Practice lock advice

[Caust]

I'm not sure exactly where to post this, but I tried to figure it out, best I can. If this is in the wrong place, apologies to the moderators.

I just recently got into Lockpicking, actually about a few days ago, I got my first picks. SouthOrd Jackknife kit, a friend recomended it. It's funny, I'm not sure why I like Lockpicking, seems like an amazing hobbie to beable to manipulate locks and such.

Well anyways. I just wanted to take the time to say Hello to everyone, and thank you for all your posts. I've been reading them one by one. I actually started picking my backdoor lock, not exactly sure what types of pins it has, etc, but MAN is it tough. 4-5 hours with no avail. Although I got pretty close, but gave up a few times. Anyone recomend a good, and affordable practice lock I could start with? I'm extremely new to this whole thing.

Thanks for reading.
Caust

[Lucky1406]

Welcome everybody,
For all thoes new to the site and lockpicking, LP101 is a great place to start.
Take a look at the new users section, first and don't be afraid to ask any questions just remember to try a search before posting.

If you're looking for locks to pick, buy some but, DO NOT PICK LOCKS YOU RELY ON
I repeat DO NOT PICK LOCKS YOU RELY ON, they can and will break, then your house/car/safe/chasity belt is vulnerable or unable to be opened (think: emergency situation).

Cheers,
UWSDWF

Welcome all,

I hope you are all enjoying the site as much as I do. Just remember two things:

1) Search for answers before posting a question. But do not ever be afraid to ask one.
2) Only pick your own locks, and not the one's you rely on (front door, car door, safe).

Here are some helpful links to information you need to know and want to know:

New Users start here--
viewtopic.php?t=10528

Product Review thread- Good when deciding what picks or tools to get.--
viewtopic.php?t=13082

Test thread- If you’re not sure how to post or you are trying out a new signature tag. Post here first--
viewtopic.php?t=1065

If you are thinking of posting digital pictures Review this first--
viewtopic.php?t=10367

My favorite, DB's list of LP101 tutorials with links--

viewtopic.php?t=10715


Thanks and remember pick responsibly,

Just want to help you out a little. You never want to pick locks that you rely on, you can break them, and then your up some creak without a paddle. Always buy some locks to practice on when your first starting out. As for what to buy, wal-mart locks are easy. Just go out and buy some padlocks, and deadbolt locks. Use DB list of tutorials as a guide, it will help you out a lot, happy picking,
Nick

[Anero]

i'm sure people are going to flame you for picking a lock in use... but anyways, I started picked masterlock No.3 and No.5 padlocks then moved to a few older Defiant deadbolts(not in use) then i picked up a Brinks solid brass padlock with 4 spool pins in it, that is the lock i'm working on now i can pick it in about 1-3 mins. after i'm more familiar with the brinks and setting the spools i dunno Wal-Mart and Home Detpo are good places to look for locks, good luck and welcome to lp101.com

[pauly003]

Just buy the cheapest door lock you can find at your hardware store. Dissasemble it and remove the last 2 pins. This will make it mush easier for you to start on. As you get better, insert the 4th pin and finally the 5th pin. Also mix up the pins when you get proficent at picking that particular pin combonation. Good luck

[Caust]

Wow. Thanks a ton for letting me know about not picking locks in use :p
You guys can obviously see how new I am to this, and I just checked. The lock is working fine. Phew :p

[unbreakable]

Wow. Thanks a ton for letting me know about not picking locks in use :p
You guys can obviously see how new I am to this, and I just checked. The lock is working fine. Phew :p

Glad to hear it!

A good lock to start with would be a kwikset or similar cheap deadbolt, because you can take them apart and reassemble them with different amounts of pin. This allows you to practice picking 2 pins, 3 pins, etc.

Have a peek at this thread- viewtopic.php?t=10677

Anyways, welcome to the site.

[Caust]

You guys are an immense help. Thank you all, very much. I just purchased a cheap Masterlock (3D) Going to screw around with it, and a cheap lock for a door, from Ace Hardware.

[VashTSPD]

keep with the door lock more, it's hard for a beginner to feel the tiny pins set in the padlock, sure you'll be able to get it open time and time again, but the door lock will give a more clear feedback when you find the binding pin. And read the back of the padlock packages at wal-mart for "security pins", they are genearally hard for a beginner to pick, so start slow. Ace has an Ace padlock, silver with security pins. Also, a big Brinks rekeyable padlock I've seen at walmart has security pins. Also a shrouded silver brinks padlock. That's the toughest one. When you're ready to get into security pins, I suggest the Brinks rekeyable one.