Hey, Everyone,

The CAD files in DWG & DXF format can be found linked in the bottom of this post, as well as the layout for my first test etching. What you'll notice about the etching layout is that there is a variety of different arrangements. The goal is to test the tolerances of the etching process to see how well we can optimize the plate for the actual production run.

These are being sent along to the etcher, and when I actually get them back in hand, I'll let you know how the different layouts worked out and provide you all with the final production layout as well.

Also worth noting that in the production run the picks will be on a completely separate plate from the handles, as the pick material needs to be a high quality spring steel, but the handles can be a less expensive steel, so we'll do them on separate plates so as not to waste any of the higher quality metal, but for the purposes of the test etching it's just important to see all the components and figure out the spacing, etc.

you can download them from here: http://openlocksport.com/CAD_and_Etching.zip

I'm releasing these under the Creative Commons:

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, California, 94041, USA.

Hey, folks. Today's update will be a rundown of the ways I've spent large chunks of the Kickstarter money. Toward the end of this fairly long post I also comment on the fact that I wish I hadn't spent money on the ancillary parts of the project (locks, cases, etc.) until the picks were completely made and in hand. That's been one of my biggest takeaways from the project.

I'll have another update coming with CAD files and examples of the current plate configurations for chemical etching, etc. but today's is long enough as is.

So, once the pick designs were solidified and I was headed toward prototyping, I felt comfortable spending money on all the other things I was going to need for the business. The first major purchases I made were locks. In total I bought 6000 locks door locks, primarily because the first batch of 3000 had a major flaw that I knew I would have to meticulously correct. Specifically, the #1 and #2 keypins, with their driver pins, managed to stack completely in the plug of the lock. What this means is that when you are picking the lock, if you manage to set some of the pins, but not actually lift a #1 or 2 keypin, the plug will rotate, trapping the spring between the plug and housing of the lock. This typically destroys the lock, as even if you can extricate the spring and remove the plug, the steel spring will have already cut into the softer metal of the housing, causing lasting damage. Unfortunately this batch of locks was sourced from multiple vendors by a third party as a favor to me, so there was no reasonable means of returning them. The problem is solvable, it's just that it would take a lot of time and effort to solve.

Moving forward, though, things aren't as dire as they have felt. A good friend and professor at a college I did a lockpicking course at has been helping me get things back together. I've just sent metal and cutting plans to a chemical etcher. When I get the test batch back I should be in business. Turnaround time should be about 2 weeks, hopefully less. The plan as it stands is to simply produce as many picks as I can at a time and start distributing those small batches. A lot of people, my Father included, have asked if I'm going to get a job. The short answer is "yes, probably" the long answer is that I've set a deadline. If I'm still struggling and not making forward financial progress by September, which marks the end of my lease and some other more personal milestones, I'm going to get a job, and continuing putting whatever spare money I have into producing picks.

Additionally, in the intervening time I've fixed the first batch of locks, which means that I have a number of excess locks and I plan to sell those at some upcoming events and put the proceeds directly into pick production.

There are still plenty of uncertainties. And I hate that. But, the picks will get made.

Hey, everyone,

First, let me say: "I'm neither dead, nor a thief."

With that out of the way. The last 6 weeks have been a balancing act of gut-wrenching and optimistic moments. I'm not talking about this project, either. I mean in the rest of my life. The fact is, being an individual, I don't have a second in command that can pick up the communicative slack for me when I'm sidelined. I don't know that every one of you would agree that the reasons I've been away are justified, but I also have 0 interest in laying out the details of the last 6 weeks of my and my families lives. Suffice it to say that I am back on solid ground.

Over the last few weeks I've received updates from some of my favorite projects, and it hit me, that at least 4 of them that I am very excited for are entering their second year without fulfillment. 3 of them were super-funded, as well. I'm not saying that other projects taking longer than expected justifies my taking longer than planned, and I can't imagine a day when I won't feel apologetic for the way this has gone. I expect that when I'm 40 I'll still occasionally think "man, remember when I very publicly took on a project that I screwed up badly? Yeesh." However, the big difference between those projects, which I continue to love and look forward to, and my own, is that even when they don't have a solid idea of when their projects will be done, the people making them update with good, optimistic news about other work that they are doing. Adjacent projects that further their expertise, enthusiasm, community, etc. Whereas I think I have generally been on the spiraling retreat.

