(022) Warded padlocks and how to pick them

Oh dear. Poor warded padlocks. Oh well! I hope you enjoy this video where I take a look at how warded padlocks work and how to easily pick/bypass them.

Remember: only pick locks that are yours and that are not in use!

Great YouTube channels:

Bosnianbill
Islandlocks

Great places to buy:

[marksuhre]

I actually like the warded locks for a reason. Most people are trained in pin tumbler, bumping and such. A lot of people aren't even familiar with warded locks. My son put my Christmas present in a tool box with a chains around it. It had five locks on it. I got through the first four locks in about 2 minutes (master lock and a couple of others but all pin tumblers). The last lock was the smallest and cheapest lock. I could not pick it to save my life - no pins, weird keyway - I just did not have a clue how to attack it because I never even knew what a warded lock was (I am a father of three who only does this for fun and not a trained professional). That damn cheap warded lock made me say uncle.


So, even though they are incredibly easy to pick, if you don't know about them, they do present a very unique challenge. I was utterly amazed that a $3 dollar no name lock completed stopped me when I zipped through 4 other pin tumbler locks with relative ease. Granted, they were mostly Master locks or similar sometimes it takes a bit to get through them (for me) especially if they have radical bitting.


I would use them as a lock for cheaper items because I just don't think people realize they are out there (I didn't at the time).


Not knowing anything about warded locks (or anything about how they worked or skeleton keys) back then, it confused the heck out of me how to defeat it. The cheapest lock was the once I couldnt pick. BTW, I wasn't allowed to use Google to figure out what type of lock it was or how to defeat it. And my son just picked out random different locks without even knowing it was a warded lock.


The cheapest lock with a spinning keyway brought me to a grinding halt. Obviously, I know better now, but I might throw one in with a combination of other locks just to throw someone off or slow them down. I think they still have there place. 99% of the people don't have a clue about them. Might not slow them down with a set of bolt cutters, if they are only used to picking pin tumbler locks without much knowledge of these, I might make a difference.

[PeregrineBF]

Warded locks are great for security! You can get one very cheaply, put it in a sock, and hit burglars with it. Security! ;)

[KermodeBear]

Decided to try this hobby; bought a set of Sparrows picks, went to the store today and bought a few much-maligned Masterlocks. We all need to start somewhere, I thought I'd start on the lowest run of the Lock Ladder. I saw the 22D and bought it (along with 3 others) for practice. The three others opened with a sneeze, but I wasn't sure what to do with this one. Now I know - very informative, thank you!

[NoctisMotus]

Bought my warded picks out of curiosity as well, and learned very quickly that my bike lock was crap. :) Nice video.

[Louie]

When I saw the blue lock I thought "I swear that looks the exact same as the lock my mum got from the pound shop"
*about 1 minute later*
Lock noob: "this is from the pound shop"

[francoisbelangerboisclair]

They are still common today for gates in rural area in Canada because they don't freeze and work after years of being outside. You see them where the value to protect is 0. But need a deterrent effect.

[hp]

I had 4 of these locking up my work trailer doors. The thieves cut the locks with bolt cutters. Thieves don't pick locks.

[Ericbz]

Either my warded master lock has a key where they carefully measured after common warded picks so that mine don't line up, or I'm doing something wrong.
But, you've given me hope, and I'll keep trying until I get it.
Edit: almost as soon as I comment this I figure it out lol. My problem was trying to push the picks all the way to the back - the actuator(s) is/are somewhere in the middle.

[blazinred]

Thank you! I had a bike cable with the master lock on it that I lost the key to. Fashioned a ward pick from a paperclip based on your tool!

Apparently master lock thinks if y'all drive on the left, you must turn your keys anti-clockwise too because mine was 'murican clockwise.

[DP-hyvh]

A better pick for a warded lock is an iron nail that's flattened on the head end with the flattened head serving as a "T" to pick the lock.

After flattening the nail with a hammer so it's narrow enough to enter the keyway, use a tabletop wheel grinder to grind some of the top part of the "T" to flatten it and then the sides of the "T" so it's narrow enough to fit into the keyway.

After doing that, be sure to put a bend on the pointy end of the nail so you have a handle to turn the pick.

The nail pick usually works on most of the old warded Master Locks, although some have two parts that have to be rotated instead of one. Simply try to rotate the part closest to the keyhole and then the part closest to the top of the lock. This usually gets it open.

[canadafree]

Still made 7 years later. I found one recently and it gave me 30 seconds of enjoyment but then after opening them 10 times in those 30 seconds it felt like I was just using the key.

[theteenageengineer]

The new 22s are a little harder to get into, the standard warded picks will not work, but if you take any master lock warded key and file off everything except the tip then leave a space and leave a small bit then you will have a master key that will open all of them.

[branden]

Well I'm apparently doing something wrong because I find "warded" locks harder to pick than the "standard" pin type. The warded type has so much slop inside, I can't tell we're anything is at! I wish folks that make these videos demonstrate the tactics, and not the ease...

[nottjohn]

Aren't these the type of locks that used to be on nearly everybody's back door in the UK? I remember there only being about five keys that would operate every lock you came across. Even before lock-picking I had to wonder if they were really that bad and it appears they were.

[cameronoquinn]

You make the master lock 22 look so easy, got the same set of picks and I CAN NOT get this stupid thing open. Did exactly what you did. Dunno what I'm doing wrong.

[edi]

The home I grew up in had such locks on internal doors, but the keys were not flat, thus your picks wouldn't get into the lock as they would require an S, or Z shape.

[johngoodman]

Americans: Dollar store

British: 𝓟𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓭 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓹𝓹𝓮

[zacharylagler]

They are used in northern Canada still, as they hold up well in the Cold...

[coruscaregames]

Ah! That's it! That's how you prevent a bear from opening a trashcan lid!

[JoeDurobot]

Pretty inreresting.
That's pretty much 19th century technology, right? Maybe used before that too.
If I understand it correctly you could buy that Master lock model, turn the key into a skeleton key by filling all but the last groves, and that way open all similar models?