This has nothing to do with railways but I just wanted to record an amazing event as far as I was concerned.
A different bag was found in the storage cupboard with a lock attached to it and no key to open it – although the bag was not locked up I wanted to see if I could remove it. We all see umpteen stories on television and film where a lock is rapidly unpicked – sometimes with a sonic screwdriver and sometimes with a hairpin.
A visit to YouTube and Billshowto implied it was all dead simple. A couple of paperclips and it is soon open. So I bend one paperclip double to act as a handle to turn the lock and straighten the other clip which is used to push up the levers which the key would normally push upwards to free the barrel to turn.
It is not easy as the first dozen attempts achieve nothing. In reality you probably need three hands – one to hold the lock still, one to ensure the straight paperclip pushes the levers and the third to twist the barrel once the levers no longer restrain it.
After a lot of fiddling suddenly I realise the lock is undone and I can remove it from the bag. So at my grand old age I have picked a lock and it did hurt the hands a little but it is something I have never even tried to do before. Amazing. It also reminds me why I always use combination locks.