So, while I don't know when the picks will be done, I have some good news on that front and on some others. Here we go:

1: My Grampa has a punch press. When I was home tending to some family stuff I got to spend time with my grampa, which was a treat. He has a big quonset hut full of engines, lathes, scales, and other machinery and spends a lot of time restoring old cars. He's been a lot of things in his life. As we were walking through I asked offhand if he had a punch press. I think the reply was "of course." Turns out his neighbor is a die maker, too. I'll be home for Christmas in a week and will be staying for a week or so after to try to get the machine up and running and punch out a few test pieces. If everything works OK we'll start making the dies of the actual picks. I'll probably work in simple to advanced order, that way if there is any delay in manufacture of dies, I can at least start punching 5 or 10 piece sets while we wait for the rest to get made.

I'll update on progress with that in the days after Christmas. I think that having this project come to it's conclusion with my mom making the cases & my grampa punching the picks would be a fairly remarkable story. I'm hopeful.

2: I'm writing a book. I was signed to a contract with O'Reilly. The book will be an Almanac of locks and lockpicking. It will cover history, engineering, various locks, from their simplest to most complex forms, lockpicking, of course, and a lot of bits and pieces in between.

3: I'm working on a new video series tentatively called "the breakdown." The idea is simple. I'll take interesting locks, pull them apart, explain how they work, get some good macro photo/video on the various components and, if I have it, provide info on the company, inventors, etc.

4: For several reasons, from providing better training material, to making illustrations for my book, to complementing the new videos, I've been teaching myself 3D modeling & animation. I'm far from great, but I'm getting the hang of it. Here's an early test showing the internals of an Abus 88/50:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aShNJXZYLQM

I have more good on the horizon as well. Several small projects and trainings and so on.

Oh, and as it is said by some people everytime I update with a non-lockpick piece of news, let me say this as well: My working on other locksport-related things doesn't steal time from making lockpicks. If making the picks was merely an issue of time dedicated to the task, they would have been done a long time ago. I've screwed this project up. I didn't know what I was getting into or what I was doing once I got here, but I will make these picks.

Hey, everyone,

I'm up in Vermont with my family taking care of family things. I'm going to be here for another few days and while I know some of you are restless, there are a couple things in life that have to supersede the picks. This is one of them.

Sorry. Family comes first.

-Schuyler

Hey, folks,

Current news is that going to produce a small batch of picks via photochemical etching. I  don't have a solid date for when I'll have that batch in hand, but it should be distributable. This isn't just another prototype test, as I believe the metal problems are solved and the designs have been picked over a hundred times, so hopefully this is the light at the end of the tunnel.

I'm talking timeline now, and working with a trusted friend who has experience in this method. I'm not trying to get anyone's hopes up at this late stage. You are all just as aware as I am that none of this has gone well, so I'm not going to say "this is it, guys!" but I remain committed to getting these picks made. I will never cease work on this project.

-Schuyler

Hey everyone!

So, first piece of good news is that I finally have the CAD files in hand. I will be disseminating them to the various people I've been discussing manufacturing with so we can start to move forward with quotes and plans and so on and so forth. At the moment I have several good leads. I'm hoping one of them turns into the right solution for making the picks.

Second piece of good news is that I've just put up a 24-part lockpicking course on youtube. Hope you enjoy it!

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL66CD42F86F3A1F85&feature=plcp

More news as I have it.

-Schuyler

Hey, everyone.

So, the big news, is there isn't much big news. We're 6 weeks out from me requesting the CAD files from Erik, and yet I still have nothing. I just became aware that he is going to Shanghai...when I brought this up to him he insisted he hadn't forgotten and would get the files to me before he left. So that's where that's at.

I've been having a lot of interesting, productive conversations. On one hand I'm talking with some hackerspaces and indie fabrication shops about possibly trading my time, energy and expertise to get time with some serious lasers. On another there's an individual who might be able to to produce all of them in one go and work with me to make that happen. And another with different, but equally satisfactory interests, and 2 more people who have reached out in recent weeks that I need to begin conversations with.

I even had a good email exchange with my contact at Kickstarter. Basically I gave her the lowdown on everything I've done wrong, everyone that has gone wrong despite my best efforts and intentions and everything I'm trying to do to fix it. In return I got encouragement and a reminder of why I love Kickstarter as much as I do.

Anyway, these other conversations - It's nice to have options, I'm just waiting for some traction. In the meanwhile, the much requested video for the DIY Non-Destructive Entry talk is up on Youtube:

Defcon 19: DIY Non-Destructive Entry

It went well! Much better than I expected to be honest. For the first time in my speaking life I overfilled a room. People were apparently being turned away at the door. I went for another half hour in the Q&A area talking about a large range of things.

