DIY Pressure Wrench?

[Bryant]

Hi! I'm new to the forums, and somewhat new to lockpicking. (I can still get through a tumbler and pin lock pretty fast, though)

I've only been able to use my friends set so far, and I've got a serious cash flow problem, so I thought "Why not MAKE my own set?"

I've got a pick (made out of a rather sturdy paperclip) and that's working great (tried it with my friend's wrench) but I'm stuck on building the wrench.

Anyone know how to build a decent pressure wrench out of household stuff?

Thanks in advance,
-Bryant

[Shrub]

Firstly welcome to the site,


Windshield wiper inserts are your best friend here ,

Go to your local garage and ask if you can have the scap wiper blades from the trash can, remove the metal inserts to get the perfect material to make wrenches from,

There are 3 types i think, 1) a single insert, 2) a plastic insert, ignore those two and go for #3) two thinner strips,

[Bryant]

After some further reasearch I've found you can make one with a small flathead screwdriver bent at the tip and smashed flat... anyone know if this works?

(also, thanks for the tip, shrub, I'm going to the garage first thing tomorrow morning!)

[Shrub]

Yes the screw driver will work as will anything else that will fit the keyway and allow the picks to move, the metal bit off a pen top, a bit of a head phone band, an old pair of specticles etc etc but the windshield inserts are the most common,

Your imagination is the limit,

[Bryant]

Alright! Thanks for the help, Shrub!

[Shrub]

Its tension wrench by the way so you would get lots of stuff up if you try that phrase in the search and not pressure wrench

[Bryant]

Ah. I see....thanks once again, Shrub!

[cL4y]

Windshield wiper inserts are your best friend here ,
,

Dam right!, ane they are easy to bend too, and chance you or your friend have a vice? couse its quite hard bending them by hand too...especially when they are sharp

[Romstar]

Two pairs of pliers and a torch, and in most cases you can do without the torch.

I just prefer using one, because I make tension tools out of a variety of materials and stocks.

Romstar

[illusion]

I stopped off at a Quick-Fit garage on Sunday and picked up about 20 wiper blade inserts for free. I told the guy I needed them for an art presentation, to make a metal structure. I pointed out that there were two strips in each wiper blade and he was more than happy to let me raid the bin they put such things in. It wasn't a lie, I gave a few of them to a friend for him to use in his art project and kept the rest for myself - The best lie is the truth, although you have to layer different strands of 'truth' in order to convince yourself that you are being truthful, convince yourself, and others seem more than convinced.

I learnt a lot in that little outing... Something new every day.

Seriously man, go to a local garage and look out for old wiper blades... You can get about 10 good sized wrenches out of each strip, thus 20 wrenches from each wiper blade since they contain 2 strips.

[Aepok]

I mad a torque wrench out of a broken earpeice from a pair of sunglasses i had around, just bent the end and grinded down the screw nub, and it works like a charm

[Mutzy]

either that or talk to a friend who's a mechanic. I can get a never ending supply

[Krypos]

i recently scored only 2 blades. and man. my first time using inserts, but they kick butt. made a VERY nice double sided wrench, 90' twists on either side, one side is short for the top of the keyway, and the other is medium for all others. id post pic, but itd come out bad.... maybe later....

some others are replicas of the SO tw's and they are spot on, maybe nicer because i rounded off the holding end so its not so sharp.

[Gordon Airporte]

I picked up some extra blades myself yesterday (it was rainy so the auto store had plenty around) and I got one that really sucked. I'd like to make sure people don't get this kind and think they have the right thing.

It's a single piece of metal, but slotted down the middle making it effectively two strips joined by a bit at the top and bottom. The problem is that the metal is garbage: rough, and not springy at all. Kids - you want some spring in those strips!

(and actually I'd been thinking about plastic wrenches recently... I mean, I think it could be done well...)

[Romstar]

(and actually I'd been thinking about plastic wrenches recently... I mean, I think it could be done well...)

Yeah, they can be done well, but the more, um, shall we say "ambitious" amoungst us have a tendency to break the things.

You have to use a fairly brittle plastic to take the strain at those thicknesses and unfortunately, they don't flex all that well.

If you come up with something good, I would like to see them as well.

Romstar