Newer locks and keys also have side pins to prevent lock picking and bump keys.

work*

It's amazing how many things we do second nature without having an idea of how those things actually work

How does lock picking work then

You use a lock pick to try and work the pistons in the right position so you can turn the lock and open it. You use a pry tool to put pressure on the lock while using a pick to push the pistons up trying to get the pistons to get in place. Sorry, the terminology I used it not the correct terminology but I think I got my point across.

Those pistons look kind of thin, would it be possible to break them with a sturdy enough piece of metal?

You just say ‘click out of one, good click on two, three is binding’ then the lock opens.

You can also shoot the lock.

Or mule kick the door. That's why I have 3 deadbolts on each door when I vacay.

One top and one center and one base. With 5 inch screws on all receivers. Not a stop just a hindrance.

The metal would have to be very thin to fit between the pins without pushing them into the mechanism and that thin metal would just not give you any leverage to brute force the pins enough to break them.

[deleted]

Nice, we got a lockpicking master.

Lpl fan spotted in the wild

Only on master locks ;)

Hows*

Click out of 3, 2 is binding, false set on 5...

Just drill right down the pins.

One way to open locks is to use a drill bit to drill right above the top of the keyway. The idea is to completely obliterate the "shear line" which is the line between the inner cylinder, called the core, and the outer part. That's why many high security locks have hardened steel pins or disks embedded at the top of the core.

You use a torque wrench to turn the bottom chamber slightly, then you push up on the a pin until it sets. What does it mean to set? It means the top pin gets stuck in the top chamber, resting on the bottom chamber. Rinse an drepeat until the dividing line in the middle is clear, and the lock opens. This can happen because the holes in the chamber aren't drilled in a perfectly straight line, and lockpickers take advantage of it

Everyone is responding with Lock Picking Lawyers videos memes, and for good reason.

Here’s a pretty good video of him picking locks with a part cut away, so you can see what’s happening.

https://youtu.be/T_sy3dLwHkc

You force the inner chamber to twist in the direction it would eventually go to unlock. Most locks inner core will have a tiny bit of play. You then go down the line pushing each pin up until the split gets stuck in the top, outer part. Once all pins are "out" the inner barrel will turn, lock picked.

...that was an odd fap, but it got the job done

r/mildlyinteresting

Don't forget to let a small light on that doesn't consume much power.

Of the games I've played, Oblivion has had the most accurate lock picking minigame.

This is actually a really good way to illustrate an answer to a question my cousin's kid asked the other day, about why you can put the wrong key all the way into a lock but can't get any actual purchase with the mechanism.

Came here for this comment, as they say

let's try it again to see it wasn't a fluke...

Naw, all standard pins on this one :)

I still don't know why they replaced it with the skyrim/fallout system. It was accurate and occasionally challenging, and way more fun as a minigame.

As always, have a nice day and thank you.

Whoa

I think because it could be done by player skill alone. I got good enough at it that I could do it with my eyes closed no matter the lock level or character skill.

So keep the system but level gate the locks based on your skill level like they do in skyrim and fallout.

Sometimes, but its loud and the break in is obvious and it won't always work. Its possible to design a lock such that forcing the core to spin will not engage the mechanism that unlocks the door.

People can also kick in a door. But if its loud and obvious a person feels more likely to be caught, and is less likely to attempt it in the first place.

[deleted]

Elder Scrolls Online has the Oblivion system (and the keyboard and mouse controls for it aren't absolutely trash).

[removed]

No, not really. There are better ways to destructively attack homes than the pins inside of a lock.

LPL once only picked a lock one time and I'm convinced it was a fluke that time

Speak for yourself, most of us know very well thanks to LPL.

What I have for you today is a lock so bad, it’s literally just half a lock.

Not sure if people explained the main principle properly. The key position every pin at the same time into the correct position to allow the lock to open. If all the pins were perfectly made there wouldnt be other ways to unlock it.

But they arent. They wont be. They cant be. And you can use this to position each of the pins into correct position one at a time. This is why you have the turning tool that you apply pressure to to make the pins press into the sides of their holes. At any given moment, due to the imperfection, only one will be pressed against the walls completely.

