Lock Picking Series (Number 1) Why you want to learn about lock picking

In this picture below you can see many of the things I have done so far and this is only after a mere 2 weeks!
Keep reading on and I will introduce you to a few of the things you see in this picture.

The first thing I had to do was fashion myself some picks. At first I tried to make them out of paper clips like I had seen in one of the first videos I happened to watch. That however was not very realistic. It became quite obvious that the guy in the video had the easiest pickable Master lock he could find, plus he used some very thick paper clips. All I had at home and at work were some tiny paperclips, but I did manage to rake open a cheap Uhaul lock once, then the paperclip was done!
So this picture shows you the very first picks I made myself out of the thin metal you can find sandwiched within windshield washer blades, just pull them apart and you will have 2 long pieces of metal to work with.
Note: there are generally 3 different thicknesses these inserts come in.
To make these tools below i used a bench grinder and a 1" belt sander and sometimes some fine files.

The larger one you see in this picture is the one I made today from a roll of spring steel, which actually was a Spring from one of the machines I use at work (quill spring from a Sharp endmill, see pictures below.

You will also need some "Tension wrenches" tools too. The windshield wiper pieces make excellent tensioning tools.
Here are some I have made.

After picking a few locks (the ones in the first picture above) and seeing that it was actually possible to do this I went ahead and found a cheap lock picking set on eBay for $20. I knew they were not going to be the best, but I needed a starting point.
Here is the set I got.
I got this one because it came with car lock picks and regular lock picks. I believe it had 25 pieces.

Here is a couple close ups from that set



The quality is not the best and I already broke one of the pics, but it also came with this see-thru practice lock too, which lets you see what is going on inside of a padlock.

So why am I dedicating my time to lock picking stuff?
It's very simple actually, but it is not just one reason, so I have made a short list to better explain.

1. It's a challenge. Like a puzzle to solve. Maybe more like one of those brain puzzle things you have to figure out.
2. The more I learn about the different locks, the more I am intrigued to learn more.
3. The more I learn about locks the, the more it worries me. We rely on these things to keep us safe and I can pick (rake) most locks in about 30 seconds! That is false security and I want to alert people to this fact.
4. I like to fix things
5. I now do not worry about being locked out of my house, lol
6. And I also like to wake people up from the Matrix