I'm hoping that the BSides talks managed to get recorded and will be put up somewhere, as I was very proud of that talk and want to share it with folks as I think it's some of the best work I've ever done, but still waiting to see.

Hope this finds all of you well. More news as I get it. As soon as one of these conversations comes to fruition, or the CAD files come in, I'll update immediately. And either way, I'll update again next week with what's happened in the meanwhile.

This is a long update this week as I've gone 2 weeks with sup-par updates. Lot of good information, but I won't blame anyone for skimming or skipping. Here are the main topics:

• The person tasked with getting the picks cut has been on an extended trip which seems to have back burnered my project.
• THAT IS NOT STOPPING ME!
• Nothing will EVER stop me :)
• My talk at BSides Las Vegas was the best of my speaking career.
• My talk at Defcon overfilled the room (a first for me)
• Boing Boing & Gizmodo picked up a video I made for some nice Aussies!
• You should check out the Lockpicking subreddit!

Production Woes:

I'll say this: I've long suspected that I'm at the bottom of the list of concerns for the person I've tied myself to for the production of these picks. Since August 1st it's become bad. I've been left hanging on communication, I've had quotes come back doubled in price from the previous quote, and now I've been trying to get the production CAD files I paid to have produced. I am assured that I will receive them (he's been traveling for several weeks) but it's frustrating.

I was having a conversation with a good friend about how frustrating it is to not be involved in the process and to have to trust people who don't seem to be paying a lot of attention to me. She suggested that perhaps these people don't really care about what I'm trying to do. I said "Well, yeah...but why would they?" and she suggested that there might be a better way...

Now, I'm not ready to say publicly what I'm doing. And I know that sucks. I debated holding off on a big update until I could explain in depth, but the last 2 updates were so tiny, I figured I should at least tell you everything I can publicly right now. Those of you who were able to chat with me at Defcon probably heard the plan, but I just need to get my ducks in a row and make sure it's doable before I announce it publicly. However, here is what it will mean for production:

• I will be directly involved in the production of the picks again! Like hands on, in person, directly making things happen, involved.
• People who care about me & care about locksport will be directly involved in getting the picks made.
  
• Picks will actually get cut. For the love of...

Let me say this...the date of successful funding of the project is quite proudly displayed when you visit this project. I am distinctly aware of it. It looms very large.

By the end of this I'll be able to write a book on everything I did wrong. But, the picks will be made! Of this I remain certain. I was about to make a White Whale reference, but then I realized I've never actually read Moby Dick, so I went and read a plot synopsis. I won't spoil it for you, but suffice it to say I'm going to forgo the metaphor!

OK, it's late (3:30am!) and I'd like to slip some unquestionably good news in here!

Good News!

My talk at BSides Las Vegas was easily the best I've ever given. I promise I'm not just sleeping away the spare time I have had. I've been pouring every minute I get into more research, more training materials, more everything. At BSides I spoke about how physical security came to be a subject of public exploration in the mid-1800s and how, by 1900, it had become taboo again, perhaps even vilified.

I went through ~140 slides in ~35 minutes. It was rapid fire and got a great response from the audience. I am told that the talks were recorded, so as soon as they are available online I will let you know!

At Defcon I overfilled the room! First time that has ever happened to me. My talk on opening various locks with found objects was very well recieved. In particular there was about a 30 minute Q&A after the talk with a handful of people where I was able to discuss the backgrounds of various locksport organizations, my personal take on ethics and the quagmire of public education.

The Defcon talk was absolutely recorded, and, as with BSides, as soon as I have a link I'll post it here.

Final bit of nice news is that I've been working on a project for some folks in Australia from Learnable.com. On Thursday, Boing Boing & Gizmodo both featured a cut together video from the class I put together. Here's a direct link to the Youtube video (with a nice explanation of masterkeying!)

Oh! And I've been contributing to and enjoying the Lockpicking Sub-Reddit lately. Definitely worth checking out, especially if you are already a Redditor.

Hope you all are doing well!

[The following update tried to send yesterday, but the borrowed internet I was on apparently flaked out. Thankfully Kickstarter saved it! Thanks to daMongolian for pointing out it hadn't hit inboxes!]

Howdy,

Just a quick note to say - I'm up in Vermont doing some work with my Mom & seeing my family (it's the Towne family reunion tomorrow!) and it turns out my Dad changed the wireless password at the family homestead! So, I managed to find an unprotected network that is being super flaky so I'm going to keep this short.

