UNPICKABLE Europalock Diamant 14pin dimple lock picked

[liffa]

During a business trip to India i bought some locally manufactured locks. One of them claimed to be UNPICKABLE according to the package. See text next to the tension wrench.





The picking took approximately 5 minutes and I was using a Peterson hook #4.

Im not an expert on dimple locks, I have only picked some Abus EC75 in the past.
Unfortunately I permanently damaged the lock when the hasp popped which forced the core to turn and some top pins fell out. The lock and core is impossible to disassemble so I will send the lock to recycling.

[GWiens2001]

Nice picking, and thanks for the pics.

And the lock breaking - that is why we say not to pick a lock in use. Picking can, and sometimes does, destroy a lock. Thank you for picking this lock in a vise, as you should!

Gordon

[Squelchtone]

Nice picking, and thanks for the pics.

And the lock breaking - that is why we say not to pick a lock in use. Picking can, and sometimes does, destroy a lock. Thank you for picking this lock in a vise, as you should!

Gordon

So that lock cylinder looks like a clone of the Kaba Gemini, right down to the key blank shape and pin layout, although the padlock body is not styled after Kaba designs I've seen. I did that as well when picking one, without a key to hold the pins in, if you turn more than 90 degrees, everything dumps out. A real joy to put it all back together!

nice picking and welcome to the forum!
Squelchtone

[zeke79]

Just a tip for the future. If you need to pick one of the dimple locks and have any chance at not ruining it simply pick and rotate just slightly, then pack the entire inside of keyway tightly with dental floss or string (it can take a ton of dental floss!). If packed tightly it will prevent the lock from throwing its guts up when turned fully open.

[zeke79]

Forgot to add, when done simply pull the end of the string at the keyway opening once the lock has been rotated back to the locked position to remove the string. Dental floss removes the same way but can be a pain if it somehow tangles in the keyway.

[Squelchtone]

Just a tip for the future. If you need to pick one of the dimple locks and have any chance at not ruining it simply pick and rotate just slightly, then pack the entire inside of keyway tightly with dental floss or string (it can take a ton of dental floss!). If packed tightly it will prevent the lock from throwing its guts up when turned fully open.

I wonder if a Kaba/Silca blank key would work as well, or a wooden popsicle stick cut down to proper size and rounded tip..

[zeke79]

I've never tried it but seems like it would. I just always used the string trick when i picked them open to disassemble and had no key lol. Lazy man ingenuity .

[Papa Gleb]

Thanks for the post. Interesting lock. From the pics, the quality doesn't seem so poor. If you are truly going to trash it, do you mind sending it to me for dissecting or maybe you can. Sucks to cut nice brass but if its broken then you cant brake it even more. Plus the brass looks usable

[LocksportSouth]

Nice first post! And nice pick job - I haven't touched a dimple lock yet

Zeke - you said " If you need to pick one of the dimple locks and have any chance at not ruining it" - does this issue apply to -all- dimple locks? Or just some of them? Wondering whether to avoid buying any for picking / collecting (and then picking) if this is an issue on all dimples.

[zeke79]

As a rule for myself, when I pick them I always pack the keyway as I have lost several locks not packing them. In general on my locks I try to not pick them. For that reason alone I never really collected a whole lot of dimple locks so my experience is limited on them. I've puked some keso cylinders, lips and lips octro cylinders, and kaba cylinders that I remember.

[LocksportSouth]

Yeesh! Thanks for the tip. Glad I read it here first!

[zeke79]

Glad to help.

[MBI]

Unfortunately I permanently damaged the lock when the hasp popped which forced the core to turn and some top pins fell out. The lock and core is impossible to disassemble so I will send the lock to recycling.

I'd suggest keeping it. If you get very deeply into this hobby you'll find that spare parts can be worth their weight in gold. Sometimes when disassembling a lock you might lose ONE tiny piece, keeping you from putting it back into service. Replacements for small parts are not always easily available, and when they are, often cost ridiculous sums.

Given some time and work I bet you can figure out how to disassemble it and can keep all the various parts with your spare bits for unforeseen eventualities.

[GWiens2001]

I'd suggest keeping it. If you get very deeply into this hobby you'll find that spare parts can be worth their weight in gold. Sometimes when disassembling a lock you might lose ONE tiny piece, keeping you from putting it back into service. Replacements for small parts are not always easily available, and when they are, often cost ridiculous sums.

Given some time and work I bet you can figure out how to disassemble it and can keep all the various parts with your spare bits for unforeseen eventualities.

+1+1+1

Good advise from a great guy. Better listen!

Gordon

[liffa]

Bought a new lock and picked it again. This time on cam.

https://youtu.be/UhF8LbNa8yc