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Hey All, just wanted to say hello. I'm new to the hobby, and boy does this site have some great info!!!!

1 question, what would be the best lock to start learning on?? I dug out an old garrison padlock 40mm, is this ok, or should I buy those practice locks I see where you can add your own pins??

Thanks!

welome.
get a master laminated.
The garrison is fine for now as well.
you can learn the exact same concept you would gain on a clear lock as you can viewing an animation on youtube.
save your money for real locks. =)

Welcome Tabbs! I'm Mike.

Indeed you should be able to find most (if not all) of what you need here to get a great start.
As awol mentioned, a laminated Master Lock is great to start with. Also, maybe get yourself a cheap
deadbolt (Kwikset, Defiant, etc.) and learn how to disassemble it (Kokomo's Locksmithing 101 vids
in the tutorial section will help with that). This way you can remove some of the pinstacks and
start with just one or two. Then work your way up. Be patient, and HAVE FUN doin' it!

You just got some rock solid advice from them. So that only leaves me to say welcome!

THanks for all the info, there are so many different laminated master locks on the web. something like this the right one? http://www.masterlock.com/product_detai ... adlocks/15

Welcome to this wonderful forum Tabbs17

Kent

Hi tabbs17 i am new to the fourm to and grew up in ontairo and now live on cape Breton island .

Yes, that one would do, but you'd be spending 3x what you need to. Instead, take a look for just a regular old laminated Master #1, #3, or a #5. They're essentially the same thing minus the word "commercial". The reason these are recommended when starting out is they contain no security pins... just all standard cylindrical drivers. So really any of em' will serve your purpose. The only laminated Master you'd want to avoid for now is a Master 1UP viewtopic.php?p=42933#p42933 These are not technically security pins, but they can give you some odd feedback, especially if you're just starting out.

Canadian Tire sells reasonably cheap Garrison rim cylinders (they're something like $6 or $7: they're labelled something like "replacement night latch cylinder") that are good for starting out and building confidence. The tolerances are pretty loose and there aren't any security pins... for $20 you can make yourself a set of 3-, 4- and 5-pin cylinders to get started on. If you sort through the cylinders on the rack, you can usually find some with more challenging bitings (i.e., a good mixture of high and low cuts on the keys).

The Habitat for Humanity ReStore stores around town can also be good for finding used cylinders.

If you're downtown, I was in Active Surplus on Queen Street yesterday, and noticed that they had a big box of nice 5-pin Dom cam-locks for $2.50 each just by the front cash. The keyways are a bit small, and Dom is usually reasonably good quality -- they'd likely be a nice challenge. (I grabbed one, but haven't had a chance to pick it yet.)

Welcome aboard! This place is an amazing resource!

So I've been picking so much that my finger that rests under my pick is blistered!!

Quick question. I have picked the garrison 40mm a few times but once in a while I will see only 1 pin remaining and can barely move it, have I over set a pin? And I using too much pressure on the t wrench? I watched a vide tht said if you get a line on your finger from pressing on it your pushing too hard, so I try to never have a line on my finger. Any info would help. Thanks.

I found most of my problems starting out were from to much tension . Just enough tension to bind the pins to much makes it hard for me to find the binding order. Keep practicing and you will find the balance to much and not enough.

welcome

welcome i am from over the pond.. but have family in toronto.
well done on the garrison i know other locksmiths that carnt open these ,there not really a good starter lock but if you find yourself in a false set look for the pin thats binding,with your tention released press on it and use the pick to rotate the plug back also till it sets...just pushing down on the pin will not help. if you mean the 7 pin mult t garrison.

Great info. Thanks a lot, I have probably gotten more lucky than anything. Going to get a laminated master today.