Got my first pick set!

[raimundo]

What everyone has said about tension wrenches is correct. I have found that the variety of sizes of wiper stiffener is really interesting, there are at least 7 or 8 different widths, all of them just in the right ballpark for making tensors, and they also have the rounded smooth edges that will prevent them from digging into cylinder walls at the bottom of the keyway like some rough cut sharp edged metal will

I recommend the shorter versions of the tensor, about 3 inchs long, with a twist just at the last inch, to make a nice flat place to put the finger on. Wrenchs that have a twist close to the 90 degree bend tend to be flexy, and this can give less feedback to the finger.

grab all the used wipers you can find in the scrap barrel at the your mechanics. Strip out the stainless stiffeners. Stock up because they're making them out of plastic in the future.

[LarrySDonald]

Things have been a little chaotic lately, so I bought a cheap deadbolt to cheer myself up a bit. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XjXtQ5p9Qo (picking it). I'm starting to appreciate the points about higher tolerances making for easier picking. The "harder" locks were indeed harder, but once they are learned they are much less random. I'm also starting to get that I rely too much on raking/jiggling and what I first figured was SPP is probably more SPP on the one or two that trip me up with the rest being mostly raked in the process.

I think this one can be accessed in terms of the pins, so I should probably start in on the more traditional SPP training. I'm getting a better and better grasp on what is happening inside my locks, but while it's a good shot in the arm to pick security pins I'd hate to develop bad habits. When trying to pick relying on SPP only, I notice I've already developed a few and I don't want them to cement.

I should probably start a blog or something rather then post stuff to a thread here .