The Locksmith V 3.1

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Lock Picking Techniques

Making LockPicks

Picking Other types Of

Locks

Basics in pickingA Lock

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Readme.txt

How to Pick a Lock

Step # 1 Step # 2

Selecting Locks

Difficulties

Understanding the insides Of Lock Picking

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Ideal Creations Lock

Pick Set

Intro to Lock Picking

There are basically two steps when picking a LockStep1: Insert the Tension Wrench into the key hole & apply pressure on the tension wrench to provide a rotational force on the key hole.Step2: Use the Pick Feeler and press the pins inside the lock until they click<<< Once all the pins are pressed in the correct depth and click into place the Lock will open >>>

Intro to Lock Picking

To pick a lock, two tools are needed. The tension wrench and the pick. The tension wrench is used to provide a turning force which turns the lock. The pick is the device which presses the pins inward. There are many different type of picks. Above are shown two popular picks.

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Step 1

Step 1: First insert the tension wrench into the lock's key hole and apply approximately 1 pound of force to the tension wrench with a 1.5 inch arm. The tension wrench needs to be placed so that the pins are easily accessible with a pick feeler. The tension wrench can be placed in front of the most outer pin where the feeler can still reach behind the tension wrench. The tension can also be placed at the base of the key hole opposite from the pins. Most Lock open when rotated clockwise, however a few open by counter clockwise.

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Step 2

Step 2: Continue applying pressure with the tension wrench, then use the pick tool and carefully press each of the pins upward. When one of the pins catch you will feel the tension wrench slightly move. Start with the pin furthest and slowly work outward, pressing each of the pins upward. Repeat the process of starting with the pin furthest in and working outward. While repeating this process, always leave tension on the tension wrench. After repeating the process several times, the lock will open.

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Selecting Locks

The first lock you pick should be an easy lock so that you will get the feeling of how to pick a lock. If you start with a difficult lock, you most likely will get frustrated and quit. The easiest lock is a desk lock or a filing cabinet. Once you have mastered filing cabinets then move to pad locks which are a little more difficult (some small pad locks are very difficult because it is hard to move the pick around in them). After you have mastered pad locks try opening door locks.

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Why Won’t the Lock Open

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These are a few common problems when picking a lock.

Pin too far

Pin not Pressed

Change Tech.

Change Rotation

Vary Tension

Mental Picture

A Pin Was Pressed In Too Far

If too much force is applied to the pin with the pick while the lock is being picked, the key pin could pass the sheer line and stick due to the pressure from the tension wrench. The only way to bring the pin back down is to release some of the pressure on the tension wrench. Enough pressure should be released, so that one or two pins will fall (when a pin falls you will hear a click). Many times, if after spending more than 20 seconds on a lock, I will release enough pressure to drop a pin or two. The reason for this is that this problem occurs frequently. If a lock does not open after trying for more than a minute, it is sometimes best to release all the pins and start all over.

Inner or Outer Pin was not pressed

Many times the most inner or outer pins are missed. When picking, make sure the pick goes all the way in until it touches the back wall, then slowly work forward. If the tension wrench is in front of the pin, the most outer pin is often missed because it is covered by the tension wrench.

Change the Picking Technique

The characteristics of every lock is different. Practice each of the techniques in the ADVANCE PICKING TECHNIQUES section of this CD. When coming across a tough lock to pick, change the your techniques and find the one that is best for that lock.

Change rotation of Tension Wrench

Most locks open clockwise. However, some don't! If the pins don't seem to catch on the sheer line, try reversing the tension wrench's direction. Also, if you spent a long time trying to pick a lock and you feel you have picked all the pins and the lock still does not open. Reverse the direction on the tension wrench.

Vary the TensionPressure

Some locks require that you vary the pressure on the tension wrench while picking it. Just before you rake, or press the pins of the lock apply approximately 1 pound of force. After the rake or press, release the pressure on the tension wrench to the point where the pins are about to fall back down. Then reapply the pressure and rake or press the pins again. The reason for this is that some locks commonly have their pins pass the sheer line and stick. By releasing some of the pressure, the pins that have not locked into the sheer line will fall back down so they can be pressed or raked again.

Create a Mental Picture

What really helps in picking a lock is to have a mental picture of what is happening inside the lock when you are picking it. When you press the pins, imagine the pins falls into the sheer line. Feeling the tension wrench and pick while imagining what is happening.

Understanding the insidesof Lock Picking

This is a photo of a typical lock that was removed from a door. When the key is inserted, pins within the lock are lifted to a correct height. This correct height is called the sheer line. When all the pins are aligned on the sheer line the, the cylinder is able to turn and move the dead bolt, which unlocks the door.

