I picked my first real lock yesterday
I mentioned before I decided to take up lockpicking as something I could do following surgery while I recovered and was awake for 8 minutes at a stretch. The videos on each lock are usually short (depending on who you’re watching,) it involves puzzle solving, and it’s a relatively low cost hobby that teaches you magician tricks and can get your 1970’s filing cabinet you lost the key to open.
I have no idea how many McNally Official, Lockpicking Noob, or Lockpicking Lawyer videos I watched, nor how many I slept through post hospital, but it was a fair chunk of them.
I picked up these little beasts at Amazon. Priced at $12 for two I figured it was probably a fun starting lock as it looked like it could be picked with an errant glance, and I was at that point beyond noob. By real lock I need you to understand it’s not a trainer lock, I’m not saying anything beyond that. The manufacturer claims they’re real and offers protection.
The hardest part I had was the little rivets all around the key area which blocked my turning tool in the position I’d practiced using the practice locks.
Raking opened it in a few seconds, single pin picking opened in under 30. I repeated over and over again and the times were about the same on either lock (both are keyed the same, and I am slow).
I hit it a few times and was unable to pop the lock that way but I’m also sans hammer. Plans are to shim it, take it home and break out the hammer (you would think I’d have one at work, but no,) but I’m stuck until I build some shims or go home for the day, or buy a hammer for work.
Eh, fun times.
Quarter million dollar surgery, now I have skills to break into school lockers given enough time.
Lessons I learned on my first real locks picked
- If you watched on a 60+ inch tv screen you will find that it feels like you’re working with miniatures
- The turning tools I purchased in a set were too large to fit in and not block the keyway. Luckily I had very tiny tools from a freebie pack I was sent for a software demo / lockpicking intro.
- Oddly I had no issues identifying what pin I was on on a real lock where I used my imagination, I did have issues on a transparent lock
- Being able to defeat $6 worth of lock somehow does not make me king of the world
