lock picking lawyer

There's a popular YouTuber calling himself "the lock picking lawyer" who seems able to pick any lock: if one has defeated him I don't know about it.

He shows how to do it each time in his videos.

For many years I'd heard "through the grapevine" that if you lose your key to a safe deposit box, the lock would have to be drilled out to get access.

But why drill, if at least in theory a competent locksmith should be able to pick it?

Quote: missedhervee

There's a popular YouTuber calling himself "the lock picking lawyer" who seems able to pick any lock: if one has defeated him I don't know about it.

He shows how to do it each time in his videos.

For many years I'd heard "through the grapevine" that if you lose your key to a safe deposit box, the lock would have to be drilled out to get access.

But why drill, if at least in theory a competent locksmith should be able to pick it?

I I don't think that most competent locksmiths could pick most locks. I have known a few locksmiths and they could only pick the most basic locks. Most locksmiths just install new locks or rekey existing locks.

I would guess many banks probably have a contract as to what the course of action is if you lose accsess to your box (lose the keys or whatever) or if an external party needs to gain accses (warrant, order, etc...). They would probably need to change the keys/locks for security reasons regardless, even if it could be picked, so why not just drill right away?

Picking a lock is only a worthwhile task if the lock does not need to be changed out anyway.

On a side note I do love that channel.

Quote: missedhervee

There's a popular YouTuber calling himself "the lock picking lawyer" who seems able to pick any lock: if one has defeated him I don't know about it.

He shows how to do it each time in his videos.

For many years I'd heard "through the grapevine" that if you lose your key to a safe deposit box, the lock would have to be drilled out to get access.

But why drill, if at least in theory a competent locksmith should be able to pick it?

Seen the channel. Always neat when you hear someone else watching the same YT channel you have seen.

But why drill?

Picking locks takes more time than drilling and obviously more skill. Locksmiths are not lock pickers. The older ones do more intricate work with locks, most install an entire doorknob or just pop out and change the lock in one.

There would be two reasons to pick a lock vs. drill:

First, to save the hassle of the rekey. Someone mentioned that a lost safe deposit box key means the bank needs to rekey it for security purposes. In an apartment or house if someone just left their key inside and the lock can be picked it saves that trouble, though the cost may be higher to "pick" it.

Second reason is to conceal you got inside whatever is locked. This means crime. Either to get in and see/copy what is there or to steal and give time before anyone notices. Pro thieves will balance this with the extra exposure time of picking the lock and the need for that skill. Robbery money does not go so far so the less people to chop it with the better.

Back to the super and picking. Girls upstairs locked themselves out and asked us for help. I knew the credit-card-jimmy trick and tried it, but it did not work. So I got a butter knife and used that. Pop! Took about 10 seconds with the knife. Being college girls the were not so street wise and asked, "Is that how easy it is to break in here?!" Uh, yeah, I just did it.

It happened again so the next time I got in faster than they would with their key.

I've watched his videos before. I think he has similar motivations as people who like puzzle challenges.

Various lock makers make various claims, and he busts them. At least from the ones I watched. He opens most locks within minutes.