Questions on pick heads

[Horomancer]

Hello there i'm new to the forums and to lock picking in general. I have a set of Southord picks (11 piece) and was lost on the use of most of the pick heads. Are the different heads good for certain types of locks or is it all preference? I generaly stick with the diamond head when i'm practicing on a deadbolt, but if another head is better suited for the job knowing so would be nice.

My set includes-
1 rake
2 diamonds (slightly different sizes)
1 elongated diamond(?)
1 snake
1 with two circles stack on each other
1 with a very jagged snake head (this one also has the head of the pick set off center to the handle)
1 double headed pick, very slim, with what looks like a diamond on one side and a very fat knarled snake on the other.

If anyone can give me a breif reasoning behind the forms of these picks, i would be very greatful.
Also, why do some tension bars have a twist in the neck?

[maldotcom2]

I hope that set came with a hook of some sort, i find them the best for most pin tumbler locks.
If you do some searching you will find info on what the different types are for.
The twist in the wrench earning it the name 'twist flex' is merely for comfort.

hope that helps.

[WhiteHat]

I have a feeling that the "rake" that you mentioned is from the MIT guide? they're normaly called Hooks, and sometimes called lifters or fingers.

the really jagged one is called a rake (sometimes long rake, or sawtooth rake).

there are quite a few posts arround - most notably one by romstar on this subject. have a search for "which pick" or "pick type" or something similar.

[WhiteHat]

found it:
viewtopic.php?t=4467

I always remember how to search for that one because romstar starts off by saying "regurgitating", which is an uncommon word and when combined with author "romstar" in the search, yeilds only one result.

[Horomancer]

thanks for the link
i completely missed the search button at the top of the page. I'll try that before i post any more questions.
I would still like to know why all my picks have handles except for the double headed one. It is so slim that manipulating it is aggrivating.
Any ideas on that?

[skold]

the elongated diamond is a deforest, very good pick the deforest