Your comments were right on about the instructions. I am just starting out and I was so confused by their poor instructions. It wasn't until I found your book and online tutorials that I made any significant progress. You should license your book to them and cash in on this safecracking trend. Also if you keep up with the videos you could be like the locking picking lawyer for safe cracking. Keep being awesome!
Has the guide that accompanies the safe any better now ? Its expensive for something that doesn't come with all the details on what to do or how it works... I feel like buying a real safe would be cheaper and closer to the real thing. But i am also a super noob, so what do i know.
Thanks for the detailed review! I enjoyed watching your Safecracking for Everyone series as well. It is pretty tempting to get the Challenge Vault and start learning this skill! Seems like a fun thing to know how to do, but it'll be unlikely to end up being useful unless it's your job. Do you do this for work, or just a hobby?
Both! I'm looking to get into physical penetration testing but I initially started this as a hobby. Doesn't matter if it's "useful" or not though, it's still a good thing to know :)
Would you actually recommend it for someone who is a complete first time beginner? Because based on what you were saying it sounded like just graphing the contacts to find the gate won't suffice with this out of the box. I was very confused with the instructions, and I understand the basics of graphing after watching your videos.
Thanks for your advise you are giving everyone, even though it's not your product, LoL. I too got this for Xmas, and like most people, the instructions Sparrows supply are not particularly clear. A classic example of someone who knows what they are doing, trying to write a guide for beginners and making too many assumptions they understand the process! Your videos have helped me, but would be great if you could (possibly in the future) do another video for idiots like me to discover the other wheels numbers. I can find the first one (3rd wheel easy) its the others that are confusing. Thanks for great vids btw.
I put my code inside the box and closed it up. I have enjoyed this video series and will make some time this weekend to try it out. Thx for the advice on the sparrows document and your Free pdf.
@Geromino Henry Got the hang of it maybe 50 hours in? Didn't have access to the internals to see what was going on when I learned, just learned on the fly using a locked safe with a lost combination.
Hey, thanks for a great review and a great series "Safecracking for everyone". I got myself the Sparrows Vault for Christmas and I have the issue you mention in your video description: When I rotate all left to anywhere between 40 and 60 (not the exact numbers), I can't feel either of the contact points. You mentioned something about being able to give me advice with what to sand down and how much :)
You can remove the lever and sand down the bottom of the fence, where the fence comes into contact with the wheels. I just used a metal file and then some sandpaper to smooth it out. Just go little by little, putting the lever back into the lock to test for contact points, then filing/sanding it down further if needed. This just helps the nose sit lower and allow it to make contact with the drive cam.
The manual is very poorly written. It makes sense up the point of finding the initial right and left contact points. After that, the explanation of what you are feeling for to graph the points is confusing. I hope Sparrows updates the manual. On page four the instructions show to reset the dial to begin graphing the first wheel and move to 2.5. Is this an incremental move from one of the left or right contact points, or an absolute move from zero?
HI. I have an S&G 6730 lock that functions. Would your recommendation be to use my existing lock to learn safecracking or to obtain a Sparrows Challenge lock to learn on before progressing to the S&G? Thanks.
I would recommend to use the one you have! The Sparrows Challenge Vault is good but not worth the cost if you already have a functioning lock that you are able to take the back cover off and look at the internal mechanisms of.
How about a 3 Wheel Reverse Graduated? And an Arm with Center Wheel First, Then first wheel, then 3rd, or Center Wheel First, then Third wheel, then First. Would bending Fence so it contacts Wheel 1 first be good to do on your own lock, to make a Safecracker work for it? Thanks Stratmando
I know this Sparrows Vault is supposed to be easy but I still don't understand from your videos and manual how to graph the second number in the combination. I graphed the the first number which should be the third wheel in this case and I show a gate signature between 42 and 44. My understanding is I am now supposed to park the third wheel at my first number, which appears to be 43 in this case, and then check the contacts once again but I am lost as to how I keep the third wheel park and graph as I did for the first number?
For the second graph, assuming you found 43 with left rotation, you put all wheels on whatever number you are starting your graph on, with right rotation. Then you spin left, pick up wheel 3, and stop on 43. Then record the contact points. Spin right to pick up wheel 3 at 43, and keep going and pick up wheels 1 & 2 and move them 2 numbers over and repeat.
