They open easily in either direction, as already mentioned. It's usually easier counter clockwise... mine opens clockwise only with top of keyway tension, and you can't rake it that way. If you're raking it, try CCW - if you're SPPing it, try clockwise. As for picks, just use a half diamond or short hook. An S-rake will usually open them very quickly if raking is your thing. The plugs are almost always loose from what I know, and causes problems when it comes to picking. It's not a big deal, you just need to vary the tension up and down a bit more than you normally would.
And yes, it's a 4 pin lock. You heard 4 clicks when you released tension because one or more pins were under/overset. You were probably using too much tension... so this is where the wobbly plug will usually help you out a bit. Just let tension off so one or two pins drop back down, increase tension slightly then pick those pins again to see what happens. I find you need to vary the tension quite a bit with these... I typically start fairly light and work my way up. Pulsating tension is the best bet if you're raking.
Here is mine picked both directions... should give you a bit of determination.
I used bottom of keyway tension for both directions here, but top of keyway is just as good. It's all personal preference, although if you can't get at certain pins then top of keyway is obviously the better choice. Happy picking!
