Picking when the door sags or sticks

[PsychGuy]

Guys, I'm a novice lock picker but picking this up fairly quickly. My recurring problem is not so much defeating the lock but defeating the door, if you will. I'm also successfully defeating padlocks and double locked handcuffs.

What I've discovered is that I'll try to turn the tension wrench, get no movement, and then "reset" everything thinking I've failed. Similarly, using a key on the same door requires extra manipulation. As I do this more I sometimes find if I PULL the door outward, PUSH the door inward, PULL it UP, or PUSH it DOWN then I can turn everything and get the task complete.

Any tips on gauging how to recognize when the problem will be in the door / door frame? The friction between the bolt and the strike plate from the weight of a sagging door or peculiar angle of the door frame. Any clues on circumventing this problem before feeling defeated?

[femurat]

Well, I'd solve the issue by not picking locks in use. Sorry if this is not the suggestion you were looking for.

Cheers

[dontlook]

I second femurat . Don't pick stuff that is in use for practice, stuff happens and then it gets bad.

Having said that, you can tell when a pin is binding, but you can't tell when a deadbolt is binding?

[cledry]

As someone who does this for a living it isn't a really common issue. Sure doors sag but usually the customer has a key that is not working so we simply determine whether the door needs to move in, out or up (never seen down, but it could happen) then we move the door, open it and correct the issue. We are usually not picking doors that do not function properly.

Now when picking it should be the same remedy. The plug should yield some and then maintaining turning pressure you would move the door. Only experience can show you which way to move it, but the most common scenario is that the deadlatch has been swallowed by the strike plate, so you need to apply pressure in the direction the door closes to overcome this pressure. Often a tension wrench won't be sufficient and a screwdriver will need to take the place of the tension wrench, some cases require a screwdriver and Vice Grips to move the plug!

Residential doors are different, occasionally an empty house or door that doesn't get used will require force to overcome paint, rain swelling etc. but it is not the normal situation.

[MiPo]

It's very important to emphasize this again as this is not commonly known / recognized by beginners (as I have realized by many discussions): Never pick locks that are in use and on which you rely on. The bad stuff that can happen is: The pick / rake / etc. breaks and the broken tip remains in the keyway - unlike with padlocks you'll have more trouble to get the piece out from the door lock - if at all. You can cause wear on the pins causing the key no longer work (smoothly), the tension wrench can cause deformations on the keyway so that the key won't fit (nicely) anymore. All three "problems" have happened to me with practice locks and I was happy that there were not in use. Furthermore (and this might be a remote problem) you leave picking marks on your lock. Imagine the case of a burglary and the police detects the lock being picked... Were these picking marks done by you or by the burglar? And would you like to discuss your picking hobby in this situation with the police officer

I second femurat . Don't pick stuff that is in use for practice, stuff happens and then it gets bad.

Having said that, you can tell when a pin is binding, but you can't tell when a deadbolt is binding?

[Legion303]

The question was answered, but not the underlying issue. :)

(The other underlying issue, I mean, not the "don't pick locks you rely on" issue.)

The underlying issue is that you don't have a solid understanding of how locks work. This is not a criticism; I didn't have that understanding for maybe the first year. Many of us started out just poking pins at random and getting lucky.

When you correctly set all pins and the plug starts to rotate, you have picked the lock. You have *opened* the lock when the assembly engages the locking mechanism (i.e., your deadbolt) and retracts it. This is where you're running into trouble. As Cledry said, once you've picked the lock, you can maintain tension with one hand, relieve the strain on the mechanism with the other (e.g., by lifting the handle upward on a sagging door), and then you can open it.

Now that you know how to do it, don't do it. If you want to practice "realistic" picking, buy or make a lock mount, or use a vise to hold the locks.

[MiPo]

With euro cylinders the difference between having the lock picked and finally opened the door can be more than just applying enough torque. Some cam mechanisms require the key to be inserted as the tip of the key interacts with the cam. On these cylinders a picked lock with cause nothing when turning the plug. In order to get the door unlocked after a successful pick, you need to stick in small rod or knife in the keyway to catch the cam and then turn it.

[cledry]

With euro cylinders the difference between having the lock picked and finally opened the door can be more than just applying enough torque. Some cam mechanisms require the key to be inserted as the tip of the key interacts with the cam. On these cylinders a picked lock with cause nothing when turning the plug. In order to get the door unlocked after a successful pick, you need to stick in small rod or knife in the keyway to catch the cam and then turn it.

That is an entirely different issue though.