Breaking locks?

[Badmonkey005]

Hey, well I have been reading around and I see a lot of people talking about breaking locks. I simply am wondering, what are the specific dangers of picking a lock? I.E. What ways can locks break by a bad pick attempt?

Thank you.

[Santos718]

Pins can become severly damaged and not even the key will open the lock. Pins may get loose, or even get stuck in the chamber. Drivers may become severly damged from binding to much with to much tension being applied.

Anyone want to pick up from here?

[vector40]

... I WOULD like to hear from anyone who has had ANY of the above happen to them.

[Santos718]

... I WOULD like to hear from anyone who has had ANY of the above happen to them.

After I was done picking a Abus 24/60 a couple of times. I decided to rake violently to see it\f I could destroy it..well Lets just say, if the keyway wasn't so small, the pins would have allen out. They are so loose it is unbelievable. the key still works, but has trouble getting into the lock. So probably tomorrow, I'm going to take my dremel and cut away

[cracksman]

You do have to be pretty violent to damage a lock. I have seen some videos that have made me cringe, in general however, I think it is more of a warning to noobs. It is also possible to break a pick off in the lock, rendering it inoperable.
I have picked 100's of locks at this point and have never dammaged one, I never learned how to rake though so that may be why

[Mad Mick]

Hey, well I have been reading around and I see a lot of people talking about breaking locks. I simply am wondering, what are the specific dangers of picking a lock? I.E. What ways can locks break by a bad pick attempt?

Thank you.

The warning is intended to discourage members from picking a lock that they rely on daily...such as your front/back door lock, or such a lock that doesn't belong to you. If such a lock is damaged through picking, the cost of replacement is often much more than the cost of a practice lock. If the lock is owned by a landlord, the replacement cost could be doubled...and you will probably end up with the bill.

Stick to picking practice locks and you shouldn't have any problems.

[Chrispy]

Most commonly broken lock from picking would be a wafer lock, broken from aggressive raking.

[vector40]

I could see damaging a wafer lock, but not a pin tumbler unless you went at it like a Viking. (Long-term damage is something else again.)

Seriously, guys, I get the point, but I have the feeling some of us have gotten in the habit of parroting warnings and advice just because we hear it all the time from others. It's not always so dire, y'know?

[Shrub]

Im with you vec, a good lock will take years of abuse and still hold up,

I have had problems with master key pins (thin slices) getting jammed in the chamber but only twice,

[Shrub]

And yes it was raking.

[digital_blue]

Consider the excited newbie who finally picks his first lock, the deadbolt on his friends parents house, and when he turns the plug to 180 degrees something goes terribly wrong. At first it seems like a minor hickup. THe plug just stops there. He applies a bit more pressure. The wrench begins to flex a bit. More pressure still. More flex. Gulp. No problem, he tries to turn the wrench backward. Nothing. Locked in place. Gulp. No, but wait! It never said anything about this in the MIT Guide. Did it? His friend stands over his shoulder saying "What's wrong?". "Um, nothing. It's just, um, yeah, nothing. Just give me a minute." Pick goes in. Jiggle. Jiggle. Cough. Jiggle. Violent jiggle. Gasp. Resign. Sigh. "Dude, I broke your lock."

Now most of us know there is a simple fix for this. But this once-excited newbie doesn't. What's more, his friends parents are due home in half an hour. Oh boy.

It may not be the case that the lock is broken, but it offers a good example of why a little knowledge is a dangerous thing and why beginners should stick to picking locks they don't rely on.

Cheers.

db

[vector40]

You can accomplish a lot of dumb stuff if you don't know what you're doing. ("I"m NOT supposed to hit it with a hammer?") But that's not picking, that's fooling.

[Badmonkey005]

Raking, lol, saw it in the MIT guide.

I am curious, raking basically damages the pins by shreading them down a little bit by bit every time you rake the lock. And from what I hear there is a higher precent of something going wrong while raking. So wouldn't it be more wise just to use the (, forget the termonoligy... me == noob) snake type tool and set the pins one by one?

I have gatherd enough to know that you only need enough torque to hold the pin up against the sheer line as the friction will bind it. So... the pin must weigh what, a few grams? I dont think I will be using too much torque, unless there is something that I am missing.

digital_blue, lol, you don't know how much I can see myself doing that. What went wrong in your lovley story? I don't recall reading it in the MIT guide, however I am sure it is there.

I havent orderd my set yet, just got the money and I am transfering it to paypal before I buy it from thelockpickshop.com (the set that was advised in the sticky). I have a deadbolt in my basement that is never opened... it is a double-way lock. I guess i'll try that as my first lock. I COULD get a practice lock but i'm too cheap.

Well, thank you all for your responces.

[Shrub]

I am curious, raking basically damages the pins by shreading them down a little bit by bit every time you rake the lock.

No not really, maybe if it was a practice lock that you only use for raking practice and your rake is rough,

A good raker only needs 1-3 passes before the lock opens,

[digital_blue]

digital_blue, lol, you don't know how much I can see myself doing that. What went wrong in your lovley story? I don't recall reading it in the MIT guide, however I am sure it is there.

Well actually, I don't think it is in the MIT Guide. It's a common thing that can happen on many locks. When you understand why, feel free to pick your own house locks without anybody gettin' on your case.

db