Manual Picking Help Needed - WHere To STart - I'm Confused

[johno75]

Hi,

This thread may get me flamed but so be it. I have been a member for around 6 years and have al electronic pick gun, manual pick gun and several manual pick sets. i can pick just about any lock I find with the guns but for the life of me I have never been able to open a lock with my manual picks and i really want to learn. I have read the MIT guide and others online and have a little grasp of what to do but for the life of me can't get the feel for it or get it done.

What can people suggest as some good info or whatever to grasp these fundamentals? I am TOTALLY lost!! i have tried SPP but just can't work out when the pin is in he right postion etc. WHat am I doing wrong.

Any help greatly appreciated.

Cheers
Johno

[femurat]

Have you tried db beginners exercise? Starting with a pin and adding one at a time is the best way to learn.

Cheers

[raimundo]

So, its true, starting out with power tools will cause you to be unable to pick.

thats what they used to say about bogotas, that they would cause you to forget how to spp.

Here we have the living example. it wasn't just an old locksmiths story.

[Squelchtone]

nobody should be flaming you for asking a legit question.

But I do wonder if just sticking a pick gun into a lock ever actually made you wonder what was going on inside.

I found that in order to pick well using manual picks you have to visualize what is going on inside the lock in order to make sense of the sounds and the feedback you will feel, so it is important to at least have a basic grasp of key pins, driver pins, springs, binding order, the fact that the reason the plug wont turn is because there are little metal rods in the way (Driver pins) which must be lifted out of the way (by the real cut key or by picking or bumping or gun snapping) and some other fundamental ideas you have to wrap your brain around before you can get past the training you've already had with mechanical picks and pick guns.

If you already know about driver pins and key pins and springs and binding order they you're on your way to be a successful manual pick picker.

Look for the LSI comic book guide to picking, it has some good photos of how high to lift pins, how much pressure to use, and what to look and listen and feel for.

welcome back to the forum,
Squelchtone