I recently bought a used vending machine that did not come with a key. Im trying to open it to replace the lock.
Does anyone have experience picking a tubular lock or have have a picking set i could borrow? Thank You!
I gather that a sacrificial Bic pen barrel can suffice if its inside diameter roughly aligns with the core outside diameter.
Wow! That video is interesting in a most frightening way.
Exploits a weakness of the basic design. Seems analogous to wave raking a pin tumbler lock. Kryptonite was burned by it 20+ years ago. There may be countermeasures now similar to serrated and spool pins in conventional locks.
Regardless, seems like an expedience that the OP could attempt.
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I do! I have a couple of 7-pin tubular picks and a fair amount of experience with them. Where is the machine living these days?
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Its portable and in the back of my car. I can bring it to the space. I have 4 that i could use some help on. Are you available any time this week?
Sure! Daytimes are best for me, but I can do morning or afternoon pretty much any day of the week - just let me know what’s good! Are the other three machines tubular locks as well?
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If you think that is frightening, I suggest you stay away from Lockpicking Lawyer videos.
Spoiler, every lock you use is probably pure garbage.
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To be fair…
- LPL is really really good at lockpicking
- Best I can tell there are only two common types of lockpickers in the wild
- Locksmiths
- Locksport types
… neither of whom is out there trying to steal your stuff
Generally speaking, yes. Most people who are in the locksmithing business know that they’ve got to be scrupulously honest.
However, years ago some rogue locksmith came through all the local HR Blocks and stole our printers. Somebody drove by one store late night and saw a locksmith truck parked outside, but didn’t think anything of it. Until the thefts were noticed. Since the person had just assumed that any locksmith wouldn’t be stealing stuff, they hadn’t taken note of the name on the truck. The district manager said she was glad he had relocked the stores, but we had to have a locksmith open the offices…
Watching the Lock Picking Lawyer makes me really believe most security is an illusion, especially home security. You can just slow them down, can stopped the determined.
True, but your efforts also make it so you are no longer the low hanging fruit.
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A friend’s dad is a retired locksmith. I once exclaimed, “He must have the most sophisticated security system imaginable!” She replied, “Deadbolts and a stick in the sliding door track. Professionals will get in, you’re just trying to slow down the amateurs.”
I gather that actual pin-by-pin lockpicking during a break-in is vanishingly rare. Exploits - shimming, bypasses, bumping, raking, comb picking - are far more common as they can be pulled off quickly.
As such my assumption has been that a quality lock just needs not to have exploits so the calculus is to commit time to picking it or increase risk of detection with destructive entry.
But if you really want something that’s effectively unpickable, Bowley can set you up.
Passive physical security is all about raising the stakes - forcing would-be perps to accept more risk (time, exposure).
I assume the design basis risk for residential is the 5 minute smash’n’grab. If they can’t force the deadbolt, the door survives a few kicks, and the frame won’t spread the perp(s) will probably f__k off because they’ll assume they’ve been detected and have nothing thus far to make it worth their while - might as well use the time to distance themselves from their endeavors.