Are you a lock-picking expert?

In lock picking, tools take the place of a key. When you put a key into a lock, it lifts a set of pins to just the right height so you can turn the key and open the door.

The process of picking a pin-and-tumbler lock is deceptively simple. Just lift each pin while keeping pressure on the lock with the tension wrench. With just the right touch, you'll lift each pin out of the way. Do it wrong, and springs will push the pins right back to where they started.

During lock picking, the tension wrench shifts the cylinder, which creates a very small ledge. Each pin rests on the ledge until they're all out of the way and the lock opens.

Inside a pin-and-tumbler lock are small pins of different lengths. In the wrong positions, they physically prevent the cylinder from turning. When lifted to the shear line, they let the cylinder turn easily.

Raking isn't as precise or as accurate as picking a lock. Its objective is to make pins bounce out of the way long enough to turn the cylinder.

Wafer-tumbler locks use the same basic principle as pin-and-tumbler locks, but they use wafer-shaped tumblers instead of pins.

In addition to having pins all the way around the outside of the lock, some tubular locks have specially shaped pins. These pins make the lock more difficult to pick.

As long as the lock is designed with a universal keying system, a locksmith can easily reset its pins to open with a different key.

Using a pick gun is a lot like raking a lock. The picks in the gun vibrate, moving the pins out of the way.

You can buy the most impressive, most expensive tubular lock on the market or even use a fancy computerized lock ... but a burglar may just break a window and come on in.