Once you position that first pin, the lock will turn ever so slightly and another pin will now be the one that is pressed. Do that for all pins and the lock will eventually turn open. All that is left is to find the correct order of pins being pressed into the side of the cylinder.

The pin that is pressed is the one that is "binding". When there is "nothing" on a pin, it means its not being pressed at all. When pin that was binding "clicks" it means it has been set into the right position, which made the cylinder rotate and now a new pin is "binding".

Came to post this exact thing. Thank you

The one thing he doesn't mention is that you use the turning tool to apply pressure throughout the pick. Turning the cylinder traps the pins against their housing. They're all slightly different thicknesses, which is why different pins are binding at different times.

The reason you cant put keys into other keyholes is often caused by the zigzag pattern of the key being different to the lock. The zigzag is there to increase security.

Just fallout. you can still pick any pickable lock in Skyrim regardless of level, it’s just significantly easier with higher skill

Elder scrolls oblivion basically

[deleted]

I know the Oblivion one is more accurate but I hated it. I was almost never able to pick any locks and basically just gave up.

>LPL

​ League of Legends Pro League?

Is this really how they work or only certain types of locks?

But, is that really a problem?

You can kill trolls with a 1 handed weapon even if you don't level 1 handed, if the player is really good. So lockpicking being similar isn't out of place.

Lock Picking Lawyer on YouTube. Excellent content.

Lock Picking Lawyer, a very popular and fascinating YouTube channel.

This is a pin cylinder or tumbler lock, which represents the vast majority of key locks (as opposed to electronic or combination locks) made today. Other types of locks exist, but are not as common. These include lever locks, wafer locks, warded locks, disc detainer locks, and whatever madness various inventors have occasionally come up with for one-off lock ideas.

So to pick a lock you just have to insert a tiny wire and press all the pegs up and push right?

Click out of one, two is binding...

This is how the vast majority of padlocks work that you'll find in the wild or at Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot etc. But as the other poster replied, there are other types of locks as well.

My man you can literally get the skeleton key and open any lock without any issue or use spells

In a very vague nutshell, "sort of". You have to keep tension on the chamber to prevent the pins from dropping back to their original position while you are lifting each pin individually (if you're single pin picking). So you have a tension wrench applying pressure to turn it to the side, but not enough to bind the pins. Then as you lift the pins into position, you'll feel a slight give as each one meets the sheer line (where they need to go). If you've done it correctly, you'll eventually lift all the pins to the sheer line and the chamber will turn enough to release the shackle.

Very impressive knowledge

Also oblivion

ime the trick is to wait until a pin falls back down quickly, then attempt to hit (a) when the pin is at the top of the barrel on the following try. Rarely does a pin fall quickly two times in a row.

They're pretty fun to play with actually. If you're interested, you can buy a basic pick set and clear plastic lock to see the inner workings from Amazon. You should also pick up a cheap lock or two as it just takes a minute to figure it out.

Neat! Ty!

I learned that from Splinter Cell

What I don’t get is, if they have a spring to push them down, how and why do they stay up when he lifts them (sometimes)?

That's the click he mentions. The pin pushes up into its housing and allows the cylinder to turn just a little bit further. The pin doesn't fall back because it's now resting on the edge of the cylinder

How keys work.

I still to this day have no idea how to do it lol

Generally the side pins are for key control not picking

Some definitely make it harder but they never prevent, just slow

Gonna say he would rake this and be through quicker thank you can say have a nice day.

This really tickled my ivories

Gotta make the mechanism do a little dance

How do some locks get rekeyed?

The zigzag is called the keyway. While they may increase security somewhat, they’re not unique. I think key manufacturers typically have a few dozen different keyways that they use repeatedly. That’s why every once in a while you may find a key fits into an unrelated lock.

Ever played Kingdom Come Deliverance and attempted picking any locks? Yea Oblivion's was a bliss and I didn’t know it

Usually he goes up in numbers. Your order seems out of place.

Definitively not unique. Which is why it's not uncommon to find another key that fits.

The pattern makes big difference in trying to manually pick the lock pin by pin. Good locks will have very small room for maneuvering the lock pick.

Older locks, for example the one pictured above, have plenty of room for you to comfortably pick.

