Sat Sep 11, 2010 2:26 am
Picking Nuances.
Okay, this is the lock I am using:
It's a Schlage lock that's about 22 years old. It originally sold for around $115 though and even now on clearance, 22 years later it's running over $60. The point is, this ain't the world's stupidest lock. It might not be the best, but it's certainly not a kwikset either.
This is the first lock I ever picked, but it took me three hours to pop it the first time. It took me four hours to pop it the second time.
I've recently rekeyed it though, and I cut it down to three pins. I have pins in the # 1, 3 and 5 positions of this 5 pin lock. It has no security pins of any kind, just normal pins and top pins.
The problem is that:
A) The pin in pin slot 1 appears to be completely irrelevant, almost as if it just plain sits at the sheer line and the lock would open on this pin regardless of what I do, which renders it kind of pointless. If it does need to be moved to the sheer line, I'm doing it on accident while setting the #3 and #5 pins, so it ain't takin' a whole lot to set this pin. It's a totally irrelevant pin. I'm wondering if that's my fault for how I put the pin stack together, or if it's just the way it goes sometimes. Should I rekey this pin to make it relevant or am I being too anal?
B) It's apparently VERY easy to overset the #3 pin, which is also the first binding pin. Apparently this pin is almost as long as a donkey's thingy, and pushing it down just enough to get to the #5 pin cleanly leaves me barely enough room to actually get the #5 and pop it without over-setting the #3. The problem is that the only way I've figured this out is by process of elimination of other possibilities.
How do you guys know when you've over-set a pin?
C) What's a "false set?" I've heard that term but don't know what it means.
My second batch of questions is that this Schlage set has two locks. The first one is the one I described above. The second one I have keyed with all 5 pins in, but still no security pins. I can't even get CLOSE to opening this one. I've gotten four of the pins to set (or over-set as the case may be, since I can't tell one from the other) before, but I can't even get the core to move just a little bit like it should when setting the binding pin correctly. In fact, I can't even find the binding pin for this sucker. Almost all the pins seem to be free to move up and down fairly smoothly even with a lot of tension on the core.
I think the first pin is the binding pin on this lock too, but once I push it down I'm not getting any movement on the core so that indicates that it's not really the binding pin. The problem is that it's a tall pin, though, and that no other pins appear to be the binding pin either.
Any advice?
By the way, this is my complete tool set:
Yes. that's really what I'm working with.
Last question: I have a list of lock specs. On it is a Master Lock No. 3. It says it has four pins and no security pins, but today someone told me this lock does have security pins. I'd like to confirm that and if so, what type? I was able to pop this lock incredibly quickly and regularly, so I'd like to know what pins it had, if any.
It's a Schlage lock that's about 22 years old. It originally sold for around $115 though and even now on clearance, 22 years later it's running over $60. The point is, this ain't the world's stupidest lock. It might not be the best, but it's certainly not a kwikset either.
This is the first lock I ever picked, but it took me three hours to pop it the first time. It took me four hours to pop it the second time.
I've recently rekeyed it though, and I cut it down to three pins. I have pins in the # 1, 3 and 5 positions of this 5 pin lock. It has no security pins of any kind, just normal pins and top pins.
The problem is that:
A) The pin in pin slot 1 appears to be completely irrelevant, almost as if it just plain sits at the sheer line and the lock would open on this pin regardless of what I do, which renders it kind of pointless. If it does need to be moved to the sheer line, I'm doing it on accident while setting the #3 and #5 pins, so it ain't takin' a whole lot to set this pin. It's a totally irrelevant pin. I'm wondering if that's my fault for how I put the pin stack together, or if it's just the way it goes sometimes. Should I rekey this pin to make it relevant or am I being too anal?
B) It's apparently VERY easy to overset the #3 pin, which is also the first binding pin. Apparently this pin is almost as long as a donkey's thingy, and pushing it down just enough to get to the #5 pin cleanly leaves me barely enough room to actually get the #5 and pop it without over-setting the #3. The problem is that the only way I've figured this out is by process of elimination of other possibilities.
How do you guys know when you've over-set a pin?
C) What's a "false set?" I've heard that term but don't know what it means.
My second batch of questions is that this Schlage set has two locks. The first one is the one I described above. The second one I have keyed with all 5 pins in, but still no security pins. I can't even get CLOSE to opening this one. I've gotten four of the pins to set (or over-set as the case may be, since I can't tell one from the other) before, but I can't even get the core to move just a little bit like it should when setting the binding pin correctly. In fact, I can't even find the binding pin for this sucker. Almost all the pins seem to be free to move up and down fairly smoothly even with a lot of tension on the core.
I think the first pin is the binding pin on this lock too, but once I push it down I'm not getting any movement on the core so that indicates that it's not really the binding pin. The problem is that it's a tall pin, though, and that no other pins appear to be the binding pin either.
Any advice?
By the way, this is my complete tool set:
Yes. that's really what I'm working with.
Last question: I have a list of lock specs. On it is a Master Lock No. 3. It says it has four pins and no security pins, but today someone told me this lock does have security pins. I'd like to confirm that and if so, what type? I was able to pop this lock incredibly quickly and regularly, so I'd like to know what pins it had, if any.