I'll get the password from him in the morning and give a proper update on Sunday night when I'm back in Boston as I'll be family-ing it up tomorrow!

Update will include recaps of BSides & Defcon, as a lot of folks were asking about my talks, so I will release my slides & talk details here.

Have a good weekend everyone!

-Schuyler

Hey everyone,

Very quick update tonight. Just wanted to say hello from Las Vegas. Security BSides and Defcon are all over for this year and I'll be flying home tomorrow. Sorry this update is later than my Friday schedule, but I had a talk to give on Saturday and a lot else going on out here.

Both my BSides talk and my Defcon talk went very well. I am told they taped the BSides talk, so as soon as that is available I will link it, and the Defcon talks are usually uploaded online about 3 months after the conference is over.

Big news this week, but I have to confirm a couple things. Hopefully I'll get a little sleep in too! Hope you all have been doing well,

-Schuyler

Hey folks!

Sorry it's 5am as this is going out. This is my 2nd all nighter in a row (working on lock stuff, as always!) and this is the last stop before I grab a few hours of sleep.

Production:

I've been told to get a deposit ready! That said? I still need to test the test batch, but it appears that price negotiations are finally settling out. Initially I thought there was some real epic stuff going on, then I came to realize that I'm probably just a fairly low priority in the lives of the people dealing with this. Revelatory moment for me. Not that I'm not being treated well, just that I think the speed of communication could be much better.

Oh, and a quick note. I've had several people tell me that I could potentially bring legal action against the first shop if they broke a contract. Let me be very clear - they didn't. Never did we get to the point of having anything on paper, just verbal assurances from my intermediary. I never even had the opportunity to speak to the shop directly, all of which was yet another mark of my own naivete in all of this. Things are proceeding more formally with the current shop. Thank you all for your concern in that matter, though!

Las Vegas

On Tuesday I'm headed to Las Vegas for BSides Las Vegas and Defcon. At Security BSides I'll be presenting a talk titled "Vulnerability Research Circa 1850" that will cover much of the public exploration of physical security that was going on around the events of the Great Exhibition of 1851 and the resulting "Lock Controversy." I'm using those events to explore how we handle vulnerability research historically, and how we are doing it today.

At Defcon I'll be presenting a talk titled "DIY NDE" or "Do It Yourself, Non-Destructive Entry" which will focus on opening various locks with found objects like popsicle sticks and palm sanders.

My speaking engagements won't have any effect on production timelines. As I think I've made clear it's pretty much just a waiting game for me now, though I have stoked the fires of communication and am keeping myself available to my production guy to answer questions, provide financial info, etc.

Also - don't worry. My travel schedule won't prevent me from providing an update next week. It will be live from Defcon. Hope to see some of you there!

Hey folks, so I had a request to write up a guide to choosing a lock, so I'll do that in this update, but first, a production update.

Production Update:

So, I mentioned last week that we changed out the pick handle metal for a less expensive steel, while maintaining the high quality steel for the pick blades. When I saw the initial quote & got terms and such for the contract, I realized that my intermediary to the shop had quoted for too many pieces, I needed to reduce the total ordered by 500 pieces. My intermediary assured me that the price would not change as a result of that. Today (about 4 hours ago) I got a message saying that they are considering the reduced # of pieces as offsetting the change of handle metal. Which puts me about 25 cents per pick above where I need to be. This back and forth period is mind numbing to me, but my intermediary is pretty sure he can get them down to where I expected we would end up. I should have final numbers on Monday, or at least a directive from them. If I have to produce a higher number to get the correct pricing, I can do that & potentially sell the excess at conferences, etc. I just have to make sure I'm producing a number that I can actually afford to produce.

But, in good news, these negotiations are all about the full production run and we're very close to everyone being on terms they are happy with. In the meanwhile, they are able to keep moving on my smaller test batch that we are using to both test the final designs & test the heat treating process the picks will go through. So, despite these pricing discussions the test batch is able to keep moving, which is definitely a bright spot.

I know I've rarely talked quite so specifically about this process before, and I'm sorry about that. The big update a couple weeks ago definitely opened my eyes to letting you all know exactly what's up with the production of the tools, good/bad/ugly whatever.

How to select a lock!

So, the big consideration here is your unique security profile. I'm going to talk through my personal thought process about a few different options.

Suburban House

A typical suburban house with glass windows, maybe even glass panes in the doors and plenty of open space around it for someone to be creepin? I go for price, convenience and reliability.

