.

2. You know you've gone too far if the pick pokes out of the lubrication hole in the back of the lock.

3. Small keyways suck.

-steve

[devildog]

Has anyone noticed that the Brinks Shrouded Shackle padlock is a knock-off of an American? Serrated pins (even the key pins--look in the keyway and you can see the serrations towards the top of the key pins), the keyway is an American, and even the key bow is the same shape as an American key. Seems kinda funny, since Master, not Brinks, owns American...unless, of course, Master owns Brinks or vice-versa

[devildog]

Ok, I got off my lazy butt and found it: American 5300 Series

It could be the 5360, but I don't think it's that wide. And I noticed that the 5300/5360 are supposed to have boron alloy shackles--I guarantee you those Brinks don't have that, so you know they cut corners on it. In fact, I know they did, because I've got one of those Brinks shrouded shackle locks and I've got 2 Americans--I can pick the Brinks consistently in under a minute now, and it's got 6 pins high-low combo serrated and spool pins, and I can't touch the 5-pin Americans I've got

[LockNewbie21]

I have to ry americans... can really say anything but bout them

[Squelchtone]

Things I learned from the R70:

1. Wrap something around the tension wrench or have some bandaids nearby.

2. You know you've gone too far if the pick pokes out of the lubrication hole in the back of the lock.

3. Small keyways suck.

-steve[/quote]

hah! you think the R70 has a small keyway? I thought so too until I got an actual Abus Discus. Now that's a small keyway.. I can't even move my picks once they're in there, the wrench is in the way. time for slimlines. =)

Squelchtone

[raimundo]

as to the person who was so concerned to learn the reasons for pins setting in sequence and haveing to reset them, forget logic, thats picking, get used to the fact that it opens when you set the last holdout pin, but all that happens before that is actually more random than your willing to allow in your thinking. And devildog, the brinks has the same keyway as american, and in many ways seems to be copied, but brinks I have known, do not have the spring load on the back of the plug, you can turn a key and see, the american will have a heavy pressure to turn even with the key, while, a brinks is actually quite loose when its open. this also causes some trickyness in the amercan padlock, you should have a small straight blade screwdriver with you when you pick these, and just before dropping tension to start over, test it with the screwdriver once, sometimes, you actually have it picked and don't realize it because the plug hasn't turned enough to tell you.

[LockNewbie21]

Ahhh Ray so thats what makes the Americans so hard its the heavy plud resistance, i head that the birnks had an amreican key way.. or atleast a knock off and getting a false set takes like 2 strokes of a smooth L-rake, the a hook to set them in like 30 secs tops. I am always looking for a deal on ebay for an american lock but there always expensive because they have liek Yale or some other ivy league college on them.

Anybody have a spare american for sale?


Andy

[toiletplumber]

I got one of these locks and boy is it heavy... I have been holding it up trying to pick it for about 30 minutes now and my arm is getting funny feeling. I know that this lock is out of my league now though.... I thought it would only have like 2 or 3 security pins but 5 thats crazy. I might need to pick up an r70 to practice or repin my kwikset with some spools. Hey just a nifty fact, I got a brinks repinable padlock so that you can pin it to your house door and the driver and key pins both work in a kwikset.

[LockNewbie21]

Well 5 if you count top pins, bottom theres thrre or four serrated so that 7 or 8 security pins, ther enot bad just practice, i need to get an american though, i hear there ard believe it but have to try it to understand i suppose

[toiletplumber]

Well 5 if you count top pins, bottom theres thrre or four serrated so that 7 or 8 security pins, ther enot bad just practice, i need to get an american though, i hear there ard believe it but have to try it to understand i suppose

i accidentally raked open one with a diamond rake. It was sheer dumb luck but it was funny for me at the time.

[LockNewbie21]

hella nice then you've beaten my record for myself... darn

[LockNewbie21]

Okay so i got an american and toyed with it for 20 mins and it was open.


I was dissapointed, the trick with these is the same as the R70's just harder The spring loaded cylinder is a great Neg. plug rotation application.. i don;t know if what i said made sence, but really once oyu ge ta false set just use the plus spring to apply it.

Not saying there not hard, its just that trick i used on the R70 pops um, They are much much better than a brinks shouded though, tollerences are much better, i reset the plug a bunch of times and over set.


Andy

[toiletplumber]

when you talk about getting a false set do you mean that you are getting teh thin part of the spool at the sheer line or that you are pushing the key pin into the hull of the lock and binding that? I think it is called reverse picking or something of that nature.