Optimizing Shim

[frezeedlockpick]

What material may I build a more durable shim of?

I've also tried to shim a combination lock but only I did was to break my shim (anyway i have at least five more )

Somebody recommended to be build of a 16 thick iron sheet.

What thickness should I use to make sure my shim is going to enter the lock?

[WDPaladin]

I hate making posts like this, but use the little search feature on the top right. Infact, no more than 3 posts above you is a complete guide on making shims by unbreakable. There are loads of information on shims and anything else you could possibly want to know, good luck.

[raimundo]

there are shims for dissasembling a cylinder, and you can use the thin metal inside some shoplifting security tags or there are shims for pushing back the locking dogs on a padlock, for this, the material I recommend is the stainless steel flat spring found steadying the reels inside a vhs tape cassette, remember the different brands have different springs, all flat steel but different in width thickness and pattern, the shims that I make for padlocks are not made to slide around the shackle, but are made to push straight down on the locking dog, they have the straight back and rounded point like a jackknife blade, the part that pushes on the locking dog as the shim goes in should be rounded to keep the contact point small and not have a friction lockup.

[Exodus5000]

If you're talking about padlock shims (which I assume you are.) I use a coke can. Cut it into 1.5 inches by 1 inch. (I find this is the best size for my shims) make sure you round off the pointed end of the shim that hits the locking dog, this makes it more effective and less likely to break.

And like Ray said, go straight into the locking dog while lifting up and down on the shackle. It'll work, may take you a few shims, but it'll work. Just be careful not to break a shim off in the padlock.

[helloman]

sheet metal or arasal cans (spray pains,hair spray,etc. cans)

[Stray]

arasal cans

gesundheit.

[Roger E]

On the subject of shims, I'd appreciate it if someone could clarify this for someone who is trying to learn the basics. Am I correct in that when you are disassembling a lock cylinder, you would use a plug follower if you have the key, and a shim if you don't? Also, what exactly is a cylinder follower? I saw this listed on lock-picks.com along with the plug followers, and was wondering if it was something different.

[Eyes_Only]

A plug (cylinder) follower will take up the space in the shell of the lock after you've removed the plug so that you can retain the top driver pins in the shell, because without anything taking space where the plug is supposed to be, the top driver pins will all go wild and escape.

[raimundo]

the follower is just a piece of dowel or tube used to push an unlocked plug from the cylinder, after all snaprings or other fasteners are removed, the follower pushing the plug out leaves no room for the pins in the top of the cylinder to fall into the cylinder and you then lose the information on the order of the pins in their drillings. you would use this with key or picked cylinder or shimmed cylinder, the point is to preserve information in the cylinder and it is also most useful in reassemblling a cylinder, by putting the pins and springs in and holding them until the core is pushed in.

To reassemble a cylinder, you may start by putting springs in all the drillings then put the follower in, withdraw the follower until you can see the third pin hole, then assemble the third pin collum with the top pin, (any master wafers would be in the core) push the follower over the top of the driver pin in the third hole and repeat on the second hole and then the first, after this, turn the cylinder around and withdraw the follower until you see that third pin you put in, now put in the fourth pin and the fifth and sixth, in this way, you do not have to work deep in the cylinder because the follower holds pins in and can be worked from either end, so that you never have to reach all the way to the end of a 6 pin cylinder, the work begins in the middle and progresses to the outside, then the cylinder is reversed and the other end is filled as well.

[Roger E]

OK, that answers one question, which is that plug followers and cylinder follwers are the same thing.

Raimundo, I appreciate your detailed instructions, and have copied them to use as I practice.

I'm still not sure about the cylinder shims. I have padlock shims, and know how to use them effectively. I was just curious about cylinder shims, like the ones listed here:

http://www.lockpicks.com/index.asp?Page ... ProdID=149

From the way they describe them, it sounds like you could use them if you didn't have a key, and you would push them in further from the rear as you picked each pin, one at a time. Before using the plug follower, you would need to pick all pins in order to turn the cylinder first.

I just acquired a couple dozen cylinders and I'm going to be practicing on them. I understand the procedure for using the plug follower, but on most of these cylinders there doesn't appear to be enough clearance between the cylinder and shell to fit one of these shims as they describe. I was curious as to whether they work or not. Sorry if I'm not explaining this clearly.

[nekret]

The fit can sometimes be too tight for a shim but more often than not I've been able to. Personally I use a pop can that I filed the paint off of and shaped on another cylinder. I think the professional ones are made of steel and possibly a little thinner.

So as far as your question goes, yes they work (most of the time)

[Roger E]

That's what I needed to know. Having never seen one, they must be of thinner material than what they appear to be in pictures- thinner than the padlock shims I have, at any rate. Thanks for the reply.

[BobbO45]

Another great cylinder shim material is the small metal strips inside of security tags that they put on things like DVDs.

Those little white plastic things contain about 5 small strips of metal that are already partly curved and perfect for use on cylinders. They are very thin and flexible, and don't break easily, albeit they are a little flimsy (they have sharp edges, so you might want to use some tape to make a handle thats easier to hold and will not cut you).

Also, instead of picking the lock you can use a key blank that fits into the lock. Insert it all the way, and then slowly draw it out of the lock while pushing the shim foreword. It works because the pins slowly drop as they slide down the end of the key, temporarily putting the pin stack at the shear line.