Reasons to learn to use and carry covert entry tools:
Disclaimer – Do not practice on locks that you don’t own or locks on which you rely. Depending how you apply your lock skills, you may earn yourself accolades for getting someone out of a real jam or a one-way trip to the County lockup. The choice is yours. Please consult with an attorney about laws in the jurisdictions you may find yourself in and comply with local laws. While possession of lock tools is legal in many states, laws differ from state to state.
Why lockpicks? In an emergency scenario, why not use forcible entry? Firefighters, Police and Military use them, so shouldn’t survivalists use them too?
I am familiar with this argument and the answer is that I carry both tools for forcible and covert entry. I should be since I hold instructor certifications in high explosive breaching and dynamic entry. I find that carrying both types of tools gives me options and additional versatility. However, your mileage may vary.
Training Tip: If you’d like to learn to pick locks, a couple of good resources are TOOoL’s website (The Open Organization of Lockpickers) and Deviant Ollam’s YouTube channel. Their research on handcuff keys helped me perfect my own flat handcuff key design. I recommend purchasing a clear training lock so you can see in inner workings and give it a try. Once you’ve got it down, move on to a real lock. You’ll be opening them in no time.
These are suggestions for a modular survival entry kit. Since so many of our readers are new to lockpicking, I’ll focus mostly on simple tools that do not require a lot of training to open locks.
The first layer of tools I carry are covert restraint escape tools. As the name implies, these tools are concealed and used to escape form restraints such as handcuffs, flex cuffs, rope or duct tape. These tools must be tiny and flat to make them difficult to detected in pat down when concealed in layers of clothing. I avoid carrying restraint escape tools in my wallet because that’s usually the second thing taken in an abduction, right after any weapons. Hiding restraint escape tools in or under valuable (to the assailants) jewelry or watches is also less effective.
I have already written articles on this subject which you can find here: Restraint Escape Kit, Restraint Escape Carry Methods, How to Escape from Handcuffs
If you read my articles, I hope you carry a pocket survival kit. If you do, many common survival kit components serve double duty as entry tool or can be used to make entry tools from trash laying around anywhere locks are found or you may even considering adding a few entry tools for built environments.
I modified a commercial pouch that attaches to a loop field or PALS webbing to either close with a Velcro closure or open and close silently (black pouch in first photo) and I added glow tape to tools that sit behind small tools such as tension tools and picks so I can find the tool I want in the dark.
Common Keyed Alike Keys – Even if they don’t learn to pick locks or invest in anything else, anybody can toss a small ring of standard keys to common keyed alike locks in their bugout bag. Unlike more advanced lock tools, using these keys doesn’t require specialized training. It is helpful to know which key to try first, but this can also be resolved through trial and error. Despite the simplicity, usefulness and low cost of master keys, I seldom see them included in survival equipment lists for urban areas other than the occasional sill cock key.
I have listed some of the most frequently encountered keyed-alike keys below and will mark the most common keys very common.
Cache Valley Prepper is the CEO of Survival Sensei, LLC, a freelance author, writer, survival instructor, consultant and the director of the Survival Brain Trust. A descendant of pioneers, Cache was raised in the tradition of self-reliance and grew up working archaeological digs in the desert Southwest, hiking the Swiss Alps and Scottish highlands and building the Boy Scout Program in Portugal. Cache was mentored in survival by a Delta Force Lt Col and a physician in the US Nuclear Program and in business by Stephen R. Covey. You can catch up with Cache teaching EMP survival at survival expos, teaching SERE to ex-pats and vagabonds in South America or getting in some dirt time with the primitive skills crowd in a wilderness near you. His Facebook page is here. Cache Valley Prepper is a pen name used to protect his identity. You can send Cache Valley Prepper a message at editor [at] survivopedia.com
Reasons to learn to use and carry covert entry tools:
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