Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Making the hook and tensioner
• Part 2 of 2: Breaking open the lock
• Tips
• Necessities

Locking yourself out of your house or room can be quite stressful if you don't have a spare key on hand. Fortunately, you can avoid the high bill of a locksmith by learning how to break open a lock yourself. To break a lock on a door you need two bobby pins and a little patience. One pin serves as a hook and the other pin as a tensioner with which you turn the lock.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Making the hook and tensioner

1. Open a bobby pin and bend it at a 90 degree angle. Spread the wavy and straight ends of the hairpin apart so that they are bent through the center in an L. You are going to use the hairpin as a hook to unlock the door.
2. Remove the rubber tip from the straight end of the hairpin. Use a utility knife or razor blade to remove the round rubber tip on the straight side of the hairpin. This is the point that you will put in the lock and serve as a pecking hook.
   • If you don't have any tools, you can remove the rubber tip with your fingernail or teeth.
3. Insert the straight end of the pin into the top of the lock and bend it. Insert the pin about an inch and fold the rest of the hairpin until it is flush against the front of the lock. This will bend the tip at an angle.
   • You will use the bent end of the pin to release the pins in the lock.
4. Bend the wavy end of the hairpin into a handle for a better hold. Grab the wavy end of the pin and bend it up at a 30 degree angle to create a handle. This step is not necessary per se, but it will make it easier to break open the lock and make it more comfortable for your hands. When you are done making the handle, the pick hook is ready.
   • When you are done bending, the round end of the hairpin will look like the handle of a coffee mug.
5. Bend the tip of another hairpin to create the tensioner. Take another bobby pin and bend the top 1/3 of the pin so that it forms a hook. Do not spread both sides of the bobby pin apart like you did with the pick hook. Instead, bend both sides of the hairpin in the same direction.
   • You're going to use the tensioner to actually turn the lock once you've forced it.

Part 2 of 2: Breaking open the lock

1. Insert the tensioner into the bottom of the lock. Take the shorter and curved end of the tensioner and insert it into the bottom hole in the lock. The tensioner will now hang down from the front of the lock.
   • You are going to use the tensioner to keep tension on the lock while you break it open and then as an aid to turn the lock.
2. Push the tensioner counterclockwise to apply tension. Keeping tension on the tensioner will cause the cylinder to spin in the lock, allowing you to lift each individual pin. Press the tensioner until you feel some tension. You don't have to use a lot of force.
   • Keep the tension on the lock as you break it open.
   • Without this tension, the pins will fall back into the cylinder, leaving the doorknob locked.
3. Insert the pick hook into the lock until you can feel the pins. Insert the slightly curved end of the picking hook into the lock with the point upwards. The pins are on the top part inside the keyhole. Feel the pins with the pick hook by pushing it down while it is in the hole. Press down on the handle of the pick hook to push the pins up.
   • Most traditional doorknobs have five or six pins.
   • A key pushes the pins up into the exact position needed to align them with the cylinder, unlocking the door.
4. Push the tensioner down until you hear a click. Some pins will slide up easily when you press on them with the pick hook, while others will provide some resistance. Pins that provide resistance are referred to as key pins. First, focus on the pins with a lot of resistance. Find a pin that is difficult to push up and slowly push the handle on the hook until you hear a click.
   • The click is the sound of the pin going into the cylinder.
   • You must secure the key pins first before putting the other pins in their place.
5. Lift the rest of the pins in the door lock. Keep looking for the pegs with the pick hook and push the pick hook handle down to lift each peg up. The door will unlock when each pin is placed on top of the cylinder.
6. Turn the tensioner counterclockwise to open the door. Grab the end of the tensioner and turn it as you would a key until the door unlocks. Your door is now unlocked!
   • Most doors require you to turn the tensioner anti-clockwise to open the door, but this may be different for some locks.
   • The tensioner will only turn fully when the pins are correctly placed in the cylinder of the lock.

Tips

• Some locks only open in one direction. Before you start, find out which way the lock needs to be turned to open the latch and use the tensioner to keep the tension in that direction the entire time. If you have to change direction, you will lose tension in the lock and the pins will jump back to their original position and you will have to start over.

Necessities

• 2 bobby pins