@@lockmanipulator Thanks so much for your response. I really enjoy your channel! So, you were correct , I found 43 with left rotation using AWL as you showed in your video. I was going to start this graph at zero with right rotation. So, to pick up 43 I need to go left past 43 once and then park on 43, and then go back right to check my contact points which were 2 and 13, is this correct?
@@lockmanipulator Thank you once again! This is the point where I am confused. After checking the contact points with wheels 1 & 2 at 0 and wheel 3 at 43, how do I proceed from here to check every 2 numbers for my graph? Sorry for so many questions. I believe this would be much easier with a practice lock like you show in your video so I could see the lock with a cutout or the back removed, but I was trying to learn how to open the vault using your techniques rather than looking at the given combination.
I think in addition to all the off marks of the product the instructional Manuel added 10 to each default combination # (25-70-43) giving 35-80-53...now even the material and the instruction Manuel sells the point that the first number is wheel 3 BUT the number obtained is wheel 2 not wheel 3 and that’s the reason no one can get any indication of any factors showing a gate at 43 (default) but can get gateway factors at 70...someone forgot to tell the manufacturer etc to up the size of wheel 3 NOT wheel 2...but if you understand that possibility the unit is a great educational tool..
If the units produced the 1st number on wheel three as per the instruction material the number would not be wheel 2’s number of 80; rather it would be 53.
Did you get in touch with Sparrows about the tollerance issues? I'm sure if you let them know they will clamp down on their QA to make sure that this doesn't happen again. Great review
Your comments were right on about the instructions. I am just starting out and I was so confused by their poor instructions. It wasn't until I found your book and online tutorials that I made any significant progress. You should license your book to them and cash in on this safecracking trend. Also if you keep up with the videos you could be like the locking picking lawyer for safe cracking. Keep being awesome!
Thank you! I thought I was the only one that found the Sparrows manual confusing.
Thank goodness. This is the guy that should have wrote the instructions!
Has the guide that accompanies the safe any better now ? Its expensive for something that doesn't come with all the details on what to do or how it works... I feel like buying a real safe would be cheaper and closer to the real thing. But i am also a super noob, so what do i know.
Thanks for the detailed review! I enjoyed watching your Safecracking for Everyone series as well. It is pretty tempting to get the Challenge Vault and start learning this skill! Seems like a fun thing to know how to do, but it'll be unlikely to end up being useful unless it's your job. Do you do this for work, or just a hobby?
Both! I'm looking to get into physical penetration testing but I initially started this as a hobby. Doesn't matter if it's "useful" or not though, it's still a good thing to know :)
I had the issue with the last fence but I reinstalled it multiple times and eventually I could read the contact points. What's your fix?
Would you actually recommend it for someone who is a complete first time beginner? Because based on what you were saying it sounded like just graphing the contacts to find the gate won't suffice with this out of the box. I was very confused with the instructions, and I understand the basics of graphing after watching your videos.
Thanks for your advise you are giving everyone, even though it's not your product, LoL. I too got this for Xmas, and like most people, the instructions Sparrows supply are not particularly clear. A classic example of someone who knows what they are doing, trying to write a guide for beginners and making too many assumptions they understand the process! Your videos have helped me, but would be great if you could (possibly in the future) do another video for idiots like me to discover the other wheels numbers. I can find the first one (3rd wheel easy) its the others that are confusing. Thanks for great vids btw.
I put my code inside the box and closed it up. I have enjoyed this video series and will make some time this weekend to try it out. Thx for the advice on the sparrows document and your Free pdf.
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoy it!
@Geromino Henry Got the hang of it maybe 50 hours in? Didn't have access to the internals to see what was going on when I learned, just learned on the fly using a locked safe with a lost combination.
Hey, thanks for a great review and a great series "Safecracking for everyone".
I got myself the Sparrows Vault for Christmas and I have the issue you mention in your video description: When I rotate all left to anywhere between 40 and 60 (not the exact numbers), I can't feel either of the contact points. You mentioned something about being able to give me advice with what to sand down and how much :)
You can remove the lever and sand down the bottom of the fence, where the fence comes into contact with the wheels. I just used a metal file and then some sandpaper to smooth it out. Just go little by little, putting the lever back into the lock to test for contact points, then filing/sanding it down further if needed. This just helps the nose sit lower and allow it to make contact with the drive cam.
