A lemmy community dedicated to the sport of lockpicking. Information about our belt system can be found at https://lpubelts.com/.
#Rules
Rule 1 - Possibly Illegal or Inappropriate
We do not facilitate illegal or inappropriate activities, which includes picking locks that are not owned by you. Also, be sure that you are familiar with any legal issues for your state or country.
Rule 2 - Lock Not Owned or In Use
Though asking for assistance in regards to how to open a lock is permitted and encouraged, the lock must not be in use. Any submission looking for assistance in opening a lock that is implied to be, or is visibly in use (eg. a deadbolt still attached to a door, or a padlock with anything secured by a closed shackle) will be locked or deleted. Posting about picking locks or having picked locks in use is also not allowed even if they are your own.
Got this at an consignment shop for $15. Anything tricky inside that I should know about before trying to pick? Already have to figure out how to navigate that keyway...
I've picked a master lock (3 I believe). I also picked all the little cylinders that came with the lockpicks I ordered. Sparrow progressive. I even respinned one... Mostly due to accident.
Where do I get more locks? I think I just need the cylinders. What are these called? Where do I buy them from? I'm mostly looking for cheap and they don't have to have a practical purpose. I'm just wanting to pick them for kicks.
I picked my first lock today. It was a cylinder from a Yale deadbolt that I lost the keys to. I'm so pumped. I sat there for over an hour and finally watched a video to learn the pins are little pistons in Yales. I modified the pressure and approach and bam. It just clicked. Cylinder is now repinned to match my current Yale key. Wish I could cut my own keys. Then I'd be a full turkey service (ha... get it). I told my 12 year old who was making fun of me while I was doing it and she actually looked happy for me when I ran in and told her. She even let me show her how a cylinder and key are pinned.
I'm new to the hobby, but already know that this is something I can really get into.
I have purchased a cheap (but good) Chinese set, and want to "upgrade" to something nicer + aquire some more single picks.
I am ready to throw in around €140 (+/-) for a better quality set, but I'm having a really hard time with finding any EU shops that sell picks that are well-reviewed by the community.
I hear Peterson picks are some of the best. Also Sparrows I feel like I hear a lot of people talk about.
That said, I'm not against purchasing outside the EU, but do know that everything will have added + 25% VAT + (usually) expensive shipping +
If I exceed ~€150 for the set (not including shipping) I will have to pay 12% of the total amount (shipping included)
I will listen to all types advise, including being pointed to other forums
Almost all of my own padlocks have been picked, save for just two, the ABUS 64TI/40 and the Master lock LOTO. Still relatively new to the tubular lock game, so the yellow Urban bike disk brake lock as also eluded me.
I found getting the two cut away locks helped immensely - the American helped me really hone in on how over setting pins feel, and the Sparrow (after disassembling and putting in some of their advanced driver pins) showed how I was accidentally picking more than one pin with my older/bad technique.
If anyone has suggestions for the Titanium or LOTO locks, I'm all ears!
This lock is a bit interesting. I keep trying to replicate the same process I took to unlock it and I guess you just push the tension wrench slightly as lots of tension didn't seem to affect it, and just continue picking it even if it goes down. It's a bit annoying if I'm gonna be honest here. The pins keep coming back down so I guess I just tried pushing it up over and over until it gets "stuck"? Any advice for approaching this?
Hello lockpickers, one of my friends bought a Covert Intruments Genesis set recently and I decided to play with it. Turns out I very much enjoyed it and managed to pick the beginner clear lock in 7 seconds after a couple days. So I did some research to find out what to buy for myself to get started on this journey.
As for locks to practice with, I'm considering getting all the sparrows clear locks as they seem to have a good variety and seems to be beginner friendly
I have an antique desk which has three locks and a single key.
My key continues to work for one of the locks, but when inserted into the other two lock key ways, the key will not turn in either direction (will basically wiggle a millimeter or so in either direction, but does not start to actually turn).
I am a very amateurish lock picker—I can rake a basic lock or use a snap gun, but this lever/mortise lock is very different from anything I have tried to pick before.
I should mention that I used the working lock to confirm that the key fully inserts into the other two locks before attempting to turn the key.
I’ve tried looking up tools for picking this lock and watched some YouTube videos.
I am curious if anyone with experience picking this sort of lock might offer some advice on tools to get or improvise.
I’m including a photo of the key to help identify what might be needed.