I imagine them as little horns whislting a different sound depending on their height. Ending on the same beautifully harmonious note once the mechanism fully unlocks.

Watch the lock picking lawyer on YouTube much more interesting

Too many s...

• How key works
• How keys work

A choice has to be made.

Actually we just use what other people with engineering skills created. We consume what others created.

The locksmith pulls the barrel out, removes the old set of pins and puts in a new set with different lengths. Then the key is cut with bumps that correspond to pushing each length to the shear point of the new pin set.

Same could be said for Skyrim locks

You should check out Thief then

Ah. Splinter Cell.

> I think key manufacturers typically have a few dozen different keyways that they use repeatedly.

I feel like you are overestimating the variety of keyways. Like 90% of door locks in America either use the Schlage SC1 keyway or the Kwikset KW1 keyway.

Except if they represented the pins as not "latching in place" somehow. Dunno how you'd pick a lock with 5 pins using old fashioned lockpicks, though

I'm pretty sure they switched to the Skyrim version because.... Bethesda's direction has been to steadily remove mechanics and simplify the ones that are left over. The new one - even if you find it more difficult - aligns with that goal: simpler mechanics

Doesn't feel the same without Free Bird playing in the background

That makes sense.

Some locks can be rekeyed at home without a locksmith. I had one, I was able to key it so it matches another lock in the house. Any idea how that would have worked? I definitely wasn’t pulling out the barrel.

[deleted]

My landlord tossed all the hardened steel inserts because he didn't drill the hole big enough to fit it. All the locks just have the thin piece of decorative tin on the outside.

too much noise

Let’s do that again so we can see that it was not a fluke

Nothing on 3.

It's 3 in the morning and you get woken up by this:

This is the lock picking lawyer, and what I have for you tonight ....

Splinter Cell had lots of picking locks in it's game..

I got a lock picking set because of this guy. I intended on just having it as a fidget device for taking breaks at work. But I moved recently and couldn't find the key to my desk drawer. I didn't want it swinging open during the move, so I locked it with my lock picking set, then unlocked it when I got to the new place. I felt kinda badass even though it was a 3 pin lock with no security pins.

Not all not even most new locks still work that way. You have false gates, gaps, and other things to help prevent people who aren't used to lockpicking from getting opening a lock without a key

So more complex designs for the player to manually unlock of locks as you level up or just 1 lock design for everything like in Oblivion?

I think i have all of them but haven't played any in years if not longer. Which one should i go check?

That is how you pick irl locks. 1 at a time and going by his videos if you have taken it apart before it will be easier to pick another of the same lock.

The lock is there to slow down who doesn't have a key or to prevent people who don't want to spend the time or don't know how to pick the lock

Paranoid much?
... That is unless you live in an area that is actually required to not be stolen from and/or have your house broken into.

Seems a bit overkill tbh

Damn that's so ingenious. Keys and locks rock.

In any case, that's all I have for you today...

I think he'll just rake this kind of locking mechanism, no need to pick each individually

In any case, that's all I have for today.

[deleted]

Click out of one...

This is a certified Free Bird moment

So with this in mind, how does picking locks work? It is just a pick that lifts these mechanisms individually so you can insert something to turn?

Seriously. I'm a locksmith and I'll tell people straight up, if someone really wants to get into your house they'll break a window. One lock or 20, won't make a difference. It obviously can't hurt, and if it helps you sleep at night then go for it.

I learned from sleeping dogs lol

Nope, larger the skill level the bigger the “window” for success and more resistance you can apply before breaking a lock.

But not how Englishes works.

R/thingscutinhalfporn

It was accurate to modern pin tumbler locks, which were invented in 1848, and weren't widely adopted until a century later. I don't think they would really fit a viking themed game.

Just watched something similar on Ask the Storybots. There's even a catchy song about it.

Now do subject-verb agreement

Remember, a Master Lock can be opened with a Master Lock.

Me who are a lockpickinglawyer viewer on YouTube : do I look like 3 year old ? 🤣

Or so the Germans would have us believe.

Now I need to know how lock pick works.

This is just one key not keys and I'm so glad they didn't use my house key but I guarantee somebody has just looked at there key and said wtf that's my house key wtf

But enough talk, have at you!

This also explains why you sometimes have to jiggle the key.