Interested in taking up lockpicking.

everyday Joe anymore

set for thier

about the whole

and what not. If

selling them to people

sell. It is a sport in

---snip---

are you a professional locksmith ? hope your not breaking any local laws selling burglar tools.

Reply to
"Key
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(What a thread!)

I have to ask. Are you really worried about his going to jail, or are you worried that some teenage kid is going to take a job away from you?

I have to tell you, when I got interested in this, again, as a hobby, I tried making my own tools and was somewhat sucessful at it. I then made the plunge and bought a real lockpicking set (a really good one I might add) assuming this was going to make things much easier for me.

I gotta tell you, I watch a lot of movies and probably too much TV, and picking a lock is A LOT harder than it is in the movies. I've also seen professional locksmiths have trouble picking locks. So, I think people who don't know better think with the right tools this is going to be easy. It ain't, IMHO.

And I love the ads in mail-order catalogs for pick sets that say, "Never get locked out of your house or car again," like anybody can just buy this lockpick that folds up like a switchblade and easily open anything. And as somebody here said, when you do get locked out, your tools are almost always on the wrong side of the door.

I accidently locked myself out of a client's home, and left my briefcase inside with my lockpick set in it. I had to call a locksmith to get back in. Fortunately, my cell phone was in my pocket and not my briefcase, otherwise I really would have been screwed. And even with the set, I'm not sure I could have gotten back in.

BTW, I've found key extractors to be marvelous tools for anybody who does any type of mechanical work. I use the ones in my set to retrieve all kinds of things stuck in small spaces. And those are also considered locksmithing tools.

Hell, if all you deal with are cheap wafer locks, two paper clips is a lockpicking set.

Sheldon

Reply to
Sheldon

For years some lock manufacturers have advertised cash prizes to any person who could successfully pick a particular model of their lock. So you could even call it a professional sport.

Reply to
Putyourspamhere

In some areas it's a real possibilty. Selling lockpicks in person to the general public in some jurisdictions is BEGGING to get busted.

ROFLOL I doubt that thought crossed his mind.

It really all depends on the lock. Try a master keyed KS sometime and then try a Best IC and you will get an idea as to the spectrum.

Once again this really depends on the lock.

Key extractors are great. I had a homemade one from a hacksaw blade long before I ever owned any professional tools. I still have that thing.

Not even that. One heavy paperclip will suffice nicely for both tools at the same time.

Reply to
Putyourspamhere

Given that I'm a part-timer and not dependent upon locksmithing for a major portion of my income:

1) I'm concerned that some teenager is going to ruin his life. 2) I'm more concerned that he's going to ruin someone else's life. 3) If he really cares, there really are better ways to learn than to ask on the net.
Reply to
Joe Kesselman (yclept Keshlam

I've heard of picking speed contests among locksmiths, so that would qualify for my interests.

I got a house lockout today, the customer had a Kwikky titan with the cyl upside down. I was going to go try the front door, but decided to have a go at the knob on the door from the garage to the kitchen. to my amazement, it opened in under two seconds.

What did I win? Well, the fellow paid me for the lockout call...

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I'll give you that one. The first lock I ever opened I was able to do with a ground bicycle spoke and a small screwdriver, once I figured out how a lock works. Others have been impossible for me, and I've always found it difficult to pick a lock pin by pin.

Most older computer cases use pretty cheap locks, so when I used my "hobby" for work it was pretty easy. The new ones don't have locks, they just have a hole you can put your own lock through, and nobody ever does. And those are made so poorly you could probably just bend the metal back and forth and snap that loop off, assuming you didn't want to use a hacksaw. To hell with the lock.

I heard someone once say that most locks just keep honest people honest. I think many of you will agree.

Sheldon

Reply to
Sheldon

Hmm. "really good set", that would be about 573,478,181,782 piece set? I find that the longer a person is in the biz, the fewer picks s/he needs.

I use two, or maybe three.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Yes. The point I was trying to make is that it doesn't matter what kind of set you get, if you don't know what you are doing it doesn't make any difference. I think mine is one of those 40 something piece sets, and I only use about three or four. If the first three you grab don't work, it's doubtful the other 37 will do any better.

But, for an amateur, the big set looks cool. :-) My choice is the smallest HPC set with a homemade tension wrench thrown in there.

Sheldon

Reply to
Sheldon

. Others have been impossible for me, and I've always found it

If you want to do the better ones you will have to learn. Most of them aren't going to respond to raking.

Reply to
Putyourspamhere

Not surprising. Titan provides all the security of a missing door.

Reply to
Putyourspamhere

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