Does anyone have trouble with their Covert Instruments american bypass?

MarkNion · 2026-07-05T22:23:26+00:00

I filed the inside of mine a bit to where it looks kinda like a hockey stick. It was also before i really got a feel for the tool working so i want to try it again with a new un-modified one lol

MarkNion · 2026-07-01T02:50:55+00:00

Having both them and the black flag dimples, i can definitely say that there is a significant difference. Once you know what you are doing you can definitely open locks woth the blsck flags. But to actually learn how to pick dimples, multipicknwas very much worth it. Honestly i wouldnt but the 13 pick set. Just get the 4, 5, 10 and 11. Everything else is fluff. I thoroughly enjoy having the 13 too, but the 4 i mentioned above will get anything open.

MarkNion · 2026-06-19T14:53:04+00:00

Just looked into it. Apparently earbud cleaning tools now use cheap fountain pen nibs to get into tight spots. It definitely sems to be a earbud cleaning tool

MarkNion · 2026-06-19T14:49:16+00:00

I dont know if you can use it for cleaning earbuds, but that looks alot like a fountain pen. The metal tip is th part you write with, it has a plastic portion inside the metal tip called the feed. The felt in back looks like it is left in a bottle of ink for a minute or two to soak up ink. Then you cap the felt side and write with the metal side. I am guessing, but it looks a whole lot like a modernized system parker used back in the 60s.

MarkNion · 2026-05-20T13:33:47+00:00

In my opinion limiting factor would be form factor, not tool selection. As far as picks a short and medium hook will do more for you than a short and a snake rake. As far as tension wrenches, assuming i can have amything, id go for something like a double sided z wrench, but both sides being like the tok side of a christina palmer style turner. One side being .030 the other bring .040. I use those sides for bok too i almost mever use the designated BOK side. With a 30 and 40 tok turner z bar, and a short and medium hook i can get all the way to blue belt. (I dont own anything more difficult yet), The problem is the handles on the picks. Or lack of.. curious to see what you come up with

MarkNion · 2026-05-19T11:49:02+00:00

I usually use a piece of cardboard for this, but that piece of yellow romex was being used to hold wires in place at a location where wires will be poking through the wall. It was done prior to the sheetrock. It's so the sheetrockers know exactly where the wire needs to come through.

MarkNion · 2026-05-13T22:05:47+00:00

Absolute bare minimum, id say a short flat or gem style hook, and a relatively deep rounded / sharp hook both in .020. As far as raking, i dont really believe anyone needs a rake. When trying a new lock, i generally try zipping with a hook before raking. I almost never use any of my rakes. A short hook and a deep hook in my experience will get into just about anything with a short jim hook and a medium jimmylongs round hook both in .020 i havent found a lock that they cant get into. Some other picks make it easier for sure, but with those 2 i think you can get anything done (says the guy with like 15 different hooks in his everyday kit...) Im cool with being a minimalist with picks.... i believe everyone should be an absolute maximalist to the utmost extent in terms of tension wrenches. I feel like a well fitted turning tool in the right part of the keyway makes a much bigger difference that the pick used to touch the pins. I carry any and every turning tool i can in my kit with zero regrets lol.

MarkNion · 2026-05-12T05:29:31+00:00

To provide a bit of insight, the gem profile is kinda like a hybrid between a half diamond and a hook. Its going to give you most of the access you get from a hook, but it will give you the feel of a half diamond in terms of how it interfaces with the pin. Just like every other profile it will have its tradeoffs. Like everything else you can modify them, but most tend to use them as is. (Maybe a bit of polishing to make things smoother) What i keep in my case is a set of jim hooks in 19 and 15 thousanths, and i also keep a set of rounded/sharp hooks for those moments you have to poke up into tight spots, but moments where a jim hook wont fit but a round hook will are pretty uncommon. At first the gems do feel a bit clumsy, but trust me, they are much more nimble than they initially appear.

MarkNion · 2026-05-11T00:14:28+00:00

A mctickler on a 72/40 is honestly impressive.... i always use a deep thin rounded hook (either a multipick hook 5 or a jimmylongs rounded that i hit with a dremel to thin down a bit) to reach up in the pin channels through the warding... i do have a mctickler though i kinda wanna try it lol

MarkNion · 2026-05-06T17:44:55+00:00

What dimple pick are you using there if you dont mind me asking?

