Help needed from everyone with a electric pickgun.

[Stinger]

Hello all

I've been picking for about a year now - I'm still in school so it's still just a hobby to me, but I enjoy it very much.
I basically have what I need (about 30 slimline picks a snapgun and a little more) but a thing that I've wanted to try out for a long time is an electrical pickgun.

Now, I've searched a lot in the old topics and posts and read all I could about these tools, and so far I've boiled it down to:

- It's not as fun as manual picking - but it CAN be more effective.

- They make much MUCH noice - (no criminal thoughts here please, just plain fact!)

- They are expensive, and there are different kinds (battery/chargable ect)

Even though I'm only picking for my pure pleasure I still want one of these - just try it out and enjoy having it.

But now the real question comes - even thoug I've searched a lot, I can't seem to find any posts COMPARING the different guns to eachother, like pros and cons and that.

But from reading and doing my own research, this seems to be how the story goes:

The HPC is the best and is very liked to pro locksmiths

Then there are some "in between brands" Brockhage (sp?) and Multi Pick

And it seems that the Southord comes in last..

BUT - Me being a student and NOT a pro locksmith - I think the HPC it a little too expensive. I can easily buy the Southord and could actually afford somthing A LITTLE more expensive - but is it nessesary -
To spend more I mean?

Is there something better than Southord that doesn't cost many times more?

Is the Southord really worth it at all (even to a pure hobby guy)?

I hope someone will read my post and share some thoughts - the Sothord is tempting cheap - but is it crap when compared to the HPC and such? - I hope not..

Thanks.

[Romstar]

I wouldn't have any difficulty in recomending the SouthOrd E100-HO pick gun to anyone.

As you noticed, the HPC gun seems to be the most prefered.

Other than those two, there aren't many more. The Multipick is available of course but in my professional opinion it has issues. Yes, before anyone else says anything the Multipick DOES open locks. The problem is that it's also destructive in the extreme. Neither the HPC nor the SouthOrd is anywhere near as destructive.

So, that leaves those two guns. I have never seen a Brockhage electric pick gun. I saw another type a while back, but I don't know who made it. It looks a lot like the old HPC electric pick gun.

Go to www.southord.com pop into the outlet, and order the E100-HO-0. The price on that one is $89.95, and you will find it is a very good gun.

Romstar

[Stinger]

Thanks a lot for your reply - I'll buy the Southord one - but I'll have to do it from an EU site since bringing picking machines into the country is illegal. What about the two different types? The one with 2 and 3 batteries? Just go with big one, or?

A btw. if you wisit www.multipick-service.com (thats where I'll order from) they have other pickguns than HPC, Southord og Multipick.

[Stinger]

Actually - I've just checked and the price is the same for the big and small southord pickgun - so it's not about quality - but what you want.. But you say the big one is the best? I live in Denmark, and here it's almost impossible to find a lock without spool pins and such. Can the pickgun help me overcome these? - if it's only helpful on plain "non-spool" locks I won't get it since sool locks is all we've got here.

Thanks

[Romstar]

When used with the proper tension technique, a pick gun is very good at overcoming spool and mushroom security pins.

It can be easier to use a pick gun, but it gets really special once you have learned the proper way to use the tension wrench with it, and once you get the needle hitting the pins properly.

The larger SouthOrd gun would be the better one in my opinion, because it has the extra power needed by certain locks.

You will encounter heavier springs in some locks, and the extra power will be useful.

Romstar