Having a rant about a lock

[WillMclennan]

Right here goes...

its safe to say im a prety good lockpicker, i can overcome locks with upto 3 spool pins, most of the locks i come across i can open with ease...
but then there is this one lock (im quite embarrased to talk about really) a master 150. i absoloutley cannot pick it consistently.. i get to a false set, manage to pick one serrated pin and i can feel absoloutley no more pins that want to give... i mean im embarrased because this lock is recommended for beginners! and it has such a freindly looking key bitting.. its just.. urgh.. embarassing. every once in a blue moon it pops open after a few seconds and im just like... ok....

I HATE this lick because it kills my ego every time i pick it up.

Would be comforting if others rant about there locks that are so stubborn

[mikus]

I dont know anything about this lock nor whats inside of it but it sounds like you didnt pick this serrated pin, maybe there is more than just one?

[fgarci03]

I don't know about this lock, but are you sure it has a serrated pin? Never heard of a Master with serrated pins

[GWiens2001]

Have heard that some of the ProSeries have them, though that could be wrong. The is nothing saying it could not have been rekeyed with American serrated pins. Heck, some jerk could even have custom made pins just to mess with him. Not that I would ever do anything like that.

Gordon

[fgarci03]

Not that I would ever do anything like that.

Who? You?

Like you did on my Master Padlock?



Naahh, you wouldn't do that!

[phrygianradar]

I have two Master locks that are uncommonly tough to pick. Don't know why, they just are. Don't take it so rough. Locks are like people; some of them are just "quirky", to put it kindly... Jerks, really... I am convinced that no matter of practice will change my ability to pick them quicker or more consistently. They just suck. I have been picking them for a long time, and they are always like that. They haven't changed, I have become an overall better lock picker, but they are still uncommonly hard to open. I just don't care as much anymore.

[mechanical_nightmare]

I wouldn't worry too much about it. I have a Yale padlock that gives me the finger too, it takes me ages to pick. By all means, do try and pick it but its not worth getting so frustrated over a single lock. What matters is improving your overall technique, in my humble opinion.

[spandexwarrior]

I have a ACE Hardware padlock that is similar, it's a 5-pin with 4 spools - same thing, I can't pick it consistently. I have 5 or six others of the same model that are no problem but this one takes me an hour sometimes. I think it's a combination of the spools and the spring tension on the plug along with the tolerances of the lock. I've found it helpful to put the lock in a vice to give a more stable and consistent platform to feel exactly what's going on and have a little more control over the tension wrench. It's also helpful to rake it to a false set and then SPP from there - sometimes I can't SPP to a false set.

-Brian

[KPick]

I understand how you feel. I have an american padlock tjat I practice on every once in a while. I can get the lock to false set, but when it comes to picking it to feel feedback, its like it went dead on me. Maybe it has to do with the simple fact that I rekeyed it.

[WillMclennan]

I don't know about this lock, but are you sure it has a serrated pin? Never heard of a Master with serrated pins

sometimes the 150 has a serrated pin as well as a couple of spools, sometimes it doesent.. the master serrated pins aren't that well made apparently:p

[Luissen]

the 140 and 150 were tricky to me, at first. For whatever reason, overtorquing them then using less tension after getting 'stuck' seemed to work for me, but each to their own.

[daniel22747]

I think this lock is very much like the master lock 140. I own three master lock 140s and they all have very different picking properties. One is just a standard pick with nothing special to talk about. The other is very susceptible to oversetting of pins, but becomes very easy to pick once you know this. The third one has a spool pin in it that is almost impossible to set using the rocking method with a short hook (my preferred method). But if you use a staight up lifting method (allowing for reverse rotation) then it pops right in place. Once you know this lock is easy to pick.

I think you may have something like my third lock.

[daniel22747]

Have heard that some of the ProSeries have them, though that could be wrong. The is nothing saying it could not have been rekeyed with American serrated pins. Heck, some jerk could even have custom made pins just to mess with him. Not that I would ever do anything like that.

Gordon

I think most pro series guys have 5 spool pins. The one I own does.

By the way I highly recomend the master lock pro-series for lock pickers. It is truly a fun lock to pick. Not that hard once you get the hang of it, but just a pleasent lock to pick.

[HerrMannelig]

Right here goes...

its safe to say im a prety good lockpicker, i can overcome locks with upto 3 spool pins, most of the locks i come across i can open with ease...
but then there is this one lock (im quite embarrased to talk about really) a master 150. i absoloutley cannot pick it consistently.. i get to a false set, manage to pick one serrated pin and i can feel absoloutley no more pins that want to give... i mean im embarrased because this lock is recommended for beginners! and it has such a freindly looking key bitting.. its just.. urgh.. embarassing. every once in a blue moon it pops open after a few seconds and im just like... ok....

I HATE this lick because it kills my ego every time i pick it up.

Would be comforting if others rant about there locks that are so stubborn

I have a Wilson-Bohannan lock which I cannot open consistently. I think it is the bitting. Wilson-Bohannan locks are very well made too.

[huxleypig]

I had a lock that I called my nemesis for a good 15 years. I could not open it, the return spring (it was a padlock) was really strong and the lock was really old so feedback was hardly noticeable.

Then about 6 months ago I picked it. I was overcome with joy but now I am left a little saddened, almost like I have lost something.

I think, maybe , I wish I had never opened it at all.