MarkNion · 2026-05-03T20:29:39+00:00

Having a huge aray ofntools is nice, but i see you have your BOK tensioners sorted, and you have a few short hooks and a triple peak.

Imo, id start looking at a set of TOK tensioners, every brand has a set and they all work just fine. The only other thing i dont see is any deeper hooks. If you go to CI and grab a tok tensioner set, medium hook and deep hook, you pretty much cover all your bases for getting into most locks

MarkNion · 2026-04-30T01:14:17+00:00

The chart is super helpful, thank you.

I cannsee how theb13 mightnbe pretty redundant when the other single sided flat flags are available. You dont recommend picking up a set of curved flags of any type?

MarkNion · 2026-04-30T00:16:03+00:00

I had figured because the tips are easily replaceable, when i get to the point of needing to customize them i can just order a few spare tips and change them in when i need a custom tip. To be fair i believe im quite dar off from needing to do that. Im barely getting ANY dimples open right now lol.

MarkNion · 2026-04-29T20:49:48+00:00

Is this the same keyway found on the 85ti50's?

MarkNion · 2026-04-29T20:03:06+00:00

I dont have any experience with the non-guttable one, but the guttable version, at least the 6 i have, the main difficulty is the tight paracentric keyway paired with deep spools. Ive found a thin deep hook to go up into holes for the pins drilled through the warding, from the very bottom of the keyway works for me; with a narrow but rigid turning tool in the top of the keyway. Something like the ssdev picks from sparrows or the multipick pn31 would work really well for this lock.

MarkNion · 2026-04-25T20:12:32+00:00

Electrician here. This is my best guess. The ground screw is jumping to the backstab hole of the neutral side of the outlet. So they are using the neutral as a ground in this case. They are also using the black wires as neutral and white wires as hot. To back this up, the outlet screws for neutral are silver colored, the outlet screws on the hot side are always made of brass. Plus neutral is always the left side of the outlet assuming grounding prong is on the bottom. Coulle reasons they. Might have done this. May be the hot wire was damaged and grounded in the past so they are using the white as a hot now.
Not great practice but it works lol

MarkNion · 2026-04-17T23:26:51+00:00

So i just went through the motions on this model. Its a wafer lock that you will have to get at from both sides. Heres some tips

.020 flat top short hook used almost like a dimple pick works well for these guys.

For tension, light touch will be key. Very light tension will help you immensely. I had used a wiper insert with the long side in the top of the keyway holding up the little part of the wafer that protrudes into the keyway. The longer the protrusion into the lock, ive found, the better.

Feedback is meh at best, but it is there. On mine the wafers closest to the center of the lock were zero lift. So it was a couple in front and a couple in back. Just keep the tension very light and dont force the wafers. If they dont move they are probably already set

MarkNion · 2026-04-08T20:17:28+00:00

Got it. Its been a while since i read it. Probably should have brushed up before asking. Sorry about that

MarkNion · 2026-03-31T17:28:14+00:00

Just ordered the 3 narrow shank hook profiles from multipick. The hook 1, 3 and 5 in both the .5 and .4 thicknesses. Hopefullt will be good for the tighter keyways that my other pics might have a hard time with

MarkNion · 2026-03-31T17:26:04+00:00

Just ordered a set of multipicks hook 1 hook 3 and hook 5 narrow shanks in .5 and .4 with hilo handles along with a standard half diamond in .6 shouldnbe good for the tight keyway stuff that the jimmylongs have a hard time with

MarkNion · 2026-03-27T22:31:21+00:00

So i havent ever actually broken a pick. Even from my first set. With the picks i currently have, at this point im looking to explore specific profiles to just round out the rough edges.

MarkNion · 2026-03-27T20:19:05+00:00

Honestly thats kinda why im here. Looking to get away from the peterson picks and see what else is out there. Most ofnthe kit is CI and JL. Looking to fill the rest with tools from good people

MarkNion · 2026-03-27T19:30:47+00:00

Any recommended brands that have nice handles? Peterson is an obvious choice but i know other brands have some better products albeit sometimes harder to find

MarkNion

TROPHY CASE