Mastering Lock Picking: Tips for Home and Car Emergencies

[vern8304]

I would like to know how to pick locks as sometimes, in a rush, I lock my car keys inside the car and each time it costs $50 for a locksmith to get them out for me. Also, it would be handy to know how to pick door locks - sometimes I lock myself out of the house too.

 

[cookiemonster]

Well, the first thing you do is get some good tools. And then you have to select the target. You should thoroughly observe and investigate the house you intend to--wait a second...

cookiemonster

 

[Chen]

Hehe cookiemonster...

If I were you I would try not to lock myself out of my house/car, rather than take it as a given that I will and therefore learn how to pick locks. Because if picking locks were easy, you wouldn't have a house or a car to be locked out of. And improving yourself would also do you more good in the long run.

 

[expscv]

say goodbye to your window and unlock =P

nothing u can do about the house but a car u should able to stick something through the window gap into the car and try to unlock it.


pick lock... i don't know.

 

[Zero]

Picking locks is tough...and for the time, expense, and effort of learning how, you could just buy an extra couple fo sets of keys. I used to be able to pick locks. All except the simplest lock would take 30-45 minutes, and there was no guarantee that I could do it at all, let alone under any sort of pressure,

 

[russ_watters]

Originally posted by Zero
Picking locks is tough...and for the time, expense, and effort of learning how, you could just buy an extra couple fo sets of keys.

I've locked my keyes in my car a number of times. Now I keep an extra key in my wallet: problem solved.

 

[Zero]

Originally posted by russ_watters
I've locked my keyes in my car a number of times. Now I keep an extra key in my wallet: problem solved.

It seems like a much better use of your time than buying a lockpicking kit, and spending your evenings trying to pop the lock, doesn't it?

 

[Mr. Robin Parsons]

Buy one of those "Hide a Key" thingies, little tin box with a magnet to stick it some place on your car...Much easier...also search this site, and you wil find another thread on lock picking, with details, from a link to a site, that explains everything for you...

 

[Averagesupernova]

This brings back memories. About 10 or 12 years ago on of my buddies and I hit a local bar and somewhere along the line he realized his keys were in his car. Of course it was locked. So some loser that one of our friends knew came up to help us. He acted like he really knew how to get into that car. He had been in the pokey for armed robbery or something so I thought he maybe did know something. Yeah right. He dicked around for about an hour and couldn't get in there. Finally he took the hint that we were disgusted with his lack of progress so we took the antenna off of the car and bent it around in such a way to slide the lever over and unlock it. Like 5 minutes or so. I shook my head when the guy walked away. I guess criminals ARE in fact stupid.

 

[vern8304]

sure, i COULD get an extra set of keys or hide one somewhere... but picking the lock sounds more... exotic somehow. Also, can it really be done with a couple of paperclips?

 

[cookiemonster]

I think when you actually go and lock yourself out of your car, you're going to be less concerned with the exoticness of how you get into your car and more concerned with actually getting into your car...

cookiemonster

 

[vern8304]

Ok, fine. no one tell me how to pick locks. i will get another set of stupid keys.

 

[russ_watters]

Originally posted by Zero
It seems like a much better use of your time than buying a lockpicking kit, and spending your evenings trying to pop the lock, doesn't it?

And I keep a set of jumper cables in the trunk...

 

[Cliff_J]

Originally posted by vernessy
Ok, fine. no one tell me how to pick locks. i will get another set of stupid keys.

Well simply study how the lock cylinder works and you'll see the difficulty in picking a lock. For a simple one, a kit of 3-4 tools will work. For cars there are master keys and devices that slip between the glass and door seal to open the door. But anyone can build a better mousetrap, and many do.

Here, try this:
http://home.howstuffworks.com/lock-picking.htm

Cliff

 

[guitarrc6]

hey the how stuff works link is pretty vaild, i think lock picking is pretty cool, espically if you want to play a joke on your friend, but its really hard to do and take A lot of practice! i got the tools at newyears and i can barley pick a padlock, and that still takes me like 1/2 hour to do. its easier to just use a slim jim to get into your car.

