what type of tensioner to use in a schlage c keyway?

[south town ninja]

My query probably suffices to illustrate my problem, however, i will include a bit more detail. I was working away on the lock furiously and managed to find a tensioner with an "S" shape that fit quite nicely, but it was facing south of the plug. that's right, straight down. the problem, i have discovered, is that it rubs against the shell(plug casing?) or whatever it is called.none of my other tensioners fit properly: My center of plug tensioner rubs against the first pin and falls out when i manage to set a pin (so i have to begin the whole process again). this is probably from picking lock in hand. my other tensioners are all edge of plug tensioners i have made out of street sweeper bristles, but they are a bit wide, and make it difficult to navigate the lock with my hook pick.GRRRRRR! Anyhow, any help would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!

[billdeserthills]

I like the HPC TR-4 on the schlage c, top of keyway, but people do use any of the regular "L" shaped tension wrenches again best at the top of the keyway,
that leaves extra room for the picks to maneuver. Don't forget a spritz of lube

[south town ninja]

I'm having trouble with top of keyway tension. It gets in the way of the pick. Maybe i should get a vice and quit picking lock in hand. I really like picking SPP tho, as this will open more locks than raking, etc. (right?) Anyway, i'm going to focus on SPP for a while at least. I like TOK tensioning better because too many times I get screwed over by a tensioner sticking against the shell. But when I TOK tension, I lose something. In fact I cannot even pick my schlage with a 3 pins in it. What is the issue? ARRRGGGGG!

[billdeserthills]

I like to grind the tension wrench a bit shorter(in width) and use it at the top, but there is no right or wrong way

[nite0wl]

Standard commercial tension wrenches (Edge/Bottom of Keyway) should work fine in the C keyway as long as they don't have any burrs or sharp edges. Make sure the tool is wide enough to seat firmly in the keyway (most commercial standard tension tools are about 3mm/0.12" wide). Since you are making your own tension tools from found materials polishing them and rounding the edges might help the binding issues you are experiencing. Narrowing the tip and neck of the tension tool to about 3mm should help it fit the warding and provide sufficient room to work your picks in a C keyway, just remember to make sure the corners and edges are rounded and smooth.
If you are using a Top/Center of keyway tool, grinding the tip down to shorten it or create a ledge to stop the tip from entering too deeply into the keyway may address the issue of binding the front pin. Take a look at the original (0.05") Peterson Pry-Bar, it's width is almost exactly the interior diameter of the C keyway and it has a small lip or ledge which stops the tip from entering too deeply, they work excellently in all of my C keyway locks. Admittedly I am a big fan of Peterson tools and their Pry-Bars are my default tension tools.

Edge tension tools are usually easier to use when picking the lock in your hand, Center(TOK) tension tools can be difficult to use in the hand but a vice makes it much easier to use them.
SPP will be required for most higher quality (and higher security) locks but a vice makes things much easier.

[south town ninja]

well, i went to harbor freight and bought me a vice today for a whoppin 25 bucks! Going to continue with TOK tension and see where this goes. will keep you all updated. thanks for the tips.

[south town ninja]

ok, so the vice isn't helping either. I only have 3 pins in the lock, what in the heck? even switched to bottom tension, no luck. is it the pick im using? It's the skinny hook from the credit card set offered by TOOOL. I know i need to buy better picks, I'm going to go with peterson, but are the picks i have now sufficient? Anyhow, in the mean time, i guess i'll go back to picking it with two pins.

[billdeserthills]

Those credit card picks are too small to get a good grip on, let alone holing onto them too long prolly get you finger crampy

[nite0wl]

Those tools do not provide great feedback and may not have enough strength to overcome the binding force on the pins in your lock. Those were some of my first picks and they worked well on some simple stuff (especially cheap wafer locks) but they are not ideal for serious picking. If you notice the shaft of your pick bowing they are definitely not up to the force you are using.

Don't get me wrong, for what they are the TOOOL pick card is better than most similar sets but the word "Emergency" is in the name for a reason.

[deralian]

It is probably just a lack of experience and poor tools. I've made several picks and some of them work extremely well. I've also made a few that no matter what I did would not open any lock. Some times you just have to trash a tool that wont work and get another.

[deolslyfox]

Top of the keyway is the ticket. Just takes practice. And as noted a set of picks that can handle the pressure from security pins will help. You can't go wrong with Peterson gear.

[Squelchtone]