NLIAS: Not Legal In All States Tools

  Homemade Locksmith Tools

Anything that can be accessed by an authorized person can be accessed by an unauthorized person. The key to defense is making that access as painstaking for the unauthorized person as possible. To demonstrate various fallibilities in access control systems, I have made the following devices.

Under The Door Tools

Custom engineered three-piece kit with carrying case can compromise most doors by creeping under the door and opening it from the inside.

The Ramsey Jr.: Under The Door Lever-Tool

Named after an ex-FBI burglary investigator (I just really loved his name), this is a custom tool I made to open doors which have handles (as opposed to knobs). The device, which is only about 4-5mm thick, is slid between the bottom of the door and the floor. It is then lifted such that the wire can hook onto the latch. Once this occurs, the device is moved to the opposite side from the handle, and the wire is pulled down. This will instantly and easily open the latch.

(Coming soon) Watch this video to see the Ramsey Jr. open a high-security door protected by a Primus lock

(Coming soon) Watch this video for a description on how the device works

The design is very simple, and thus very elegant. It took about five minutes to build, and has saved me hours of picking locks.

The sheer number of doors this can compromise still amazes me. Most public buildings (businesses, schools, etc.) exclusively use latch handles these days because they are easier for people to use. In addition, indoor doors are generally not made to fit snug with the ground. In most cases, there is enough room to slip such a device under. If not, a crow-bar, screwdriver, or airbag device can gently raise the door just enough to fit this under.

In order to combat such a device being used, various measures can be taken. These include, but are certainly not limited to: install knobs instead of handles, install secondary locks such as deadbolts, use high-security door frames and flush mounted, or better yet, recessed doors to prevent devices from being slipped under, and install handles that will not open from the inside if locked with a key (although this may violate certain building/fire codes, depending on the situation).

Jaclyn II: Under The Door Pushbar-Tool

After some toying with the Ramsey Jr., I started to look at door handles with a new sense of wonder. While my design ideas for doorknobs are still too complicated to be practical, I came up with a design to open push-bar type doors.

And thus Jaclyn the second was born (after Jaclyn I, of course, which did not work as well as I had hoped).

Since the push-bar needs force exerted towards the operator instead of downwards, this device differs in where the force is directed.

(Coming soon) Click here to see a video of Jaclyn II in action

Jaclyn III is a smaller tool used to wedge between a double door setup and activate a push-bar.

(Coming soon) Click here to see a video of Jacyln III in action

Covert Entry Kit

This kit I have assembled/made includes the custom latch bypass kit (described below), lock shims, various lock picks, torque wrenches, a knife, a PVC door carder (with grip), various slim jims, various bolt manipulation tools, a butane torch, a Swiss file set, digital caliper and key blanks (not shown), and an under-the-door mirror. This kit does not include any alarm system bypass tools. Those are contained in a separate kit.

Custom Latch Bypass Kit

This is a custom-machined kit I designed and fabricated that has three tactical-black aluminum handles and a variety of interchangeable accessories. It is designed to manipulate the latch used to prevent the door from opening. Some accessories to the homemade kit include:

All of the tools pictured above fit into slits on the black handles. This allows for comfortable bolt manipulation activities. The wide tube second to the right is the holding container for the smaller attachments.

A slide made of metal package strapping that can go around latch guards.

An extra long Slim-Jim to bypass long latch guards

A wallet-sized mini slide... something nobody should ever leave the house without.

"The Hook" - perfect for more exposed latches. I have used this with astonishing success on many building and apartment entrance doors. Shown below the hook, with the aluminum handle is a bolt manipulator targeted towards doors that have a guard (it slips around the guard).

A latch turner for doors where the lock core has been removed. This will act like the rear of the lock and pull the bolt mechanism back into its housing.

Homemade Lock Picks

(picture coming soon)

While I did not make these, a friend did and I was impressed by their quality that I wanted to show them here. I generally keep a Southord jackknife pick set on my keychain, and one of their 18-piece sets in my desk. These homemade picks were made with steel street cleaner bristles on a standard bench grinder by Alex Papageorge.

The WonderBoy: Remote RF Fuse Igniter and Detonator

The WonderBoy is used to remotely set off various pyrotechnic devices. I've had a lot of fun with this (and its earlier prototype) in the Arizona and California desert. The device uses an integrated RF circuit with a digital data output tied to a microcontroller to trigger. After receiving the proper detonate signal, the microcontroller brings an output line to high, activating a relay, allowing current to flow through an electric rocket engine igniter (available from most hobby stores). E-matches available from many magician stores are also very good. The igniter is, in turn, in a custom casing which contains black powder. The fuse is inserted into this casing, and when the remote triggers the device, the fuse is lit. The model I constructed that is shown has about a 1500 foot range. While the igniter can be directly inserted into homemade devices, the fuse offers an added layer of protection. If for some reason a false detonation were to occur, one would have time to escape from the device.

The WonderBoy also has a self-trigger feature, which allows an operator to use it as a wired blast trigger. On top there are two ports for connecting the blast wire to the device.

For safety, the unit has various indicator lamps, an on/off switch, and a continuity tester to ensure the explosive has been properly rigged.

The device is well suited for hobbyist fireworks, pyrotechnics for film, and on the government side, not so covert entry.

Future Implementations

- Keycode cracker: Microcontroller-based handheld device that has leads to clip onto terminals from the key matrix of a keypad entrance device. After opening the keypad device, the leads from this unit will clip on and attempt to find the correct combination via a brute-force method. Once found, it will send the unlock code and display the code on an LCD screen. Since some keypads have lockout modes after a given number of failed attempts, this unit will be capable of interfacing with the unit's power source and will reset the keypad as needed. Some also have tamper switches which set off alarms when opened. While not a feasible device on all systems, such a unit will be able to penetrate a number of keypad entrance devices.

- RF Jammer: Some newer, less secure alarm systems use wireless sensors that communicate in the 20-500mhz range. By sending noise into the air on the correct frequency, many of these sensors will be rendered useless and allow for an intruder to penetrate the system.

- Thermic Lance: A thermic lance utilizes an exothermic reaction of magnesium in a rich oxygen environment to burn at over 5000 degrees Celsius. In other words, it creates a directed stream of heat hotter than the surface of the sun that can melt every known material on earth. I already have the oxygen tank and a rudimentary backpack holder for it. I need to either find or machine a nozzle and regulator which will hold up to the heat.

- Ultrasonic emitter: ultrasonic motion sensors detect movement by sensing variations in the returned signal of an ultrasonic emission. These sensors are known to trigger false alarms when subjected to loud noises. In theory, a loud ultrasonic transducer outside a complex could be loud enough to disrupt the sensor and trigger a false alarm. By triggering many false alarms, often people and monitoring companies will ignore future alarm occurrences. It is just then that a facility becomes most vulnerable.