HINTS&TIPS
PICKING THE UNION STRONGBOLT WITH THE CB RPCP
Although We have used the union strongbolt for this guide , the process is identical for the new generation of ERA Fortress locks as both locks share the same internals and levers , making the picking process identical for this. Te same picking process can be ap-
plied to the old warded fortress as the le- vers are exactly the same , the levers hang lower in this lock and it is warded also, so if using the pre lifter on the warded version , the process then becomes the same.
Te picking process as always begins
with examining the lock for any weak- nesses we can exploit , and to gain a lit- tle knowledge about the lock we want to defeat. Spending a short time looking at the
lock, the levers, the key etc will arm you with a wealth of knowledge and also iden- tify areas you can exploit to defeat the lock with a curtain pick.
The Levers We begin by looking at the levers used in this lock .
Highlighted above is a typical top fence
anti pick and a typical bottom fence anti pick and shows only 1 anti pick per lever. At this point we take note of the distance between the top of the top fence and the anti pick on the bottom fence of the low lift lever, its a good 7mm to 8mm. Tis simple observation simplifies the
picking process for us significantly , and allows us to use one of two simple 2 part processes to defeat this lock, dependent on how new the lock is and how worn. It becomes obvious at this point that if
all levers are lifted 5mm to 6mm and no more than this , then all low lift levers ( levers 3 to 7 ) should set in the gates, and only the high lift levers ( levers 1 & 2 ) can possibly enter the anti picks. So if all le- vers are lifted 4mm to 5mm in turn , the low levers will set and the high levers will enter anti pick.
“Spending a Above you will see a typical high and a
typical low lift lever , it is obvious on first sight that each lever only has either 1 top fence anti pick or 1 bottom fence anti pick , no lever has both top and bottom fence anti picks . when looking at all 7 heights of levers , one significant point is spotted im- mediately , Only lever heights 1 & 2 have top fence anti picks with no antipicks on the bottom fence , lever heights 3 to 7 all have bottom fence antipicks with no top fence anti picks.
short time looking at the lock, the levers, the key etc. will arm you with a wealth of knowledge”
So we insert the pick and wire into the
lock , and apply a light tension to the bolt , we then lift each binding lever in turn no more than 6mm each, the lock will go into anti pick. We then tickle the bot- tom of each lever with our pick wire , any lever that moves is a low lift lever as set , any lever that is solid and has no move- ment is in anti pick and is a high lift lever,
68 • NOV/DEC 2011 •
WWW.KEYZINE.CO.UK
so memorise the positions of the high lift levers in the lock. We now have to options to pick the lock;
1) We can maintain tension and posi-
tion our pick wire underneath a solid le- ver , then apply a modest lifting pressure to the lever , you will feel the wire strain slightly, at this point slightly decrease the tension on the bolt a fraction at a time, until the wire under modest lifting pres- sure begins to lift the lever, as soon as the lever begins to lift , we reapply our tension to the bolt. If only one lever was in anti pick then the lock should open, if more than 1 lever was in anti pick , then move to the next lever in anti pick and repeat this process until open. So important notes to remember; A) Don’t lift any lever more than 6mm
initially ! B) By tickling each lever identify where
the rock solid levers are C) Apply a moderate lifting pressure to
the solid lever D) Maintaining this lifting pressure
start decreasing the tension on the bolt a fraction at a time, too much and all set levers will fall , so a fraction at a time ! E) As soon as the lever begins to lift,
quickly reapply full tension to the bolt. Tis process of jumping out of anti picks
is simple to do once practiced , its just a process of coordination between bolt ten- sion and lifting pressure, but this process can be difficult when locks are brand new and anti picks are at their sharpest and best, if you experience this, then use the 2nd picking process below, but process 1 should work 9 times out of 10 for you. 2) On the rare occasion the anti picks
are too sharp to jump out of them then follow this process. Once we have entered the anti picks by
lifting each lever no more than 5 to 6mm, we again tickle each lever in turn with our pick wire, identifying the position of the rock solid levers with no movement, it is essential we memorise the position of these levers. Once we have memorised the position
of the solid levers lodged in anti pick , we release tension on the bolt and reset all levers. Continues...
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