WarrenC wrote:I understand that pin 5 is a serrated pin and logically speaking, this should be the first binding one, but its not.
In my experience, whenever you start with an assumption about what should happen in any lock, you're going to be frustrated... Just because it's a serrated pin doesn't mean it will bind first, or just because many of the same lock bind pin 5 first doesn't mean they all will. Every lock is a little different depending on how sharp the drill bit was that day or a dozen other things. If you're looking for something you *think* should happen, you might be missing what the lock is giving you.
The only pins that will (mostly) reliably give you counter rotation will be spools... I never (or rarely, anyhow) feel it from serrated pins. Sometimes a lock will stick in a particular serration and feel hard set when it's not, so once you get into that false set where you say everything feels solid, reduce tension as much as you can and see if you can get another click on that serrated pin. Also since you're learning and you have the lock apart, you can cheat a little and notate which pins are what kind (spool, serrated, straight, etc) and that will help you learn what they each feel like when picking.
I have a master LOTO lock, not the 6835 but the plastic one that will fall into a deep false set and completely bind up if I pick it in the wrong order, which could also be what you're seeing from the sound of it. With that lock, if it gets to that spot you're buggered and can only drop the pins and start over, picking in a different order where possible - sometimes more than one pin will feel like it's binding, take the less obvious one first instead. Try picking in a different order, front to back instead of back to front, or notate the last pin you touched before it binds up and avoid that pin until last.
The Abus 72 is one of my favorites to pick... it's always a challenge and I've been picking the same one for three years. Remember it's 6 pins, so if you're counting back 5 you're missing one. I typically use a longer hook for it (and thinner, .018) and that tends to work better. Some days I get it quick and others I can't get it at all. Very easy bypass available on that lock... but I digress. Same applies as above, those serrated ones will fool ya.
A really good practice lock for learning feedback, imo, is the Master 570. That was my entry into multiple security pins and I learned a lot from that lock early on.
Don't let yourself get frustrated, you'll just make things harder as you tense up. Good luck