12 year old homemade jack knife pick

[bembel]

Believe it or not - this pick is more than 12 years old and still alive. I made it when I was 22.
It all started when a friend of mine gave me a battered copy of a "Lockpicking Guide". There was no Internet back in 1992, so the "book" was merely a loose collection of badly copied papers. Anyway, I got the idea...
Since there was no chance for me to buy any picks (or even to order them online) I started to make my own tools. First I used hacksaw blades, then I changed to feeler gauge steel. However, the diamond tips (as seen in the book) made no sense to me. I prefered my tips with a little hollow to fit on the pins. I also added a slight angle to use it as a lever inside the lock. The stuff worked great, but I soon had to realise that EVERYTIME WHEN I REALLY NEEDED MY PICKS I didn't carry them with me. So I needed something for my pockets, like a pocket knife or a key chain.



The casing was made of three sheets of 1.5mm V2A stainless steel, welded together at 2 points. The 1.5mm sheet in the middle leaves room for two 0.75mm picks which can be opened like a jack knife. They also stop exactly after 180 degrees like a jack knife and since the sheets are really tight together the picks won't move a bit while picking a lock. It's almost as precise as a real pick.

But how to carry a tension wrench on a key chain? I made this one:



The whole thing is only about 2 inches (5 centimeters) long.



This one is really my favorite pick. Almost impossible to count all the things we unlocked together in the last 12 years...


Greetings from Germany

[randmguy]

That is a beautiful piece of equipment. You have every right to be proud of a handcrafted tool like that. I hope you enjoy many more locks with it.

[drv]

Hmmm, That tension tool is quite an idea ...

Safe to carry in your pocket, without the risk of hurting yourself.

[CitySpider]

What an awesome piece of gear. Kudos to you for your skill and inventiveness.

Especially on the wrench -- I might need to make me one of them.

[Jarod]

man, thats a nice set, i'm going to have to see if i can make one of those.

[bembel]

Thanks

The wrench was made of 0.75mm feeler gauge steel, too. (Hope I translate this correctly). Extremely durable stuff.
You can see 4 different nozzles which will fit into most european locks. But maybe it's a good idea to carry a set of 2 or more wrenches with different strengths (quite easy when using feeler gauges).
Not too flexible, but gives you direct control over the pins and pretty easy too handle, especially when picking padlocks.

P.S. I would not recommend to build a pick exactly like this. Although I think it's almost undestroyable, welding stainless steel is not very easy.
In fact, I am trying to build another jackknife pick right now without any weldings (just for the fun of it). There's a prototype on my workbench right now. Maybe I'll post some pictures later when it`s done.

[maldotcom2]

Im sure we'd all love to see those pics

[silent]

Have you considered using a canned weld, like JB weld? It comes in a can, and is extremly strong. Just appply and clamp the 2 pices of metal together.

[bembel]

Never heard of that stuff. Is it just another glue or is it some kind of "chemical welding process"?
I'm trying to keep it as simple as possible and without any welding this time, using just 3 parts.
The casing was made of bent stainless steel and holds 2 identical picks with different strengthes:



Maybe you think: "Why is this guy always making this stupid looking picks?", but personally I prefer them because they fit exactly onto the pins. Hopefully you can see that on this DOM demonstration lock (pressing down the 3rd pin).



Unlike the first pick it does not have a jackknife style locking mechanism - the picks will just stop against the metal when opened. First I used a simple rivet, but it felt too wobbly when picking. Now I'm using the black plastic screw (should get a smaller one).

As I said, it's just a prototype and still needs some improvements, like a hole for the keychain at the opposite end. Maybe I will remount the picks "upside down" and place the hole in a position which makes it impossible to open the pick as long as it is attached to a keychain. So it can't be opened accidentally or by curious people.

[silent]

Its like a glue. Its used a lot on cracked engine blocks.

[Mr Ules]

I must say that is a wonderful tool. I am however even more interested in the second one. Are there any specific methods you used to making them or perhaps ways forming the pick. example. Grinding, cutting, or filing.

[bembel]

Usually I glue together a set of feeler gauges (better handling and saves a lot of time) and form them roughly with a grinding machine. Then I separate the picks again and finish them with a Dremel-like thing, files and sandpaper. The feeler gauges I use already have holes. You can use them or just drill your own.

I was lucky to discover some stylish luggage tags of stainless steel which were already bent. Paid 2 Euro for 2 pieces. Just perfect. Maybe you can find something similar to use as casing or try to bend it yourself.



You can see a set of feeler gauges, a single gauge, some gauges glued together (and ready for grinding).
Then the luggage tag and another one cut in half which will be the casing.
At last another experimental pick: This one has a hollow to open the picks. If you want to do that, use a tool like on the picture and protect the opposite side of the casing with a thin metal plate from scratches.

What I've learned: Using a rivet is okay when applied with the right strength, and the next casing will be slightly longer and will have a 2nd rivet for stability.

P.S. I do apologize for posting too many pictures but maybe you found them interesting.

[Mr Ules]

thanks very much. I just might try to make one.

[stick]

That's a nice sleek tool, and looks comfortable to actually keep in your pocket. I need one of those...

[Mr Ules]

I've found a machine for bending that kind of material. I was trying it today and it works like a charm.