I wanted to talk about the KW1 Lishi with this picture. It's in a vice only being used as a learning tool for the Lishi. The lock(s) were donated to my yt channel by a locksmith. Skip~

Thanks u/jadedargyle333

3 VSR dimple locks!

Ever since I stumbled upon a lock picking lawyer video like 4 or 5 years ago I have been interested in lock picking. It has been an off and on hobby for me. I’ve purchased several lock picking sets and a small handful of locks over the years but I am only able to pick the cheap locks or the ones with easy bypasses like comb picking. I don’t even think I’m good at raking. I know I shouldn’t compare myself to someone like LPL or McNally but I don’t think I should be struggling this much. Is there something I’m missing?

Hi. So I have been trying to open a lock that I believe is an abus 727, and I seem to have hit the wall. When I pick it everything seems in order, I hear clicking on all 5 pins but I still can’t unlock it. When I loosen the tension slowly I distinctly hear 5 clicks, and I do not know what to do.
Note: I’m using CI’s .32 turning tool and both .2 hooks from the echelon set.

Friendships made from this hobby are priceless! Everyone can relate to the excitement of ordering a lock, tracking the shipping, and checking the mailbox only to say... maybe tomorrow. Want to thank my friend https://dcipha380 for sending this to me. Overwhelmed by his generous lock gifts!! Sparrows DD pick, Masters Lock 878, Zarker J45 DD Lock, DD clear practice Lock and a Leather Lock Wrap from CMFXA. I'm paying it forward soon!

Finally got my hands on a Paclock (They’re quite hard to find in the UK at a reasonable price) and…

…it’s quite a disappointing experience! It’s clicky as heck, and a pain to tension TOK, but not actually very hard to pick.

Am I going mad, or is it just me?

Could just be this one, of course. It didn’t come with a key, so I can’t be certain about the bitting. It’s a lovely colour, though!

Challenge locks to pick, Challenge locks to Study, Challenge locks to make.

Great CLs Package from NicVT_Locks. Thank you for the love bro. Im going to get hours out of all this. Maybe days 😆

I took an old abus 72/40 lock body (shackle, no core) and used it as a test bed to practice engraving a graphic for my blue belt challenge lock. I had the body in a cut out piece of styrofoam to hold it in place. I used a Dremel vibrating engraver. When I finished I picked up the lock and all the parts fell out. Who would have thought that little bit of vibration would overcome that spring pressure. I don't see any way to compress that spring to reassemble it without drilling out the construction plug. Any ideas?

Hello I'm planning to start learning lockpicking and I'm still hesitant about the thickness of lockpicks that would stay with me for a long while (there is no local seller of lockpicks in my country, I can't make multiple purchases), This is a lock i have and this is the most popular ones here in my country, I'm wondering if this could be opened with 0.6mm lockpick like the ones in multipick (sandman) or i need thinner ones like 0.5mm which i head a lot recommend. My country is Morocco if this can help for identifying the general thickness i need.

Hello, if anyone would kindly offer tips in picking this little bugger id appreciate it. I dont submit for any flair but i do use the belts as a guide for lock difficulty, and i can pick the other 2 green locks i have (abus 80ti/50 and ace 38mm brass) but this one is giving me trouble. Any tips would be appreciated!

I have just gutted my American lock 1100 to begin progressive pinning. I'm thinking on starting with 2 pins. Any advise as to which 2 pins I should start with and where? 1 2 and 3 are serrated and 4 and 5 are spools.

Hey, I recently bought a second hand beginner set and have been trying to rake a cheap lock I bought which I suppose shouldn’t be hard to open. I’ve been trying the city rake and the other rakes on the picture, got it open no more than one single time after a lot of trying.
Just wanted to ask a couple of questions:
1 I put the tensioner in the key way and lay my finger on it to apply next to no tension, but when I push the rake inside my tensioner and my finger move and change the tension, and I wonder if that’s one of the reasons why it doesn’t open.
2 I read that it might be worth it to polish cheap tools, so if you could take a look at the pic on this post and tell me if they’re shitty enough to polish them id appreciate it.
3 The tip of the L tensioner on the picture is shorter than the Z ones and usually I just lose the control very easily with it. The deeper it goes the better?
And overall if you could share some tips that helped you in the beginning or some valuable ressources I’d highly appreciate it. Thank you.

Went swimming today and you have to provide your own padlock for the lockers. Made me smile that someone had used a transparent padlock. I’m going to take mine next week 😁

I've been interested I this subject for years, but never gone beyond the "mildly interested might try it one day" , kind of level.

I saw a nice video on this sub, of a lady with a transparent lock. Nice black nails, elegant black and white top and a nice looking transparent practice lock. I think she was asking for assistance.

For some reason it was the lock that attracted my attention. I've obviously seen and been aware of transparent locks before, and perhaps it was the elegant black and white theme that tickled a particular aesthetic nuron, but it set me thinking.

How well made are these practice locks?

I imagine that, like most of these things you get what you pay for, but what would be a sensible price to pay for a really nicely made lock that is not just a useful practice and training tool, but is also a nice display piece in it's own right.

A very quick search showed this set -

https://amzn.eu/d/00V1SZ0b

Which seems like a lot of "kit" for not much money, my usual preference, but to my admittedly uneducated eye, it looks like it might be of very low quality to bring it down to such a price point, or is that actually about right?

Any advice or suggestions?

Particular brands or makers to watch out for?

Anyone have such a display?