Varying difficulty on different locks

[Marco]

I was just wondering why some pin-tumbler locks are easier to pick that others? I am not talking about security pins either. I bought a cheap deadbolt the other day and can pick it in about 10 seconds. I then went and spent a bit more money on another deadbolt lock and this one is alot harder to pick and takes me a long time. I was just curious as to why this is. What is it about the locks that makes some easy to pick, and some hard to pick?

[Eyes_Only]

It could be the tolerances that the lock is manufactured in. Higher tolerance locks would present more difficulty than low tolerance locks. Sometimes a cheaper padlock that costs $7 can turn out to be a pretty decent lock compared to one that my cost $25, depends on the make. And pin combinations would also play a big factor in this. A pin combination thats close to breaking the MACS rule would frustrate many lockpickers.

[Tygart]

The better lock you buy the better the metal they are made out of..

[Marco]

I searched up on the MACS rule and im thinking that this may be one of the contributing factors as to why its so hard. When i re-pinned it, i remember putting a high setting pin at the very back of the lock and a low setting pin in front of it. So i guess that wouldn't be following the MACS rule and therefore making it harder to pick. I think i got that terminololgy right, a high setting pin is one that need to be pushed up very far to reach the shearline, and a low setting pin doesnt need to be pushed up much at all? or is it the other way round?

[Shrub]

If you have a look at the guide on my www button you will see why it is a lock can be picked and how a better lock is harder to pick,

The better made the lock the more inline those holes are going to be, add to that pins that fit properly in round holes and your going to find it more of a challenge,

Stick with it though and it will soon be like your picking the cheapo padlocks,

[SmokieD]

Whats the name of the deadbolts you bought, just out of curiousity.

[Eyes_Only]

A lot of us intentionally pin our practice locks way out of the MACS specs to make them harder to pick. When you've been picking the same mortice lock year after year, the challenge quickly vanishes and boredom settles in even faster. So I load up my simple locks with a combination or spool and serrated pins and throw MACS out the window.

[Marco]

The cheaper one was sentry, and the more expensive one was lane. I doubt that anybody has heard of them though, i think they are just australian brands

[Eyes_Only]

Is that the same sentry as the ones in the US that makes small safes like this one? http://www.sentrysafe.com/

[Marco]

No i dont think thats the same company. Mine is home sentry i think. And on the back of the packing it says 'manufactured in china for mitre 10 [a major hardware store] australia.' So im assuming that this is the only store you can buy it from.