 

[Monique]

It seems like a much better use of your time than buying a lockpicking kit

What good is a lockpicking kit when it is lying in the car or house that you are locked-out-of anyway?

I have had to reach through the mailbox in the front door several times to pull the keys out of the other side of the lock.. or had to unlock a handle on the inside through a small window above the door of my house sometimes it's good to have thin arms

 

[Njorl]

Cars are tough to get into without breaking the glass. Houses are easy. Pretty much every house in the US has a window in or next to the back door. I believe the burglars' union demanded it. While a burglar would just break the glass, you can remove the moulding, and remove the glass without breaking it.

Njorl

 

[Monique]

Cars are tough to get into without breaking the glass.

That is hard to believe when you see a professional lock-picker do it in 3 seconds flat..

 

[NateTG]

That is hard to believe when you see a professional lock-picker do it in 3 seconds flat..

No, you don't need to break glass. But there are faster/easier methods for getting into cars that picking the locks.

 

[Njorl]

That is hard to believe when you see a professional lock-picker do it in 3 seconds flat..

Well, you can pop the lock with a punch-driver, but that's more expensive to repair than the glass. Slim-jims are even better, but just having one is a crime.

Njorl

 

[hitssquad]

Hide-a-key and unintended thuggery

I would like to know how to pick locks as sometimes, in a rush, I lock my car keys inside the car and each time it costs $50 for a locksmith to get them out for me.

A simple solution for this is to keep a spare car-door key in a magnetic hide-a-key box magnetically attached to the underside of the car.

Another solution for chronically-lost car keys is to install a remote door-lock opener and make sure you always carry the remote control (attach it to your pants or such).

Also, it would be handy to know how to pick door locks - sometimes I lock myself out of the house too.

The repo-man sites carry recommendations for learning the trade. Basically, it takes decent tools (and these have to be old-fashioned pick-sets; the electronic picks are just aids and do not actually pick the lock for you), probably a good instruction book (or teacher), and a lot of practice.

For the latter, you can start your practicing with an old doorknob lock. To be a good locksmith (or repo man), you need to have a lot of practice picking a wide variety of locks since those professionals will necessarily be called upon to attack unfamiliar locks; but if you simply want to be able to reliably and quickly pick your own front door then I think you should be able to accomplish that just by practicing picking that one lock. I wouldn't practice with it while it's on the door, however. You should take it off (unless you live in a really rough neighborhood where this could be dangerous) to practice with it inside your home, so people who might see you practicing won't get the idea you're a thug.

If you ever do use this method to enter your home, however, you will look like a thug to uninformed observors. To avoid looking like a thug, as in the case of being locked out of the car a better solution might be to hide a house-key; or, if this is a security risk, to figure out and address why you lock yourself out (maybe better personal organization would help).


For some thought on why it might be a bad idea to look like a thug (or to keep reading materials that thugs keep; or to become known as someone who knows thing thugs tend to know) please see this site.

 

[guitarrc6]

DO NOT USE THE MAGNETIC HIDE AWAY KEYS! they suck they usually fall apart, the only time you need them, is the time it fell off of your car. you are better off drilling a hole in the key and bolting it to the frame somewhere

 

[ShawnD]

I've locked my keyes in my car a number of times. Now I keep an extra key in my wallet: problem solved.

Are you sure that's a good idea? What if you lose your wallet? Whoever finds it has the keys to your house/apartment, the key to your car, and your driver's license which says exactly where you live

 

[Janitor]

drilling a hole in the key and bolting it to the frame somewhere

Knowing me, I'd forget to carry my wrench with me.

 

[Mr. Robin Parsons]

I used to use one of those 'pull apart' keyrings, doorkeys on both (each) of the rings, always took one with me whenever I got out of the car, ergo always had a car door key on me...much simpler...

 

[guitarrc6]

yeah well you could use a wing nut bolt, and then you wouldn't need a wrench

 

[kronchev]

It seems like a much better use of your time than buying a lockpicking kit, and spending your evenings trying to pop the lock, doesn't it?

yeh, but that's lame. I am getting a lockpicking kit as soon as i find a really nice one and carrying it around ALL THE TIME. I am going to practice on random locks when I am bored :D massivly illegal, but massivly fun.

