Secrets Of Lock Picking [Paperback]

Steven Hampton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1987

Master locksmith Steven Hampton reveals here the tricks and tools for bypassing keyed and combination locks from pin tumbler locks, mushroom and spool pin tumbler locks, wafer tumbler locks, warded locks and disk tumbler locks to tubular cylinder locks, magnetic locks, door locks, padlocks and automobile locks. Find the key to "seeing" into every lock and discovering its simplicity.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Steven Hampton became interested in locks and electronics at an early age. At 14 he acquired a set of U.S. Air Force electronic training manuals and began building various transistor circuits by scalping radios and junkyard TVs. At 17 he was making his own lockpicks and was considered a master lockpicker, and by the time he was 18 he'd invented the magnetic padlock, which is still on the market today. After a stint in the navy, he studied digital electronics and worked in many technical fields. He also became interested in the martial arts, studying Tibetan White Crane kung fu, jujitsu and wing chun.

Product Details

• Paperback: 72 pages
• Publisher: Paladin Press (April 1, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0873644239
• ISBN-13: 978-0873644235
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #241,568 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Hand Tools
  • #83 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Home Design > House Plans

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for a beginner, September 21, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secrets Of Lock Picking (Paperback)

This book is a little smaller than I would have liked but it covers the material fairly well. It is a great introduction to lock picking. It will definitly have you roaming the house looking for things to pick. It covers 99% of the locks you see on a day to day basis. I read it in about an hour and a half. I will read it several more times.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Want to learn how to pick locks? Go get it!, June 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Secrets Of Lock Picking (Paperback)

This was my second book about "alternative entering metods" (the first one was "Lock Bypass Methods"), but this is my Bible for sure! I'm not a long time lockpicker (I began March '99), but I guarantee, this piece will give you serious knowledge! It presents almost every kind of lock you will find, shows how they work and teach you how to pick them. Don't be disappointed if you fail to open your first ones, be persistent and you will succed. The illustration are as clear as crystal, so is the text. Steven Hampton gives you confidence by telling his experiences as a locksmith, making the book more informal, rather than just a "technical" guide. It is quite a thin book, but full of information, althought it seemed to me that it could be expanded. For further information on hi-tech locks, try "Advanced Lockpicking Secrets" by the same author.

35 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Fraud!!!, August 12, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Secrets Of Lock Picking (Paperback)

I have 20 years experience as a Locksmith. Hampton has absolutely no clue about picking locks, and his book is a fairy tale. The man does not even know the names of the parts of the locks! He gives instructions for making lockpicks,that will take you hours to make, that can be bought for less than $2.00. If he was a real locksmith, why doesn't he buy them from a locksmith supply house? Why is he so concerned about secretive lockpicking? Locksmiths don't have any reason to be secretive-The customer is standing next to them while they pick the lock.
The guy is a slick operator who is out to sell books to gullible people;if you pick any lock at all after reading this book, you have been EXTREMELY lucky.