Typical Newbie Q & A's.

[just-another-newbie]

Thanks if you reply...never mind if you dont...

I picked my first lock by raking a few days ago but i just cant seem to do it anymore!!!

I tried doing it again, but I coudnt even get the first pin up!!! I just sat there and kept levering the pin up with a paperclip and at tmes i adjusted the torque (wadeva it's called), the pick and my sitting position, but i coudnt get any sound or click or rattle! Just the faint sound of the spring behind the driver pin. I tried raking of course, but nothng seems to work. Can someone suggest what i can do? Should I apply more force on the tension wrench or should i be more gentle with the pick or something??? Should I be able to see the plug moving more or shuld I just try another lock? and if I should, where do I get it from???

Please help me!!! I may be contradicting what I said above but - Please reply if u can spare the time!!!

[just-another-newbie]

sorry about this but just something else...

I was told that too pick a lock one has to start from the last pin, picking until the front. Until now I have been atempting* to picking from the front to the back. But f one picks from the back, how does he see the pin??? Also, i cant find a suitable pick which will not hit the other pins at the same time. I am at the moment using a paperclip which i had bent slightly at the edge using a pair of pliers. At the same time, the torque wrench i am using which is a flat head screwdriver, obstructs the way of the pick and chips the metal off the lock at the same time.

Could anyone recommend some better homemade picks and wrenches?
And must real 'sheer force' be used when operatinging the torque wrench as described in the MIT guide or must i do it more delicately? At this time, I am half forcing the screwdiver.

varjeal also stated in one of the previous topics that the 'key' to lock-picking is to find the pin which binds the most. How does he do that???

Thanks all!!! Im just a newbie!

[Picker_Level-0]

First major tip - save up and get some picks!!!!!! Its 100x more enjoyable and easier. If not picks then second thing make some, i have no experience with making proper picks so do a search on pick making, or home made picks. But as a better replacment for a paperclip use a hairclip, u know a girls hair clip!! stronger and better, and appernetly a safety pin ment to work better as well but havent tried one of them!

Ok, firstly, the force applied to the tension wrench should be light but if you are having no luck vary it!! Using a screw driver i found it is a bit difficult because you arent applying much of a turning force but a downward force so dont forget try and turn not push down. Whilest on to turning the wrench, make sure your doing it the correct way! Use ur key to check, if you have a key for the lock!

Concerning set and bound pins, pins dont bind and set in order, back to front or opposite, instead they bind first at the points that are worstly aligned during the making of the lock. So others have different methods, but to start someone told me to apply tension, scrub the lock a few times and this will set a few pins, then go in again and you can feel set pins, then push on the bound pins, you can kinda feel them set!!! ish then vwalaaa ur lock opens!!!! in theory lol but i cant get it all the time,

Seriously buy some picks, paperclips suck, i know thats how i started picking for about 1 month!!!

[fat lenny]

When I firest learned to pick looks I used stuff that I had found around the house. The best wrench I found was the clip part from a pen lid, not just any pen though, it has to be one the is attached to the cap of the pen, and the cap has a cap on it. Remove the top cap then remove the clip, ben it to 90 degrees, perfect wrench. ( uniball pens have it.)

The best around the house pick I found was the silver parts of a black (clamp type) paper clip. good and strong with no bending.

[oniony]

The biggest mistake I found myself making when using my homemade pick was applying too much tension. When first starting, it is really hard to work out what is going wrong: is it the picking, is it the tension or is the lock jammed, etc. When I got my picks, it became a lot clearer that I was applying too much tension as I could no longer blame my makeshift tools and the lock clearly worked with the key!

[just-another-newbie]

phew! that's alot of info...

thanks guys!!! It sure is nice to have people responding!!!

thanks again!!!

[Chucklz]

The amount of torque you should use, my best estimate is at about 1/2 to one inch ounce. What this means is if you took a nice torque wrench, and had a one ounce weight, and put it one inch from the point where you insert it into the lock you got the right torque. This translates to just the gentlest pressure on the torque wrench. This is the most important tool, not the pick!
A small hex wrench, or even better, a piece of street sweeper bristle bent to an angle between 45-90 degrees is simply wonderful. Make your bend about an inch down, and keep the lever arm at about 4-5 inches. If you cant find any street sweeper bristles, the metal strip out of windshield wiper blades makes wonderful tools. Now, on to making picks. There are quite alot of patterns, in the MIT guide or online somewhere. A hook is a wonderful place to start, you will be better for learning to pick pin by pin anyway. Now, if your not especially incllined to SLOW grinding, shaping, and fustration, I would say you should go buy some picks online, SouthOrd being very good, especially the new slim set. (Get the ones with the metal handles, its a little bit more money, but your fingers will love you). Buy a small set, say the 5 piece one. See what you are most confortable with. After a while, you will see what you prefer, and then are in a better position to make your own tools.

As for learning how to pick, go out and get a nice cheap Kwickset (quickpick) deadbolt, and take out the cylinder..... thats really all your interested in here. Theres plenty of information online on how to dissasembly the cylinder. Start picking one pin. Do it about 50 times, just to see how it feels. Then go to two, pick that until you are so sick of it that you cant stand to even look at the lock anymore, then add a pin. And keep doing this. Its not possible to spend too much time picking a two or three pin lock. Make sure you really develop the feel. You cant see into the lock with your eyes while your picking it, but with enough practice, you can build a visual image entirely from the sensory information you get from your hands. Locks dont always pick front to back, or back to front. They pick in whatever order they darn well please to. Best of luck, I can't wait to here of your success!