lockpick brand for beginners

[lockpickerman]

Hello i'm new here and i'm wondering what brand of lockpicks would be great for someone starting out. specifically hpc or southord.

[Dogrocket]

specifically hpc or southord.

Hi lockpickerman,

I'm fairly new to lockpicking, and I've got both Southord and HPC picks in my toolkit. I've found the HPC picks to be better quality overall, but the Southord picks are a little cheaper and forgiving of beginners mistakes (little bit more bend before they stay bent). If you search the forums you can find some recent discussions comparing some available sets (including several from lockpickshop)

Dogrocket

[Squelchtone]

OP: Internet forum tradition is that one searches first for answers to commonly asked questions, this topic of "what pickset should I buy" been covered many many times already. Help us keep the forum clean so we don't have 200 duplicate topics.

Thanks!
Squelchtone

[Murderbydeath]

While it is true that this forum is chock full of this same question, and you really should have used the search function, I'll offer some input:

There is no real right answer to your question. If you're looking at affordability over quality, or a set that won't bend/break easily to your beginner tendencies, there are definitely some suggestions to be made, but in the end it all comes down to what you're looking for. If you're looking for an affordable set that won't bend very easily, I recommend the SouthOrd PXS-14 set. It comes with just about everything you'll need and more (honestly I don't even use most of the set), but you'll want to pick up a top of keyway tension bar (or make one yourself) somewhere along the way, because the set doesn't include one. You could sand down one of the tension wrenches that comes with the kit easily enough, though, I imagine, given the right tools.

Happy picking!