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This is a cut away view of the front of the lock. You can see all the different part that make up the lock. The spring holds the driver pin and the key pin down against the stop. If pressure is applied in trying to turn the lock, the driver pin will stop the cylinder from turning. For the cylinder to turn, the pins must be lifted to the sheer line.

The pick feeler is used to lift the pins to the sheer line. Visibly, there is no way to tell when the pins reach the sheer line because the lock is sealed. However, if a rotational force is applied to the cylinder while the pin is being lift, the cylinder will rotate as soon as the pin reaches the sheer point.

When this happens the drive pin will lock into place and the cylinder will be free to rotate and unlock the door. However, to make the lock more difficult to pick, two to five sets of pins are used.

As shown in the photo above, most locks have 5 sets of pins to pick. When the rotational force is applied on the cylinder, only one or two of the pins will have the sheering force placed on them. The one or two pins that have the sheering force on them need to be picked first. When the pick is pressed on these pins, they will feel stiff and a little difficult to move. Once these pins reach the sheer line, the sheering force will be transferred to another pin or pins.

Once all the pins have been aligned on the sheer line, the cylinder will be able to rotate and unlock it.

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Ideal Creations LockPick Set

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The Ideal Creation lock pick set has four different lock picking heads, a double headed dual size tension wrench, and a holder to help hold the selected pick. The video will describe which head to use for each technique or type of lock.

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Techniques

There are 4 techniques in picking a lock1) Raking Technique - Fast lock picking technique for opening Pad Locks & cabinets2) Taping Technique - Great for opening Locks on Doors 3) Pressing Technique - An excellent technique for all tumbler locks. ( File cabinets, drawers, pad lock, doors...)4) Combined Technique - Ideal for difficult Locks

Raking

Pin Taping

Pin Press

Combine

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Raking Technique

The Raking technique is a very quick technique for opening pad lock. As with any technique, practice is need. First apply a rotation force on the lock's key hole with the tension wrench. Then insert the rake pick all the way into the key hole. Using the outer base of the lock as leverage, press down on the rake. This will cause an upward force on the inner most pin. Then with a quick short hard jerk, pull outward on the rake picker. See Video to watch this technique.

Example #1

Example #2

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Example #4

Pin Taping Technique

The Tapping Technique is ideal for opening door locks and dead bolts. Simply apply a rotational pressure on the lock with the tension wrench. Then with the pick feeler rapidly and lightly start tapping on the most inner pin and slowly work your way to the outer pin. Repeat this process until the lock opens. The principle behind the technique is that when the lower pin is taped, the force is transferred to the top pin causing it to travel up and away from the bottom pin. This principle is similar to playing billiards. When cue ball hits another ball, the cue ball will stop and the other ball will travel.

Example #1

Example #2

Example #3

Example #4

Pin Press Technique

The Pressing technique works well on all tumbler lock. The first step in this technique is to providing a turning force with the tension wrench. Slowly pressing each pin inward. Some of the pins when pressed, will fall into the sheer line which causes the tension wrench to give a little. Start with the most inner pin and slowly work to the outer pin. Repeat this process many times while always leaving pressure on the tension wrench. The pins will fall into the sheer line in a random sequence. This is why the process is repeated may times.

Example #1

Example #2

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Combine Technique

By using a combination of techniques is a good way to open an unknown lock. Raking is a good technique to start with because it is fast in getting several of the pins to align on the sheer line. Then switching between to pressing and tapping technique to get the last pins that were missed by the raking technique.

Example #1 Example #2

Rake #1

Rake #2

Rake #3

Rake #4

Tech

Tap #1

Tap #2

Tap #3

Tap #4

Tech

Press #1

Press #2

Press #3

Press #4

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Combine #1

Combine #2

Tech

Making Lock Picks

Large hair pins are very good for making a tension wrenches and feeler picks. They are also not a difficult to make. The best feeler picks are made of spring steel strips, and the best tension wrenches can be made from an allied wrench or spring steel. These are a little difficult to make. The paper clip is the worst feeler pick and safety pin is rated fair, yet both are easy to find and the simplest to make.

Feeler Picks Tension Wrenches

Hair Pin

Steel Spring

Paper Clip

Safety Pin

Hair Pin

Steel Spring

Allied Wrench

Paper Clip

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Templates

Feeler – Hair Pin

One of the best ways to make a home made feeler pick is by using a large hair pin. The hair pin in make from spring steel which is very strong and is easier to grip than the paper clip or safety pin. To make simply break off the leg of the hair pin 1.25 inches from the tip. Break the leg which has a slight a slight tilt on it's tip. The leg will break off after bending it back and fourths several times. Discard the short leg that you just broke off. With the other leg, pull off the ball of on the tip of the leg. Bend the very tip of the leg 45 degrees. Use a slab of concrete to round off the edges of the tip. <See Video>.

