Combination safe locks are quite popular since they do their job extremely well. In the movies, robbers simply hack into the safe and run off with the cash before the police arrive. In reality, they would have to be extremely skilled in hacking locks to ever accomplish this before the police arrive since it can take even seasoned professionals hours to do it.
The following are the different methods a locksmith can use to open a locked safe.
- Prying – It is the oldest method yet the least effective. It involves prying the door as well as the bolt work out of the safe’s doorframe work out. It is possible to accomplish with enough time, energy, and pressure but locksmiths usually never perform this since it tends to damage the safe beyond repair.
- Cutting – This involves using a torch or saw to cut into the safe. This is yet another method that locksmiths seldom use since it damages the safe, is noisy, time-consuming, and messy.
- Manipulation – This is very time-consuming but is most preferable since it leaves no trace of entry and is not messy. It involves the locksmith uncovering the combination of the safe through sound or touch. The locksmith can use a stethoscope to aid in hearing the sound to open the lock faster. Even though some seasoned professionals can manipulate the lock in minutes, it takes an hour on average to complete this task.
- Drilling – This involves drilling a small hole into the safe and passing a preside instrument to aid the locksmith in visually seeing how to open the lock. It is the second most preferable method of opening a safe after manipulation. It is not as easy as it may sound and it requires the hands of a seasoned professional to execute successfully.
- Scoping – It also involves the drilling of a small hole into the safe. However, here the locksmith inserts a borescope into the hole to get an idea of how to open the lock. Scoping is, however, effective, is inexpensive to repair, and leaves a little mess.
In conclusion, based on the information in this article, it is quite clear that opening a combination safe is not as easy as Hollywood makes it out to be. This is why you must always ensure that you are dialing the proper combination before calling in for backup.
When you call in a safe locksmith, you need to have the following details ready to ensure that all goes well:
- The model number of the safe
- The manufacturer
- Any tags mounted on the safe
- The approximate size of the combination lock