Step Two

After you have cleared the tumblers, apply an upward pressure on the shackle of the padlock. Keeping your ear on the lock, try to hear the tumblers as they rub across the pawl; keep the dial rotating in a clockwise direction.

You will hear two types of clicks, each with a subtle difference in pitch. The shallow, higher pitched clicks are the sound of the false gates on the first disk tumbler. Do not let them fool you - the real gates sound hollow and empty, almost nonexistent.

When you feel a greater than normal relief in the shackle once every full turn, this is the gate of the first tumbler (last number dialed). This tumbler is connected directly to the dial as mentioned earlier. Ignore that sound for now. When you have aligned the other two tumblers, the last tumbler's sound will be drowned out by the sound of the shackle popping open.

Step Three

While continuing in a clockwise direction with the dial, listen carefully for the slight hollow sound of either one of the first two tumblers. Note on the dial face where these sounds are by either memorizing them or writing them down. Make certain that you do not take note of the driving tumbler (last number dialed). If you hear and feel only one hollow click (sounds like "dumpf"), chances are that the first number could be the same as the last one.

You should have two numbers now. Let us say one of them is 12 and the other is 26. Clear the tumblers again just to be safe and stop at the number 12. Go counterclockwise one complete turn from 12. Continue until there is another "dumpf" sound. After the complete turn pass 12, if you feel and hear a louder than normal sound of a tumbler rubbing on the pawl, the first tumbler is properly aligned and the second tumbler is taking the brunt of the force from the shackle - you are on the right track. When the second tumbler has aligned in this case, you will feel a definite resistance with the last turn of the dial going clockwise. The final turn will automatically open the shackle of the lock. If none of these symptoms are evident, try starting with the number of the combination, 26, in the same way.

Step Four

If the lock still does not open, don't give up. Try searching for a different first number. Give it a good thirty or forty-minute try. If you play with it long enough, it will eventually open. The more practice you have under your belt, the quicker you will be able to open these padlocks in the future.

Using a stethoscope to increase audibility of the clicks is not out of the question when working on disk tumbler locks, though I never use them for padlocks. A miniature wide-audio-range electronic stethoscope with a magnetic base for coupling a piezoelectric-type microphone is ideal for getting to know the tumblers better.

Filing your fingertips to increase sensitivity might not be such a good idea for beginners since their fingertips will not be accustomed to operating dials for a long period of time. With practice, you may develop calluses and need to file your fingertips. But I don't recommend it at first.

After some time you may find that in some cases you can whiz right through the combination of an unknown lock without looking at it and pop it open in seconds. It becomes second nature. I've done this on many occasions - something beyond my conscious control seems to line up the tumblers without my thinking about it.

Another type of disk tumbler padlock is the Sesame lock made by the Corbin Lock Co. Its unique design makes it more difficult to open than Master padlocks, but it can be opened. Let's take one of the three or four wheel mechanisms, look at a cross section, and see how it works. The wheel has numbers from zero to nine. Attached to the wheel is a small cam. Both the wheel and cam turn on the shaft. Each wheel in this lock operates independently with its own cam and shaft. The locking dog is locked to the shackle. In this position the shackle cannot be opened. The locking dog operates with all three or four wheels. The locking dog is riding on the round edge of the cam. The spring is pushing up on the cam. The locking dog cannot move up because it is resting on the round part of the cam. When the wheel is turned to the proper combination number, the locking dog rests on the flat of the cam. The spring can then raise the locking dog to release the shackle, and this opens the lock.

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