ARCHIVE 2003-2013 Introduce yourself HERE if you are new. :)

[Oldfast]

Just wanted to say thanks for what you guys are doing here. I'm just getting
back into picking, and what a pleasant surprise to see that some of the stigma
toward lockpicking as a hobby/study has deminished since I first started about
10 yrs. ago.

[tween]

My company is cheap so they buy all their equipment second hand. Frequently the equipment arrives with various locks attached to them making it difficult to use. A hacksaw seems like such an unsophisticated approach to removing them – plus, there is a danger of damaging the equipment.

For this reason I’ve become interested in lock picking. I’m expecting some picks to arrive from southord tomorrow evening. At that time I can graduate from my current set of paperclip picks to a real set.

I look forward to learning many things from all of you.

tween

[stratmando]

Sometimes you can learn more with limited resources, you are force to figure out as opposed to just replace.
Good Luck.
Can you provide some of the locks you deal with.

[tween]

stratmando,

When I get my picks the first project will be to remove an American series 1105 padlock that’s attached to one of our laboratory refrigerators. So far I’ve tried paperclips, a bypassing technique that I saw on you tube, and beer can shims as described in Deviant Ollam’s book, ‘Practical Lock Picking’. None of these attempts worked.

I understand the pins can be a bit tricky, so I ordered a series 1105 lock from ebay. I’m hoping to eject the core of the one I’ve purchased so I can learn to deal with the pins one by one before tackling the lock on the refrigerator. Am I on the right track?

tween

[Crazyman67]

Hey guys i joined several years ago and bought some picks. I had decent luck with the hobby but not many locks. Other issues forced me to set picking aside. Now I have some time and would really love to get back into it. Was just gonna say hello.

[trevajames]

[quote="Pheniox"]Took me 2 years and 1 day to make the thread, but I made it finnaly.

If your new, introduce yourself here. Other posts/threads will be deleted as I see them from now on.

Regardless though, let me be the first to welcome you to the forums.[/quote]

Hi great site I am trevajames director off empire lock & key LTD. I am new on here and I have already found some of the links and questions and answers really useful. Can I ask a question is the silca SBB programmer a good auto diagnostics tool. Or do I have to go to a section of the site to specifically ask questions. Happy new year all. TJC

[key witness]

Hi all, great site that you have going here! I've been lurking for a week or so, but decided to sign up. I've been picking a little bit here and there, and have decided to try to add some locksmithing services to my existing handyman business. The info here is impressive, and it seems that the culture is pretty civil. I'm looking forward to the learning curve!

[paperworkmonkey]

Ah, it started so well! Began picking simple padlocks, filing cabinets, even a euro-cylinder or two but now can't pick a tri-circle padlock ('265' on it ??). Too stubborn to move on unit I've done it, and it's doing my head in... Suggestions please! This hobby is far too addictive.

[eodmed]

Hello all, I'm new to lockpicking and I just got my first set, PXS-14, today, and I'm hooked already.

[Mr. C]

Hello all, I am new here. I thought learning to pick locks could be a fun and practical hobby so I am going to give it a go. Nice to meet you all.

[sharhjk]

Hi. Iam new to this forum. Nice to see you guys.

[criminalhate]

Welcome everyone and hope you learn a lot and have fun picking locks.







Anyone else noticing the lack of post counts on some of these posters?

[GuardianRobot]

Hi Everyone!

I'm a general hobbyist interested in how locks work. I've been looking at this site for a while and finally signed up! Thank you to everyone who is such a great resource here!

~GuardianRobot

[mtnbkr1]

No longer lurking!

[steve_7278]

I am new to this site... seems like a great place to start my current endeavor. I have an "American Lock Co." padlock, currently on a steel box, an old safe, or at least what was considered a safe in it's time.
I know the lock has probably 4 pins, on each side. So the method shown online of putting pressure on the keyhole and raking, or pushing the pins back.
I am struggling with this one. I had the original key, and even made a copy. My wife wanted to check on this box's contents, and between the two of us, I do not have either key. They are in this 2,200 SF home of ours, somewhere. I spent countless hours searching through everything we own.

I do not want to damage the lock. I need to get into it to retrieve my nicest watch.

The box is stainless steel, about 14" long, a little over a foot in length, 6" high, 7" wide. Looks like a tackle box (fishing) by today's standards. The box has a concrete border on the right side along with the hinge system. Its very heavy and just needs

It belonged to my great uncle, who has passed on. Its from the 1920-1930's I think.

I would LOVE it if anybody could tell me anything about my lock / box comination. How old are the box/lock? Were they bought together? What do I need to open this lock until the key (hopefully) turns up?