The Rumble Pick

[Psychlonic]

Lost in a crash:

This is a design I created for about $1 using a broken PS2 controller, a cheapskate flashlight, and of course the pick itself which I made from lumber strapping. As the name implies, it's just another way to make a vibrating lock pick.

First, you need any game controller with rumble. Broken controllers will probably work just fine. What you need to know is that rumble is (usually) nothing more than an electric motor with a weight on it so that the motor is thrown around when it rotates, creating vibration. That said, you can simply open the controller up and you'll probably see the rumble motors on the sides. Just snip them out.
It's likely that the two weights are different. The heavier one vibrates harder but with less frequency, while the smaller one will vibrate more violently, but with less force. The heavier one in my controller was suitable, but the weights for more controllers are different. Use one that is violent enough to really shake the pick, but not enough to snap it off easily.
Technically, you could clamp a pick to the motor now and attach some batteries and start picking, but you probably want an easy to carry/use body to stuff it in.
Cheap AA flashlights work great here as the motor often fits conveniently inside the head, and you can wire the motor to the bulb housing so that you can change batteries easily and turn it on by flipping the light switch.
You could also wire a 9v battery connector to the motor, throw in a switch, and hook up a battery, taping the thing together.
Use your imagination, lots of possibilities here. No need to get expensive and fancy, just use what works.
You also need to attach the pick to the motor. Some motors will let you slide things along the body, and this is great for picks. Alternatively, some heavy epoxy will work, as will hose clamps.
Now just place the motor inside it's housing. Usually with flashlights you can just take out the plastic lens and bulb, then the motor fits perfectly inside with little tampering to get it to stay. If not, epoxy, duct tape, make it work.

This is crude in appearance to many other designs, but it's also much cheaper and simpler to work on, and will probably last longer. It's main appeal is the availability. Everyone has a cheap flashlight around, and many people have broken controllers for newer gaming consoles.

Vibrating lock picks aren't the ultimate in B&E tools but they can sometimes come in handy. Hope this presents an easily available method of getting one to those of you who want one but are either afraid to buy it online or can't get what you need for the other designs out there.

[Illusion]

Sounds like a brilliant idea!

Just out of interest, how big a flashlight do you use as housing?

[Psychlonic]

When I made mine, I used a 2 AA body that extended past the palm of the hand. It wasn't compact, and I never planned on taking it with me since I only carry regular picks and wrenches. If I were to redo it? I'd likely use one of those flashlights that have a 3 AAA battery cylinder in the handle so I got more power in a smaller package. The rumble motors stand up to quite a bit of juice, so I imagine you can give it even more if you wanted.

[Illusion]

When I made mine, I used a 2 AA body that extended past the palm of the hand. It wasn't compact, and I never planned on taking it with me since I only carry regular picks and wrenches. If I were to redo it? I'd likely use one of those flashlights that have a 3 AAA battery cylinder in the handle so I got more power in a smaller package. The rumble motors stand up to quite a bit of juice, so I imagine you can give it even more if you wanted.

Yeah, I have a spare 3AAA one actually, and a 2 or 3 C - which is quite a nice size and has its own pouch and everything. Definitely going to look into this!