@@lockmanipulator Yeah, that makes sense. I'll try it out. Thanks for the advice! :)
@@lockmanipulator Thank you for pointing out this issue. Been trying this for 30 minutes on the hard lever and losing my mind!
Is there a way to pay you directly for the free pdf version?
My paypal is jareddygert@protonmail.com if you want to donate!
The manual is very poorly written. It makes sense up the point of finding the initial right and left contact points. After that, the explanation of what you are feeling for to graph the points is confusing. I hope Sparrows updates the manual. On page four the instructions show to reset the dial to begin graphing the first wheel and move to 2.5. Is this an incremental move from one of the left or right contact points, or an absolute move from zero?
My graph always shows the same numbers, I'm quite confident about the right number between contact points. This thing drives me crazy
HI. I have an S&G 6730 lock that functions. Would your recommendation be to use my existing lock to learn safecracking or to obtain a Sparrows Challenge lock to learn on before progressing to the S&G? Thanks.
I would recommend to use the one you have! The Sparrows Challenge Vault is good but not worth the cost if you already have a functioning lock that you are able to take the back cover off and look at the internal mechanisms of.
How about a 3 Wheel Reverse Graduated? And an Arm with Center Wheel First, Then first wheel, then 3rd, or Center Wheel First, then Third wheel, then First. Would bending Fence so it contacts Wheel 1 first be good to do on your own lock, to make a Safecracker work for it? Thanks
Stratmando
Yes, this comes with a fence that does that.
I know this Sparrows Vault is supposed to be easy but I still don't understand from your videos and manual how to graph the second number in the combination. I graphed the the first number which should be the third wheel in this case and I show a gate signature between 42 and 44. My understanding is I am now supposed to park the third wheel at my first number, which appears to be 43 in this case, and then check the contacts once again but I am lost as to how I keep the third wheel park and graph as I did for the first number?
For the second graph, assuming you found 43 with left rotation, you put all wheels on whatever number you are starting your graph on, with right rotation. Then you spin left, pick up wheel 3, and stop on 43. Then record the contact points. Spin right to pick up wheel 3 at 43, and keep going and pick up wheels 1 & 2 and move them 2 numbers over and repeat.
@@lockmanipulator Thanks so much for your response. I really enjoy your channel! So, you were correct , I found 43 with left rotation using AWL as you showed in your video. I was going to start this graph at zero with right rotation. So, to pick up 43 I need to go left past 43 once and then park on 43, and then go back right to check my contact points which were 2 and 13, is this correct?
@@bretth5070 correct!
@@lockmanipulator Thank you once again! This is the point where I am confused. After checking the contact points with wheels 1 & 2 at 0 and wheel 3 at 43, how do I proceed from here to check every 2 numbers for my graph? Sorry for so many questions. I believe this would be much easier with a practice lock like you show in your video so I could see the lock with a cutout or the back removed, but I was trying to learn how to open the vault using your techniques rather than looking at the given combination.
@@bretth5070 Dial R0 R0 L43, then R98 R98 L43, then R96 R96, L43, etc taking contact point readings each time :)
I think in addition to all the off marks of the product the instructional Manuel added 10 to each default combination # (25-70-43) giving 35-80-53...now even the material and the instruction Manuel sells the point that the first number is wheel 3 BUT the number obtained is wheel 2 not wheel 3 and that’s the reason no one can get any indication of any factors showing a gate at 43 (default) but can get gateway factors at 70...someone forgot to tell the manufacturer etc to up the size of wheel 3 NOT wheel 2...but if you understand that possibility the unit is a great educational tool..
Does this video stop half way through for anyone else?
If the units produced the 1st number on wheel three as per the instruction material the number would not be wheel 2’s number of 80; rather it would be 53.
Where can you find a S&G 6730 for $35 - $50?
Ebay has some pop up from time to time. Or you can visit a safe technician and ask if he has any old ones he's willing to sell.
@@lockmanipulator will do! Can't find any for less than $80.... thanks.
This seems to crash at about 15 mins in.
Did you get in touch with Sparrows about the tollerance issues? I'm sure if you let them know they will clamp down on their QA to make sure that this doesn't happen again. Great review