Feeler – Steel Spring

Making a feeler pick from a strip of spring steel is the best but the hardest to make. The equipment need is an electric grinder or motor tool, double side thin tape, transparent tape, permanent marker and steel spring strips which can be purchase at hobby stores, hardware stores or a craft stores. On the CD are different templates for different lock picks which can be open with Microsoft Word (doc) or a CAD Program (dxf). Print the file out and choose which pick you want to make. On the front of the chosen pick place a layer of clear tape, and on the back, place a strip of thin double sided stick tape. Cut the pattern out with a pair of scissors and stick it on the spring steel strip. Use a permanent marker outline the pattern. Remove the template. Use the grinder to grind it to the correct shape. <<<SEE VIDEO>>>

Feeler – Paper Clip

Making a pick feeler from a large paper is very easy. Using a large paper clip to pick a lock is far from being the best, but in most cases will do the trick. More important is the skill of the lock picker which comes from practice. To make the feeler picker, open the paper clip and bend the very tip of the paper clip 45 degrees. That’s It! The paper clip is not a strong steel therefore the lock must be gently picked. Use less force with the tension wrench! See Video

Feeler – Safety Pin

Making a feeler pick using a large safety pin is similar to using a paper clip. However, the safety pin is a little better because a safety pin is make out of spring steel which is much stronger. To make simply open the safety pin and bend the tip as shown in the video. The tip of the needle is sharp and needs to be grinded down to a round point. This can easily be done by scraping the tip of the needle on a slab of concrete. See Video

Tension W – Hair Pin

To make a tension wrench from a hair pin is easy. Over all this tension wrench is very good because a hair pin is made from spring steel. To make the tension wrench, break the hair pin into two pieces by using a pliers and bending the desired breaking point 90 degrees. The breaking point should be on the hair pins straight leg just before the bend. Discard the straight leg. With the other leg bend both ends 90 degrees, opposite of each other. The ends won't break off because they are already partially bent. << See Video >>

Tension W – Spring Steel

Using a strip of spring steel is a very good tension wrench and easy to make. The spring steel strips can be purchased at a hardware store or a hobby shop and comes in various sizes. Select one that is about 1/8 of an inch wide. To make, simply bend the ends of the steel spring with a pliers. Make two 45 degree bends else, the spring steel will snap off. <<See Video>>

Tension W – Allied W

Using a hex wrench to make a tension wrench is very easy. However a grinder or motor tool is need to grind the Hex into the correct shape. Many like this type of tension wrench because it is so rigid. The slightest movement of the lock can be felt with this type of wrench. Where as spring steel absorbs some of the vibrations from the lock. See the video to see how to grind the hex wrench.

Tension W – Paper Clip

Making a tension wrench from a paper clip is easy however, it does not function as well as the other wrenches. Although this wrench is poor it will still do its job. See video for detail in making this tension wrench

Picking Other types of Locks

Double Wafer (Car) Tubular Warded

Example #1 Example #1 Example #1

Example #2 Example #2

Example #3

Example #2

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Double – Wafer (Car)

This is a drawing of what it looks like inside a double wafer lock. It is similar to a tumble pin lock. However, instead of a single row of pins there are two rows of pins. This type of lock is more difficult to pick because there are two sets of pins. To pick this lock with a feeler pick, first select one side to pick first. If none of the pins seem to catch on the sheer line, do the other side. One of the sides usually need to be picked first. Use the same technique as a tumble pin lock to pick each side. Pick this lock with a double sided pick. Insert the pick and wiggle the pick up and down. This technique is like the tapping technique but both the upper and lower pins are being tapped into place.

Wafer #1

Wafer #2

Wafer #3

Tubular Locks

This is a close up view of a tubular lock. This type of lock is a little difficult to pick. To pick this lock, a turning force is must be applied to the very center cylinder. A special tension wrench made for this type of lock can be purchased from Ideal Creations. Once tension is placed on the cylinder the pins must be pressed in a particular sequence. Lightly start pressing each of the pins in until you find a stiff one. Once you find the stiff one push it in until it clicks. At this point the lock will slightly rotate and the pressure will be transferred to another pin. Again search for the next stiff pin. Once all the pins have been pressed to the sheer line the cylinder will turn. Some locks will rotate half way & require that you pick the pins again to complete the rotation to open the lock.

Tubular #1

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Warded Locks

To pick a warded lock is not too difficult once you've got the feel for it. Most of the newer locks have two pins (springs) that need to be pressed to open the lock. The best generic Ward pick is the L shaped pick. This pick can be purchased from Ideal Creations. To use this pick simply insert the pick to the bottom of the lock and turn counter clockwise to release the first pin. You should feel a spring type resistance if the pick is position correctly. Next pull the pick out about 1/4 of an inch just beyond

Warded #1

Warded #2