who is the best?

[jamesphilhulk2]

i have been interested in lockpicking for quite some time and i have done alot of researchinh on the internet. i have heard of alot of some famous and some very famous locksmith's in the world but i was wondering which one in your opinion is the best of them all?

thanks in advance for any replies

[n2oah]

I think Barry Wels is one of the best.

[jamesphilhulk2]

is that the guy who picked theso called "unpickable lock" made by Joseph Bramah? if so it took him like 52 hours spred over 16 days (or something like that).

[n2oah]

is that the guy who picked theso called "unpickable lock" made by Joseph Bramah? if so it took him like 52 hours spred over 16 days (or something like that).

I'm not sure. Are you sure you're speaking of a Bramah lock? Here is a Bramah lock http://crypto.com/photos/misc/bramah/ . In my opinion, Bramah locks aren't nearly as hard to pick as some of the locks barry has done.
But Barry Wels did pick a T14 Medeco Biaxial lock in 01:58.07 proof is on video, and it was witnessed by fellow TOOOL members. http://www.toool.nl/competitie.wmv Right click "save as" on the link, the T14 is the third lock shown.

[jamesphilhulk2]

yeh those are the right type of locks, but the one i'm talking about has 400,000 pins or wafers he put up an advert on the window of his shop betting people to pick it

[Mad Mick]

...400,000 pins or wafers...

I'm not sure if this would be heaven, or h e l l!
"Honey, I'm off to pick this new lock...see you in three years." (may get some peace & quiet...and a costly divorce! )

[jamesphilhulk2]

what about that Sargent guy(sorry don't know first name)

[pinky]

its a bit of an impossible question to answer, ie whos the best Locksmith are we talking best lock designer , best bench locksmith , best lock picker, then maybe do you mean best cylinder lock picker , lever lock picker , safe manipulator etc etc etc.

The industry has seen many great talents and many shinning lights , but i couldnt honestly answer whos best.

[n2oah]

Joseph actually invented an "unpickable" lock in 1784, noone was able to pick it until 1851, he also offered 200 pounds to the man who could pick it. The man was A.C. Hobbs and it took him a 16 day period to pick it. (spread out over 16 days, he didn't constantly work for 16 days!) Just a quick google search showed that info. Unlike A.C. Hobbs, Barry Wels is currently alive (unless he died in the last couple of minutes)

About.com says, "The key is extremely simple, although the lock's tolerances are so fine that it requires protection from dirt and is supplied with a cover."
I think that statement is totally false. I'm not sure a particle of dirt is enough to make a current super high security lock manufactured to the best tolerances in the industry not function, much less a lock manufactured in 1784.

Just a nice history less for you

[cracksman]

I heard that guy Houdini wan't so bad

[jamesphilhulk2]

sorry everyone i should have Clarified i mean the best bench locksmith

[n2oah]

its a bit of an impossible question to answer, ie whos the best Locksmith are we talking best lock designer , best bench locksmith , best lock picker, then maybe do you mean best cylinder lock picker , lever lock picker , safe manipulator etc etc etc.

The industry has seen many great talents and many shinning lights , but i couldnt honestly answer whos best.

I agree to that. A locksmith does more than pick locks. Who can repin a cylinder the fastest? Who can drill a safe the fastest? Who can retrieve a broken key the fastest? Kind of a vague question.

[yippeegollies]

Ditto that. The world's best lockpicker is probably not a locksmith, we got too many other things on our plate to just concentrate on lockpicking. For me anyway, only about 10% of my jobs involve picking locks. I'm sure some of the hard-core hobby-pickers on this board are better than I am at picking.

Yip

[jamesphilhulk2]

OK so a bit of a broad question so i will change it a little (please don't shout) who it the best locksmith/lock designer

[n2oah]

Mechanical or Electronic or Hybrid locks?