Online Resources to Help You Improve Your Locksmithing Skills

The most common question when people set down a new career path is, “Where do I even start?” You have the drive, but you feel that there are just so many questions. You don’t know what you should ask first. You also don’t know what you don’t know to ask. And how do you ask for information that you don’t know you need, well the first and most important thing you should do is , book a place on a locksmith training course, here at locksmith training merseyside we regard ourselves as one of the best locksmith trainers out there, check out our feedback from previous locksmith trainees, then get in touch and book a course. This guide will take you through some important resources for any new locksmith. It is more than just the links. It is the information that will help you get the most out of those links. This article should serve as a springboard for your own exploration. It is meant to cut through the extraneous information without leaving you uninformed. Make sure that you do click on the links and explore a little for yourself. And between a firm grasp on community and education, you should have everything you need.

Message Boards

Message boards offer support, information, and countless resources. It is a good way to keep up to date on lock news and what is happening in the security community. For the best experience, I would suggest going onto some forums. Between these sites, you should be able to get all of the information that you need. Even if you don’t want to dive into commenting these a great resource for finding answers to specific questions.

 Lock Picking 101

This forum offers exclusive threads for locksmith professionals as well as threads open to the public. There is an amazing glossary for lock picking terms. The site has very active moderators to make sure that it remains inclusive and that people follow the rules. There are specific places to post certain types of questions and comments, and it takes a bit of getting used to. The admin and the moderators will step in to make sure that your threads are moved to the appropriate area, so they are seen by people that can help. If the search function is not giving you the results you are looking for, try going to google and typing in your question and “lock picking 101”. Most new threads receive responses on how thisquestion has already been answered somewhere else on the site.

 Key Picking

This forum is very similar to Lock Picking 101 except that it has a slightly different user interface. For the most part, it even has the same users as Lock Picking. You may discover that you can find things more easily on Key Picking, because of the various subcategories. Similarly, this might confuse some users. It is all about preference, but I would recommend joining both this site and Lock Picking 101. Though they are very similar, the content can be quite unique to each site.

 Antique Locks

This site is more of a niche for lock collectors, but if you find yourself getting into collecting this is a great resource. Working as a locksmith, you may also find yourself in possession of some very old locks. Antique locks has quite a few users that are knowledgeable about the history and value of these devices. Other that background and history, it is also a resource for buying and selling. There is a specific thread for “For Sale – Wanted”.

Experts on YouTube

Depending on your learning style, YouTube might be the first place you turn for an education, but there is also a community there. Groups from the message boards share their lock picking exploits and send challenge locks to one another. YouTubers such as Wayne Winton, Schuyler Towne, Lockman 28, Kokomolock, ken peterson and, of course, Bosnianbill are very articulate and have a lot of unique videos. Each one offers different insights, but some of the material overlaps, have a search on there and watch some videos, you might find your favourite locksmith videos.

 Bosnian Bill

There is just something about this guy that everybody loves (myself included). He is amazingly articulate, a fantastic lock picker, and very accessible. Nowadays he does a lot of lock picking videos but his older material is filled with the answers to pretty much every lock question you could have. He is great with responding to the comments on his videoseven if they are years old. He will also open you up to the community at large by plugging the smaller locksport YouTubers.

Blogs

Blogs are a great way to learn in any industry. A blog is simply an area on a website that is updated on a regular basis. Blogs are usually started by experts in their field. We listed a few blogs that have some really great stuff to help you learn about the profession.

How To Become A Locksmith

This is a great resource for additional information. It points the user to many of the same resources that I have mentioned, but they also have some very in-depth content that gets you thinking about the profession. I would recommend exploring their blog section, and training and certification section. It is hard to tell how often they update (because there are no dates), but their back catalogue warrants a glance. There is also a homepage that gets you started on navigating the site and the profession. They also have a tool to find jobs. It is like if someone turned this one post into a website. Highly recommend.

 The Lock Blog

We offer some really great content if you’re looking into perfecting your locksmith skills. Not only are we posting constantly, but we also actively answer questions and have discussions in our comments section. If you need specific questions answered, or have topics that you would like to know more about, we are very easy to contact. Besides our blog, we also share a lot of great stuff on social media via the Locksmith Twitter and Facebook. Follow us there, subscribe to the blog, and feel free to comment and ask questions whenever you have them.

Rick The Picks Locksmith Blog

This is a superb blog written by a very good locksmith, and its updated regularly with good items on new tools and locks.

Formal Groups

Formal associations and organizations mean that you have to pay your dues, literally. These fees allow the groups to offer better organization and assure a level of commitment from its members. The formality is also meant to discourage your average person from joining. Rules and requirements are devised so that only the driven will join

Research

Google can be a valuable resource, in this case, but chances are a message board will get better results. You can start a thread asking about groups in your area, and usually there will be a couple responses.

Conclusion

These are some really good online resources I have found. They are by no means the only resources. I encourage all new or aspiring locksmiths to click through the links and forge their own path. For the most part, these are going to be the resources that people refer you to. With this information, you will be able to better navigate the recommendations. You will also know more than you would by just stumbling across a page of links. But perhaps a page of links would be helpful to some people. Leave a comment bellow if you would like to have any more information. If you want less information, ie the page of just links, I would refer you to Security Info Net. That resource is a wider ranging resource list. It is more general, but there may be things there that pertain to you. Also, feel free to tell us about your favorite resources in the comments section. Now, the most important resource you will need is TRAINING, here at locksmith training merseyside we regard our selves as one of the best locksmith training centres in the uk, have a read of our website and book in for a course, your first step on the locksmith ladder career.