For Americans, in this case I would recommend something like the Kwikset Smartkey. It's the least expensive brand name lock you can buy at Home Depot, but it is both bump proof and instantly rekeyable. However, if you aren't careful and specific when you rekey the lock, you can potentially break it. However, they are cheap enough that you can just buy a spare.

I would actually recommend specifically against the competing Schlage Securekey because the lack of serrations on their sidebar wafers makes them susceptible to bumping: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qwlMYUy5oE&feature=channel_video_title which is a pretty bad corner to cut with very negative consequences.

These locks are cheap, clever and offer a higher level of security than the typical suburban residential market has seen before. That said? Problems can arise in the rekey process that make these locks potentially unreliable.

Apartment in a city

Masterkeying always makes me uncomfortable. For a number of reasons. But basically - if you can get yourself off of your buildings masterkey system (with permission from your landlord) go for it! Also, the nice thing about cities is you can take your security a little more seriously. Especially if you have bars on your first floor windows (mandatory in many places) or are on a higher story. Suddenly your door becomes the primary means of access and can be taken much more seriously.

In this case I would go with a higher security solution. I'd base this on what is available locally from a locksmith you trust. Go into their shops (make sure they have a brick and mortar shop!) and see what they are like. Even if you are comfortable and confident installing a high security lock yourself, you don't want to be tied to a public keyway. What this means is that most locksmiths with have a proprietary keyway or two for the brand of high security lock they sell. This makes it very difficult for random people to gain access to a key that they could use to attack your lock. So, working with a locksmith for a high security lock is definitely a plus.

In general, in the US, you can find Medeco & Mul-T-Lock dealers. Both are very solid options for an individual apartment door. Also worth looking into are Abloy locks, if you have a local distributor. Abloy would be my top choice if its available as they make some of the best, highest security locks in the world.

Generally, try to get off the master system of your apartment, and look toward moving to a high security lock. Get a locksmith you like and/or trust so that you can use a restricted keyway and make sure they do emergency service just in case something goes horrible wrong with your lock or key in the middle of the night in some blizzard or something.

Corporate Security

Get a comprehensive masterkey system with a high security lock manufacturer. Go big, get Abloy, or maybe the Abus Integral system, which can be masterkeyed on the sidebar which means it isn't susceptible to regional sidebar attacks: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krGqFbrIAL8

Even if you don't have a particularly local locksmith that can service the highest security options, it could be well worth your while to go with those manufacturers anyway, purchase additional hardware and have a member of your staff competent to work with those locks.

Get a keyway from the manufacturer for your specific facility. You can get your own proprietary keyway that will only ever be used for your company.

Those are the three sectors I think about and some of how I think about them. What is most important, though, is that you take a realistic view of the security of your home/apartment/facility. Where does the lock fit in? What is your door made out of? Is there a pane of glass right next to it? What is your security budget? And so on. A good friend of mine decided to put Abloy Protecs (Amazing locks!) on all of the doors on his house, despite there being plenty of other vulnerabilities. He did it not because he is paranoid about security, but because he likes cool, ridiculous locks. That's a perfectly valid reason, too. :)

The Kroekel Boys

So, since I have free time while the picks are being manufactured, I've been spending more time with my other research. I'm going to share those projects with you. First up, the story of Charles & Oscar Kroekel. I had the honor of attending Foo Camp last month and gave an Ignite talk. Ignite talks are very quick. You get 20 slides which auto-advance every 15 seconds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsMp3ccwrBg&list=UUO6s8zuwYNRU

If you want to read more about the Kroekel's you can check out my project page.

Production Update

So, the big news on the production front is that we've found a handle metal to go with. Because I'm spot welding the picks together, we can't use something like aluminum, so I'm going with a less expensive steel for the handle pieces and still rocking 1095 Spring Steel for the pick blades. The two of them should weld together without any problems and so long as they are firmly bonded there should be absolutely no loss of feedback when picking.

What's in the kit?

I've had a lot of people asking what exactly the bought, so tonight, I'm going to let you know exactly what each backer level receives.

$5 - Gets you the plans for producing your own picks. (And though these have already been sent out, the higher quality, updated CAD based files will go out once the picks do)

$20 - A practice kit containing 3 progressively pinned locks. Progressive pinning means that one lock will have 2 pins, the next will have 3, then the third lock will have 5 pins. This way you can pick the 2 pin lock just to get the basic idea of how to pick. 3 pins will be a slight challenge after 2, then 5 pins is a fully pinned lock - once you've picked that, the world is your oyster. Also included is a plug follower and extra pins and springs. This is so that you can rekey your locks to give yourself a new challenge. I even tossed some security pins in there so you can really up the ante.

