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Please HELP!!!

Having read the FAQ's you are still unfulfilled and seek more enlightenment, so post your general lock picking questions here.
Forum rules
Do not post safe related questions in this sub forum! Post them in This Old Safe

The sub forum you are currently in is for asking Beginner Hobby Lock Picking questions only.

Please HELP!!!

Postby Mad_Max555 » 16 Apr 2005 18:16

I am a new locksmith wannabe and I have been through the FAQ's and I have a number of tools like I have some dentist picks that are shaped right and I know how locks work and and that stuff but I still cannot pick any locks, I have mostly tried on some schilage locks and I can see like the first and second pins stay up but it never works after that.
PLEASE HELP ME! :(
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Postby mcm757207 » 16 Apr 2005 18:19

Schlage is a difficult brand for a beginner to start with, try Kwikset.
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Postby Elijah » 16 Apr 2005 18:30

Don't be discouraged if you can't seem to pick a lock open at first. Like MCM suggested, go for a different brand, or maybe something with removable pins so you don't have to juggle 5 pins at the outset. A Master No. 1, 3, 5, or 7 is a great suggestion for a first lock, and Kwikset's will allow you to remove pins until you feel comfortable adding them back in again.

More than anything, though, you must practice. Don't just blindly rake inside the lock--pick it pin by pin and review every movement you make. Unless you mentally work your way through the lock to breach it, you will never gain skill. It is always best to work slowly and accurately rather than flailing your L-Rake around and popping it open without knowing why. Good luck!
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Postby hzatorsk » 16 Apr 2005 18:34

mcm is right... Schlage can be more difficult. Although, I personally find Schlage only slightly more difficult that Kwikset. At least in the residential lines... So... If you have access to another brand, perhaps spend a little time with it.

Your post seems to indicate that you are picking the pins in order. That may not work. In fact, usually it won't.

You'll develop a feel for the pins and you'll discover that the order will vary from lock to lock (even in the same brand). If you are 'droppping the pins' after the second one.... that tells me that perhaps the second pin is not the correct pin to lift 'second'. Try different pin orders as indicated by whether or not you get a distinctive (but subtle) click or 'give' when you lift the pins.
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Postby master in training » 16 Apr 2005 21:12

you said you read throught the FAQ's, have you read the MIT guide? it will help imensely in your learning. having a look at the crypto guide and the videos on lockpicking at howstuffworks will help too.

i've heard people say that dentists tools although thing and strong are not long enough to the the back pins of a lock, i dont know how much truth there is in this, but it may be a thing that stops you.
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Postby Mad_Max555 » 17 Apr 2005 22:12

I already know how a lock works I just can't pick them, Right now with the schlage I usually take my pocket knife and insert it into the lock just a little bit and make sure I'am not ruining the lock,then I take the dental picks and I can see that I have gotten the 1st pin and then the second pins but i cant tell from there. Pretty soon here I'am going to make a pick from a saw blade like it shows on the pyro video. But any other help would greatly be appreciated.
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Postby Elijah » 17 Apr 2005 22:28

My advice would be to find a better tension tool. Unless your pocket knife is meant to give papercuts, it is probably way too large and hard to handle to be used to rotate the cylinder.

-Elijah
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Postby master in training » 18 Apr 2005 3:06

Mad_Max555 wrote:I have gotten the 1st pin and then the second pins but i cant tell from there.


sounds like you're saying you're trying to pick the lock from front to back. pins in a lock bind in any order, they could bind 25143, you have to use your pick to check each pin and see if its binding, then set it, then go through the process again until the lock pops open.

you only need very very light tension , with is why your knife may not be a good thing to use. a schlage is probably too advanced to be starting with anyway. go to your local dump and try to get a kwikset lock for free.
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Postby Mad_Max555 » 19 Apr 2005 20:14

I will practice on a kwikset but iam curious, what is the best type of home made pics to use on a schilage?
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Postby mcm757207 » 19 Apr 2005 20:15

You would probobly use the same picks on schlage that you would use on kwikset.
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Postby digital_blue » 20 Apr 2005 7:24

Mad_Max555 wrote:I will practice on a kwikset but iam curious, what is the best type of home made pics to use on a schilage?


Mine. ;)

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