Introduction: Open a Padlock With One Paperclip, Nothing Else

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Make a wrench and pick with one paper clip, with no tools, for opening cheap padlocks.

Materials:

1 paper clip

Step 1: One Paperclip Is Actually Two Tools

Break your paper clip in the middle, and bend those two pieces open. You should have two similar looking "L"s.

Step 2: Ram It in There!

right about now you're probably thinking... "what am I supposed to do with these?".
well. One of those "L"s is your pick, and one is your torsion wrench. Now your torsion wrench, in reality, is just a broken paperclip... so well have to use our heads. If you force your wrench, hook end up, about a 1/2 inch into the lower part of the keyway, NOT where the pins are, it should be fairly tight.

...now (next picture) if you bend it down, you'll get some torque (3rd pic)

If the tension wrench slides outs when you apply slight pressure, try again, try different positions or areas in the lower keyway. you can bend and un-bend the paperclip tip in the keyway if you mess it up.

note that you will most likely have to make a different tension wrench for every lock you want to pick, the wire will be bent differently depending on the size of the keyway.

Step 3: Now Lets Look at Your Precisely Machined Lock Pick.

You may notice this lock pick is better than most lock picks out there, 100% better actually, because it's a DOUBLE ended lock pick, the straight end acts as a jiggler pick which can open only the most horrible quality of locks, any lock under $5, and all the lower end master locks (especially ones that are poorly pinned)

The other end I won't be using. It is a basic large hook lock pick. If you bend it straighter in the lock's keyway, you can make a short hook pick, a very useful pick for picking most locks, but this is still a paperclip, and it's extremely hard to pick with. Lockpick "pros" can have fun with this side.

Step 4: Insert

slide the straight end into your lock, right under the pins.

At this point, make sure the torsion wrench in the lower part on the keyway is not getting in the way of your pick, the pick should slide in and out freely, without moving the pins much.

If your wrench is in the way, don't worry, for your wrench is double sided as well! the other end is straight though... just bend it a little in the keyway and make it work. You're trying to turn the keyway clockwise, but without interfering with the pins, thats the pick's job... just make it work, if you don't, you may have to saw your leg off.

Step 5: Lets Get Picking :D

just a minute, just hold on... If you haven't picked a lock before, I really wouldn't recommend learning like this. Jiggling with a straight paper clip is easy, it works on lots of cheap padlocks, but it's just horrible style, and learning with a paper clip torsion wrench is simply insanity. This instructable was made to prove it is in fact possible to pick locks with just one paperclip, and show people how to if they are ever stuck without any real picks.

assuming you've done everything correctly so far, just hold the lock and tools like shown, and rapidly, but gently giggle up and down on the pick, holding it right at the rounded bend, JUST AFTER you apply a light, but slowly increasing clockwise pressure on the torsion wrench...

again, I hope this isn't your first time picking locks, you may have no idea what I'm talking about...

Step 6: Here's Some Videos...






Step 7: Comment!

picking locks is not easy to do, and using just a paper clip to open a padlock can be extremely frustrating. but DON'T GIVE UP, it took me almost 20 paper clips to make this instructable, and Iv'e been doing this for a long time! post and questions, comments, suggestions, or tips.


~thanks