My very first pick

[fordy]

Is this ok for my first pick? It was made from a hacksaw blade. I was also wondering if it is too thick in width? Are there any other things i need to do to it? i have not tried it yet btw.

All comment welcome.

[Shrub]

Its not to thick, blades are ok as they are but the other dimensions are a little on the big side,

Have a look at the templates available around site and grind your pick up to fit in with those,

Your width needs reducing a bit and making a bit more even, the hook part may need to be a bit lower as well,

Good first effort though,

[LockNewbie21]

Just get some wet dry paper and your good, welcome to the site man, great start.


Anyquestions, feel free to PM.

[unbreakable]

Hello,

The width of your pick looks all right, but i think the tang( part leading up to the tip that you pick with) could be a little thinner, up and down. Does this make seance?

Overall, it looks quite good. What are you using for a tension wrench?

[unbreakable]

Sorry shrub, youre response wasnt there when I first started composing my message, then I left to get popcorn, lol

[Shrub]

Doesnt, pop, matter, pop, to me, pop, at all, pop, its all, pop, help,

I think the hook needs some of the inside curve removing so its more of a hook,

[VashTSPD]

my first pick was about that size, find a padlock or something to stick it in and see what parts don't fit then go back to the grinder a few times to refine.

[fordy]

I have still to make the tension wrench. And tomorrow i will lessen it on all dimensions (except length). thanks for the replies. ill use the advise.

[Shrub]

I dont know if youre aware but a great tension wrench can be made from the metal strips out of windsheild wipers,

Simply cut to length and bend cold, fast and easy.

[fordy]

I dont have any spare windscreen wipers and there isnt anywhere close i can go to ge some as i am not able to drive legally.

[Shrub]

Same, you normally find a good few in the bin at the local garage,

There lots of other choices though if you have a look arond site, i only mention is as i imagine you may be thinking of grinding a blade down for one which isnt the best thing to do,

Try pen top clips, old headphones, glasses or somthing

[unbreakable]

and then theres always street sweeper bristles, look for pieces of metal on the side of the road, you can use those for tension wrenches as well.

[ericm115]

I have bought two different brands of windshield wiper in the last few months. One of them had a very narrow, thin insert that wasn't at all good for a tensioner. The darn thing had no elastic deformation... it was all plastic. I'm not a super-heavy-handed picker, but there are times when more tension makes things easier at certain points in picking certain locks. So it was no good.

The other wiper insert was broader and thicker. I bent it and twisted it (like the SO twist-flex). There was absolutely no bending when I used it. It was totally rigid, even under heavy tension.... which is OK, but not ideal if you ask me.

I personally think that the SouthOrd Long Twist-Flex wrench is nearly ideal (TW-03: http://www.southord.com/catalog.asp?cat=locksmith&rowstart=20). It flexs comfortably under milder tension, allowing decent control, but at the extreme ends of tension (such as the R70), it holds its shape well.

I gave up on wiper inserts. I use two TW-03's (I shaved one down to be narrower than the other) exclusively. I will probably buy one more and make the end even narrower so I have a set of three.

I recommend this strategy to anyone having tension difficulties. fordy, you mentioned that you can not drive legally (I don't know if that's due to your age or what), but if you are able to order these tensioners online, they are very cheap and will last a long time.

Of course, I'm still a little new and you may want to wait for confirmation from another member here that this is a good idea . I would certainly do it though.


em

[cL4y]

yeah it totally rips my first pick.I saw the top pick and first thought,big tang.And then i saw the bottom one,bigger tang

Did you use a pick template? or just looked at the posted picks here?

Welcome to the site too

[fordy]

used my hand draw template lol . that was has broken so i made a few more. ill post pics soon.