Questions

[Hak]

Hey i was just up at my local hardware store shopping for some locks and i came across an interesting laser key padlock. The lock itself looks a bit like a normal padlock but a bit bulkier, it has no keyhole. The actual key is some button you press and it sends an invisible laser to the lock and it unlocks. Since it has no keyholes you cant really pick it. The thing looked a bit flimsy, you could probably smash it open with a big sledgehammer, but that wouldnt be any fun. It takes 4 AA batteries. Anyone know how you would go about opening one of these if you didnt have the laser key?

Also.. when i shopping at that same store i bought a master no.3 to play around with. Well i took it home and within 5 minutes of opening the package i was able to pick it open. I though that was a bit kool..it was the only master no.3 i've ever encountered..i wanted to cut some time off picking it so i played with it a bit more but i began having trouble. The first time i picked it the lock was fine, but after that whenever i tried picking it the plug was sliding back and forth in the lock. I thought maybe it just had something to do with picking it so i tried opening it with a key and i get trouble with that too. I have to put the key in the plug and turn it slightly and pull back a bit so the plug is at the front of the lock. Anyone know why the plug is sliding? Is that normal?

[toomush2drink]

maybe you could open the padlock with a tv remote or one of those laser pointers ?

[Pheniox]

Its operated by radio freqency. Its very easy to break, kinda worthless as far as security.

[Hak]

maybe you could open the padlock with a tv remote or one of those laser pointers ?

lol it would be hilarious if it were that easy. But im (guessing) thinking that like phoenix said..it has a frequency and maybe only a certain kinda laser will open it. it cost $15 and i doubt it would cost that much if it was some piece of crap that will be opened by some random laser emitter.

[Guitar_J]

Perhaps it could be shimmed?

[stobby101]

I believe shimming is possible, but the whole bit with the laser isn't really real. Inside is a radio transmitter that emits a signal similar to a garage door opener, not like a laser from a pointer. Once the padlock has recieved the radio signal it activates servos that open the lock. Picking isn't really possible, but bypassing is, or so I think.

[Varjeal]

The "sliding" plug issue your having is common with a lot of cheap padlocks. Because of loose tolerances the whole cylinder is allowed to slide back and forth. The actual plug moves very little.

[S3rratedSp00L]

Can you tell me what happens when the batteries run out? Can you remove the batteries without the lock being open? What would happen if you short the power or pull the batteries in and out to mess with it? I would like to see one of these locks. I have heard very little about them

[mcm757207]

For christmas a few years ago I recieved a cheap electronic safe... took 4 AA batteries which could be changed from the bottom of the safe simply by unscrewing something. You can change the combo to whatever you want, but if you take out all the batteries and put them back in again it resets it to it's default combo

very low security if you ask me

[S3rratedSp00L]

hahahaaha That's exactly what I was wondering There has to be a fail-safe to protect stupid people from themselves. I would personally prefer a normal cylinder as a backup and have it just erase the combo when the power is cut.. That would protect the owner of the lock a bit, sort of.. If the combo could be recovered and it was used on another lock that belonged to the owner then I feel the security is decreased slightly. Using the same key or combo for more than one lock decreses the security anyway and should not be encouraged.

What brands of safe should I stay away from? Was that thing even made of metal?

[Romstar]

Basic laser light, infrared light, and radio frequency locks aren't that hard to "pick".

The simple ones are only looking for a light beam at a certain frequency, or a radio signal at a certain frequency. These are the cheap and easy ones.

Things get harder when you start programming them to respond only to a coded signal. Most of them use a digital code anywhere from 3 to 32 bits.

The real skill is in knowing how to program your transmitter, or your light device the proper way. There are devices and programs that will do this for you.

Romstar

[Hak]

The "sliding" plug issue your having is common with a lot of cheap padlocks. Because of loose tolerances the whole cylinder is allowed to slide back and forth. The actual plug moves very little.

The lock im talking about is a master no.3 I thought those were supposed to be rather good. Eh, i guess it doesnt really matter.. if it can be picked in under 5 minutes, its cheap

Hmm.. i doubt the laser lock could be shimmed, the shackle was tighly closed against the casing. I guess it could be shimmed if you had a shim the size of about 1 micron in width (just so you know..the average human hair is 7 microns).

Also.. while i was at that same hardware store.. i saw some padlocks by the company 'Brinks' (heh i didnt know they were into padlocks, i thought they were only into armored bank trucks, and the home security alarms). They were charging $10 for a little padlock. I examined it and the only difference i noticed from a $2 lock was that the brinks had spool pins. I dont think that should majorly increase the price.. it does add a bit more security, but spools arent really that hard to pick. Is 'Brinks' just overcharging or is there some hidden feature?

[Guitar_J]

That brinks lock (if it is the shrouded one) also has serrated pins... for a beginner.. these things are rough... I've yet to open mine... I've gotten as far as having 3 pins set... but my werench fell out and :-/ oh well..