Now! Really important and what most people seem to not realize! Everyone above this level ALSO gets a training kit.

$35 - You get 5 picks of your choice + the training kit. Your picks will be in a canvas roll up case made by my Mother or one of her friends. You also get 2 tension wrenches to go with your picks. One will be a top tension wrench and the other will be a wider bottom of keyway wrench.

$50 - You get 10 picks of your choice + the training kit + the case. You also get 3 tension wrenches. The two mentioned above + a thinner bottom of keyway wrench.

$75 - You get the full collection of 20 picks + the training kit + the case + the 3 tension wrenches.

$100 - You get the full collection of 20 picks + the training kit + the case + 3 tension wrenches. You also get an Open Locksport t-shirt and some extra swag, like temporary tattoos and stickers.

$250 - You get the full collection of 20 picks + the training kit + a custom case, designed to your specifications by my Mother. Also, you'll receive a custom hand-bound book that contains everything I've ever written related to locksport. There will be some digital materials as well.

$500 on up - have been well detailed elsewhere.

Hope that clears some things up!

So, I went back and forth on this for quite a while and finally decided that since neither practice kit shipping, nor backer upgrades are actually "pick sales" (you've already bought in to the picks, these are just modifications) I should have no problems using Paypal, which I think will make everyone's life a bit easier.

To everyone who backed at the $20 level - this shipping payment does not apply to you! Your locks are already going out. I want to avoid any confusion. This is just for folks who bought picks, but would like to receive their practice locks while they are waiting for the picks to be finished.

Also - to anyone upgrading, please read your choices carefully and pick the appropriate one for your backer level, and the level you would like to move up to. For now I have set the upper limit to $75. If you wanted to go beyond, you can contact me directly at the email address listed on the upgrade page of the website.

OK! Hopefully this will go simply, but please don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions!

Proceed here to pay for either an upgrade or shipping of practice kits - or both if you prefer:

http://openlocksport.com/special.html

Before I dive in here, let me just say that I woke up this morning a little apprehensive, only to find many messages of support. There were a lot of really wonderful comments. In particular I got a message on twitter that said "Some of us feel that we are waiting with you - not for you."

I'm glad that you are with me. And I'm excited to share good news, which is what this update is all about!

Practice Kits are Ready to Ship!

So - first big news is that all of the $20 backers will be receiving their locks. I had a request yesterday for higher-level backers who want their practice kits in advance of their picks with the caveat that the backer pays for shipping. That's absolutely fine! I have the locks pinned so I'll just have to put them in boxes. I will have a way for you to pay for that shipping and alert me to your interest on Friday. I had a temporary solution tonight, but I'm concerned that my solution wasn't organized enough and was afraid of getting orders confused, so I'm giving myself an extra day to get that sorted.

So - to those who backed at the $20 level - keep an eye out for your locks, they will be going out shortly. And to those who would like their locks shipped in advance of their picks - you will have that opportunity on Friday. Also - I will finally have an organized solution to offering the Upgrades that people have asked for on Friday as well.

The Pick Cases Look Awesome!

She's still making more, but I visited my Mom last weekend to take delivery of ~1000 pick cases. I also burned her some screens and got her screen printing frame set up. Picture below! She has also been working hard on some of the custom cases. I am pretty impressed with them thus far. There is 1 step left for the cases, my Father is adding grommets & cords to all of them presently.

All Locks Acquired for Lock Libraries!

I had been keeping my eyes (and automated searches) peeled for a few items I've been hoping to include in the lock libraries. Over the last couple weeks I've been able to secure every last lock I was looking for. Once the practice kits are out the door I'll pack up the lock libraries and have them ready to go out as well.

Even more screen printing!

I wasn't able to afford custom packaging for Open Locksport when I started out, (turns out it adds quite a bit per box) but as I now have time available and some spare screens, I've decided to screen print every box. My friend Mac from diybio.org gave me the inspiration. I'm working on the final design presently, but I believe it will be 2 color. It's been nice digging out all the old screen printing supplies for both the cases and this project and I think it adds a really nice layer of aesthetic value to the whole enterprise.

OK! Have a few digital errands to run tonight before sleep so I'm going to call it for now. I've had folks asking for more training materials and such as well, so I'll focus on getting some more of those done this weekend.

Hope all of you are doing well!