Hollywood loves to show heroes blasting padlocks off gates like it’s nothing. One trigger pull and boom, instant access. The guys over at Yee Yee Life decided to test that myth the only way they know how: set up the backyard range, grab a pile of guns, and start shooting locks until something breaks.
The question: Could you actually blow open a lock with a gun? And if so… what would it take?
Table of contents
Round 1: Rimfire vs. Reality
They started small. A Ruger Mark V in .22 LR. At 10 yards, Parker tags the Master Lock and… nothing. A dent. A scratch. And a zombie would’ve eaten him five minutes ago. No surprise there.
Next up, a .45 ACP 1911, the OG movie hero gun. Big dent, no breach, lock still holding. The bullet mushroomed beautifully, though, so at least someone got a souvenir.
9mm Glock 19: America’s Most Common Gun
The boys switched to a fresh lock and a Glock 19. A dead-center hit in 9mm punched a bulge into the body but didn’t open anything. They even tried the shackle. Skimmed off, no dice. The lock kept laughing.
So far: zombies 3, Yee Yee Life 0.
.44 Magnum: “The Bear Killer”
Parker brings out his trusty .44 Mag, complete with a story about dropping a bear in Alaska. It hits hard, the lock bulges again… and still doesn’t open. Even the already-damaged Master Lock refuses to quit.
Finally: The Desert Eagle .50 AE Breaks a Lock
When in doubt, go big. Really big.
The Desert Eagle in .50 AE lands a clean hit and finally pops the Master Lock open. The bullet eats through the face and blows the shackle upward just enough to release.
SEE ALSO: Glock Gen 6 First Look: Evolution, Not Revolution
So yes. You can shoot open a cheap lock… if you bring a hand cannon the size of a cinder block.
Level Up: Hardened Steel Lock
Fresh lock. Much stronger. Same .50 AE.
The bullet punches in, cracks the shackle, even heats the whole lock until it’s “scalding hot”… but it still won’t open enough to remove the chain.
Technically “open.” Functionally useless.
Rifle Time: 5.56, .308, and the Big One
The hardened lock gets punished repeatedly:
- 5.56 green tip: drills nearly to the back wall. Still locked.
- .308: huge crater, still no opening.
- .50 BMG: full pass-throughs. Brutal impacts. Broken shackle. Molten-hot metal.
And yet… still locked to the chain.
Even a .50 cal couldn’t “Hollywood-open” a hardened steel padlock.
Shotgun Slug Surprise
Before the .50 BMG finale, they tossed a Master Lock onto the gate and hit it with a 12-gauge slug. The result?
Total annihilation. The lock disintegrated. The shackle blew free. The internals scattered like confetti.
If you needed to breach a cheap lock, a 12-gauge slug is doing more work than most handguns ever could.
The Verdict
Can you shoot a lock off?
Master Lock: Yes, with a Desert Eagle or a slug.
Hardened Steel Lock: Practically no, the boys destroyed it, melted it, and punched holes through it, but never got a functional breach.
The movie myth lives on screen for a reason.
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is a seasoned outdoorsman, lifelong hunter, and the kind of guy who’d rather track whitetails than scroll social media. As an editor for GunsAmerica, he’s got a sharp eye for spotting both solid gear and bad gun laws. Whether he’s deep in the woods or deep in editorial deadlines, Larry brings a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is approach to firearms, hunting, and the great American tradition of self-reliance. If there’s a hot debate on gun rights or the latest in hunting tech, you can bet Larry’s got an opinion—and it’s probably backed up with both facts and field experience.
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Not a myth. Exaggeraion, sure. Hollywood classically used cheap locks. Ancient cast iron, shatters nicely, brass or zink breaks up plenty good with a big lead 45. master famously shot their laminateds with rifles, no-go. Popular mechanics proved it could be possible, depending on the lock and the bullet.
YMMV
Dont try this at home.
Common sense would say that a swinging lock , shot by a bullet is not going to open up ! Backstop the lock, and shoot it next to where it latches and it probable will pop open ! OR, shoot it at a downward angle where the shackle enters the lock body ! Either way, on many locks, all you need is a piece of a tin can shoved down into the recess between the shackle and the lock body, and it is much quieter !
Some kids thought it would be funny to put their own Master Lock padlock on the chain wrapped around my gate and a ceder pole that keeps them from riding their 4- wheeler on my 52 acres of wooded land to keep me from getting in. Joke was on them, and apparently this myth buster, because I shot the lock off the chain with my S&W SW99 9mm I was carrying at that time. The trick is to twist the chain tight and have the lock fixed in a position sideways to where you are shooting at the lock from the top, the shackle, and hitting the lock frame forcing the shackle to break free from the lock. Hit from 10 feet with a 9mm FMJ and in a safe backstop direction. Joke was on them, didn’t slow me down a bit and left their lock pieces in case they wanted it back. Don’t trust me, try it yourself and be safe while doing it.
Somebody did that to me, nearly 40 years back. So i backed the ol pickup up and hooked the cable over my 2-5/16″ ball and tugged a terncey bit. It was laminated, may have been a master, but pulled it right open with a boom from the cable like a gunshot. Satisfying. They dident try it again.
Cool, but geesh. Don’t most people know about bolt cutters or cut off saw? Gotta hate Hollywood with a passion. Half this country is in love with a bunch of freaking idiots. Enough said.
It’s a little harder to hit, but next time… SHOOT THE CHAIN! There’s a good reason why the bolt cutters always go for the comparatively “soft” metal of the chain, instead of the hardened steel of the lock.
And now you know why the men and women in the greatest military on the planet use 12 gauge shotguns instead of BMG when they’re breaching doors. 👍
On a totally different subject, muzzleloaders during the Civil War, check out the damage those big caliber, slow moving, soft lead slugs did to the bones they hit.
Great video. I’ve seen videos previously and the 12 gauge slug wins! What’s with the rolled up magazines in the front of his vest?
I watch a lock picker on YouTube. He opens locks with a strip of soda can, faster than you can shoot it!!
You’ve seen those battery operated electric toothbrushes that vibrate, I have heard, wink wink, nudge nudge, that if you take one of those and file it flat to where it fits snug into the key slot and you stick that into the key slot against the tumblers and turn it on, in most locks the vibrations will set the tumblers and in less than 5 seconds, you turn it like a key to open the lock.
shoulda asked grandpa he would have told the tale of the master lock commercial from decades past!
I met the guy that did the commercial ! He was a range officer at a range in Nassau County NY when i met him about 40 or so years ago.. Apparently the master lock people expected that it would take a bunch of tries to hit it, and he did it on the first shot dead center. He was a serious competition shooter.. They made him do it a few times..