 

[russ_watters]

Are you sure that's a good idea? What if you lose your wallet? Whoever finds it has the keys to your house/apartment, the key to your car, and your driver's license which says exactly where you live

Heh, actually, I have moved 3 times in the past 4 years and my address on my license is not accurate.

 

[Macgyver]

Vernessy and anyone else into being helpful and mischievous at the same time, this is for you.

I have a jack knife style lock picking set, it is small and I always have it with me (I also always have a multi-tool and duct tape, that’s part of how I got the nickname Macgyver). You would be surprised how often I use it (but not quite as surprised as how often I use the grappling hook in my trunk, but that’s a different story), I end up helping other people more then myself.

I learned to pick locks from reading online about locks and lock picking. The best all in one guide I found was http://oilcan.org/lockpick/ All you need is to understand how different types of locks work, and PRACTICE.

If you want a forum just for lock picking look no further than http://www.lockpicking101.com

If you are looking to buy a pick set, I got mine from http://www.lockpicksonline.com/ Mine is the Jack Knife set, it is convienient and easy to use (well maybe not easy, but it’s good as far as pick sets go)

And for all you slim jim, coat hanger, and antenna users out there, you should be careful trying to pop the lock on newer cars, the ones with side impact airbags. In many car models the impact sensor lies rather close to the area you are trying to hook the lock, so one wrong snag could set off the side airbag (which is expensive to have replaced).

 

[Macgyver]

Oh yeah, it is possible to pick locks with paper clips but I can only pick cheap locks with them.

 

[Joe Delaney]

A better link is http://www.hackfaq.org/miscellaneous/pick-locks.shtml , because it has links to a large number of documents about lock picking.

 

[mjb811]

ehh, picking car locks is the old way. I am going for my EE degree but i work at an automotive repair shop/towing and recovery. we have "lockout kits" that have about 25 different tools, each having a use. I can get into any car just as long as it takes for you to take out your key and open ur door, although some cars take longer. its kind of an art to learn but easy if you are good with tools. Door Lock's work on just 6 basic mechanical simple machines.(Lever, Inclined Plane, Wheel and Axle, Screw, Wedge, and Pulley). But, as newer cars come out, Automotive Engineers are not thinking about people who lock their keys in their cars and are making it more challenging for us to get in to.
Now there is On-Star. If you lock your keys in your car, just call up an On-Star dispatcher, and they will unlock your car for you via satellite. The only problem with that is it won't work if you are inside a garage or somewhere where there is a weak or no signal. If all else fails, there's always windows to be broken.

 

[mooberrymarz]

A coat hanger. I locked my keys in the car and this pretty old guy(he looked like bill cosby) told me to fetch a coat hanger from one of the res's nearby and he opened it within a minute. Now that was very nice.

 

[theamazingTWOeyedman]

http://home.howstuffworks.com/lock-picking.htm

There you go :)

 

[BobG]

Buy one of those "Hide a Key" thingies, little tin box with a magnet to stick it some place on your car...Much easier...also search this site, and you wil find another thread on lock picking, with details, from a link to a site, that explains everything for you...

One of the guys I worked with had done that for both his cars for years, only he evidently didn't tell his wife about it (or maybe she just forgot about it).

The only thing funnier than listening to him explain to her over the phone where to find the box on the undercarriage of the car in great detail so she would be sure to find it successfully after hanging up and running back across the parking lot to the locked car was listening to his response to the call back "What do you MEAN there's just a magnet with a rusty old strip of metal attached to it?!"

If you trust at least one of your neighbors, best bet is to hide your house key under the doormat in front of their house so you can find it when you need it. You can be sure they'll be on vacation during your time of greatest need, so you can't just give it to them to hold and if you hide your key under your own doormat, burglars will be sure to find and use it before you ever do.

As for the car, the tin box still sounds attractive enough to try it even I've never heard of an instance where it actually worked - just check up on it once in a while. (plus, I gave a spare to someone I know so if worse comes to worse, I can hope they can come unlock me).