
TOOLS
I started picking locks using a small screwdriver and a safety pin. The screwdriver
can be used as a tension wrench, and the safety pin is used like a "hook" pick. The last half
inch of the screwdriver's tip was bent at a 45 degree angle so as to allow easy entry for the
pick (bent safety pin). Do not heat the screwdriver tip to bend it, as this will destroy its
temper. Use a vise and hammer to do the job. Bend slowly by using firm and short taps of the
hammer, otherwise you may break and weaken the shaft. The safety pin should be about one
and a half inches long and bent in the same way.
With the small screwdriver as a tension wrench, you can use more of a turning or twisting
movement than with a regular tension wrench so you will generally need less direct force
when using it. As I mentioned earlier, with practice you will develop the feeling for the right
amount of tension on a cylinder. If the safety pin bends after a short time, use the keyway of
the lock you are picking to bend it back into shape. Even after several times of bending, it
should still be useful. Keep a few spares handy, though. File the tip of the safety pin flat in
relationship to the bottom of the pins in the lock. Smooth any sharp edges so that you won't
impale yourself. Also, if the tip is smooth, the pick will not get hung up on the pins while
picking the lock.
Granted these are not the best tools for the job, but they do work. If you learn to use your
junk box as a rich source of equipment, then with your experience real lock picks will give
you magic fingers. Also, you'll have the advantage of being able to improvise should you be
without the real things (which are illegal to carry on your person in most parts of the
country).
Lock picks are difficult to get. I received my first set when I became a locksmith apprentice.
All of my subsequent sets I made from stainless steel steak knives with a grinder and cut-off
wheel. They are much more durable than the commercial picks. If you do make your own,
make certain that the steel is quenched after every 3 seconds of grinding-do not allow the
pick to get hot to the point of blue discoloration.
A diamond pick is the standard pick I use on most all pin and wafer locks. A small diamond
pick is used for small pin tumbler locks such as small Master padlocks, cabinet file locks, etc.
The tubular cylinder lock pick, we will discuss later. The double-ended, single-pronged
tension wrench is used with the diamond pick. It features double usage; a small end for small
cylinders and a large end for the larger cylinders. A special tension wrench is used for
double-wafer cylinder locks with an end with two prongs on one end and tubular cylinder
locks with the single prong on the other end. We will discuss tubular cylinder and double-
wafer locks later as well. The steel should be .030 inches to .035 inches thick for the picks
and .045 inches to .050 inches thick for the first tension wrench mentioned above. The
second tension wrench should be .062 inches square (.062 inches x .062 inches) on the
tubular cylinder side (one pronged end), and .045 inches thick on the double-wafer end (two-
pronged end). You can accomplish this by starting out with .045 inches in thickness. The
two-pronged end should be bent carefully in a vise at a 30 degree angle. This allows easy
entry for the pick on double-wafer locks.