Newbie - What path ?

[Crispypiglet]

Hi Guys,

Crispypiglets the name and attempting to learn lockpicking is the game.

So Firstly a bit of back ground, i'm an engineer so fiddling with stuff is a past time and having a lock, pick and tension wrench in hand seems pretty natural. I purchased one of those clear locks and "crappy" lock pick kits from amazon for like £10.

First thing I noticed was that the lock was pretty terrible and didn't actually need to be picked as there was no shielding from shimming or simply putting a sharp pick into the back and pulling the locking/retaining latches in to pop the lock.

The lock picks are also sharp as hell and I decided to smooth and sand them down using an extremely fine sand paper and also used a scotchbrite type material to give a rumbled effect. I also purchased the Sparrows octo rake, warlock, sandman and reflection sets as they were on offer and I had a voucher.

Now im happy that the picks I have and the tension wrenches (both top and bottom of the keyway) I have are decent enough quality that I can practice my skills for a long time without needing to keep upgrading. My question is where do I start ? I don't want to just get the crappiest master lock and pick it within a day then be bored, so im looking for something with a slight challenge, maybe one or two security pins or something with standard pins but a challenging keyway?

I am in the UK so any assistance would be great

Thanks a bunch, Crispypiglet

[MrWizard]

Hi

Welcome to the forum.

Master padlocks are always fun and a good place to start.
You say you are looking for a challenge with quality, security pins, a slightly difficult keyway.
Sounds like you would like to try one of my Super Max 7 Pin Practice Locks it has all that and more.

I sent you a pm so you can look at it if you like.

As far as picks go I have always used standard HPC hook pick its what I learned with and stuck with works great for me. Cheap enough if it gets bent, broken grab another but have always had great success with it.

Have fun
Richard

[Crispypiglet]

Thanks for the Reply Replied to your PM and will 100% take you up on that.

Anyone got any recommendations on any other picks for dealing with the trickier locks? I think the only thing I don't have is a deep pick for the tricker locks but as i'm not going to start there I don't think ill need one yet.

Picture of my set below so far, plastiwrapped my picks which give a slightly nicer feel.

[ratlock]

Hi crispypiglet.
E bay is a great place to find second hand cheap locks when starting out.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Euro-Cylinder ... SwceNZS-23

There are listings like this all the time.

Youve got all the picks you need just now, the only one I would add to the ones youve got is a defforest diamond. But ask 10 pickers, you might get 10 answers.
Tension wrenches are somthing that most would agree are as, if not more important than a bunch of picks.

You can make tension tools out of bike spokes, winscreen wiper inserts, or a load of things youve probably got lying around. Make yourself a few made that fit snug in the Keyway, and are comportable in your hand, for a range of locks.

[Patrick Star]

You need a lot more hooks, of different sizes and shapes. As far as I can tell from the picture you have ... one hook?
If you wanna stay on the cheap, I can recommend ordering a GOSO pickset or similar. Like this one: https://www.withoutakey.co.uk/goso-lock ... t-24-piece
Many picks in that set are useless but the actual hooks are pretty darn good (though not for very small padlocks and such) and you can't beat the price.
Going up in price a bit, but still way below the premium brands, you have SouthOrd as well.

I'd recommend getting one of the practice locks with a pinning kit for learning the basics of picking spool/serrated pins.
I'd also - unlike basically every introduction to lockpicking ever written - recommend not starting with picking a lot of small padlocks. They really tend to behave in ways more proper locks don't. Pins setting (or oversetting) spontaneously, etc.
I don't know what sort of cylinders are common in the UK but I always recommend EVVA (EPS and cousins) for people who are ready to pick their first proper lock with security pins.

[Crispypiglet]

Thanks for advice guys thinking of getting one or two deep hooks as well as some nicer wrenches come payday going to order mr wizards practice lock

[Patrick Star]

You want more than what you actually need since you WILL break/bend picks... trust me on that one

[Crispypiglet]

Going to purchase a few more hooks, maybe a few deep reach hooks.

Then on payday get the training lock As well as some longer tension wrenches to give a better feel like this

[Crispypiglet]

Just picked my first proper lock, a little ABUS T84MB/40.

Supposedly it has mushroom pins?

[Patrick Star]

Many/most ABUSes have spools (which is basically the same as mushroom pins from a picking perspective).
Did it to into a false set while picking?

Congrats, regardless!

[Crispypiglet]

I think I experienced a false set on pin 3 and maybe 4. certainly on pin three as I had to counter rotate to get it to open up, one pin 3 set the rest was fairly easy apart from 4 which maybe me being rubbish.

Thanks, first experience of any proper lock that's not that crappy clear one