New to the Hobby, Could use some expertise!

[johnnyr]

Hello everyone,

I'm brand new to the hobby, and attempted to pick my first (practice) locks today.

I just received in a few practice locks, and spent an hour or so with 2 of them. Both were 5-pin Kwicksets, one was a cut-away.

The cut away gave me a lot of problems at first, until I finally "kind-of" figured out the binding order. It was something like 1-3-2-4-5, and the 3rd pin liked to get overset, and sometimes that order didn't work as the 2nd pin liked to fall back down when I was going to the 4th pin. So I have no idea how I would be able to pick this lock with my experience level if it wasn't a cut-away, so thank god for that...but already I'm a bit discouraged. After a while I was able to unlock very quickly while looking. I still have a lot of trouble unlocking it when I'm not looking at the cut-away, and have only done it two or three times, after marking on the pick the location of the pins relative to the pick. I've figured out that I only need a minuscule amount of tension on the wrench.

The second lock I fooled with for about 15 min, and was able to unlock it 2 or three times, although I think it was more luck than anything else.

So...can you guys give me any tips on how to get a better feel for what I'm doing? I mean, I can "feel" the pins go up, but most of the time they don't set, It just springs back down, or in the case of the non cut-away, I can't tell if they are set at all.

I know practice makes perfect, but I'm hoping you guys have some newbie tips that could help me.

Thanks!

John

[unlisted]

This may sound harsh, but poke around this site, there is countless threads about this.. and I am sure it can help you as well.

[Bas2888]

You can't expect to get the 'feel' the first time you pick a lock. It takes lots and lots and lots of practice!
The best thing to do (in my newbie opinion) is to buy some really cheap locks and start picking them at first.

It will give you self-confidence and you'll begin to understand how the pins do their job as you can slowly feel what's happening insinde.
This is what really helped me in the beginning!

And you should also listen to unlisted, there is so much reading/ learning materials around here at al levels of expertise, I'm sure it will come in handy!

Good luck and welcome btw!
Bas2888

[johnnyr]

Thanks for the replies guys,

I've been lurking on the site for a while, and it does have an enormous wealth of info, so I'll keep plugging away on that. I should have been more specific in my post, as my real question is how to you pick a lock when the binding order is all jumbled (not front to back or back to front) or when the tolerances are so low that two or more pins are all binding pins?

This is where I'm having trouble, and I find that increasing tension only makes things harder, and for the most part (at least on the two locks I have) a feather touch is required.

Thanks!

[johnnyr]

Ug, I hate that there is no edit button

My other question was if I should continue to use the cut-away, or learning on it will possibly make things harder in the long run, since on a real lock I will never be able to see the pins, and have to reply on sound and touch? I mean it is great at first to see what is going on, but now that I know how the pins work, I find myself "cheating" and looking at the cut-away.

[Bas2888]

I think locks with a binding order front to back and backwards are rare.
But the problem with to binding pin is just lack of experience.

Try another, maybe a easier or cheaper, lock and I can't say this enough: Practice, Practice and Practice.
Or how TOOOL states it: T Over Over & Over Again.

I'm sorry if this seems a bit harsh, but we can't help you over the internet to get better, it's al up to you

Good luck and hang in there, one day you'll open this lock in a jiffy!

@ your edit:
If you don't fully understand how a lock works, a cutaway can be a real lifesaver.
Try using it, read about lock and everything will work out!

If you do perfectly understand how a lock works, try a simpler lock with lesser pins.
Maybe you can buy a simple rekeyable lock and start with one pin, after that two and so on.
That way you learn how it feels when a pin is set, a pin is stuck, spools and so on...

[Bas2888]

Stupid Edit button....
TOOOL ends with a L of course

[johnnyr]

I think locks with a binding order front to back and backwards are rare.
But the problem with to binding pin is just lack of experience.

Try another, maybe a easier or cheaper, lock and I can't say this enough: Practice, Practice and Practice.
Or how TOOOL states it: T Over Over & Over Again.

I'm sorry if this seems a bit harsh, but we can't help you over the internet to get better, it's al up to you

Good luck and hang in there, one day you'll open this lock in a jiffy!

@ your edit:
If you don't fully understand how a lock works, a cutaway can be a real lifesaver.
Try using it, read about lock and everything will work out!

If you do perfectly understand how a lock works, try a simpler lock with lesser pins.
Maybe you can buy a simple rekeyable lock and start with one pin, after that two and so on.
That way you learn how it feels when a pin is set, a pin is stuck, spools and so on...

Heh. Not harsh at all. I'm not expecting a magic bullet to suddenly make me able to open any lock with ease, I'm just looking for tips on better ways to learn. (like your suggestion about using a lock with fewer pins to get a better feel) So thanks!

[Bas2888]

Great! When you are thinking of a rekeyable lock, I would suggest the EZ-rekey from lockpickshop.com: http://www.lockpickshop.com/EZPL.html

U don't need tools for that one

[Bas2888]

I really miss my edit-button....

I would like to add that the EZ-rekey is also available in a cutaway model...
And no, I don't work for lockpickshop.com

[johnnyr]

It's funny you said that, I ordered that and the Tripick stand, along with several other practice locks from http://www.lockpickersmall.com/. I just haven't had a chance to use it.

Thanks!

[cryptocat]

My other question was if I should continue to use the cut-away, or learning on it will possibly make things harder in the long run, since on a real lock I will never be able to see the pins, and have to reply on sound and touch? I mean it is great at first to see what is going on, but now that I know how the pins work, I find myself "cheating" and looking at the cut-away.

I'd say avoid looking at the cut-away. You won't see it on a real lock so get used to using other senses.

If you can, change the pins around so you don't come to expect that pins always bind in a certain order. Try to develop a sensitivity for which pin is binding and the feeling of a set pin. You said you had 2 locks; warm up on the cutaway - get into the right frame of mind - and then get to work on the regular one.

[Bas2888]

I like lockpickersmall a lot! Ordered my first picks there a couple of weeks ago. Took a while to arrive, but was worth it!

[johnnyr]

Yeah George is a great guy. He's in the same state as me (AZ) so I got the stuff super quickly. His prices are very fair as well.

I'm going to try digital blue's exercises when I get home, as I think that will really help me learn how to "feel" what's going inside of the lock. (instead of cheating and looking)

Thanks!

[Bas2888]

What are digital blue's exercises? Maybe my English is not that good or I'm just a newb...