Hey, everybody. This is just a quick post about something that any one of you can build in order to make a fun and engaging lockpicking contest suitable for running at a bar or other meetup where there’s drinks on the menu.
Some of you have seen the deep and detailed build I did when creating the “Booze Box” which has appeared at hacker cons and been a source of fun and a challenge to those who want a chance to win free drinks. But, let’s be fair, that was a huge undertaking. No one else is likely to build something like that.
Here’s a super easy way to make a small, portable version of such a contest!
1. Buy a bottle of Booker’s Bourbon. It comes in a nice wooden display box.
2. Drill a small hole (3/8″ diameter, i’d recommend) in the top of the box, approximately 1/2″ from the lip, as indicated in this image.
3. If you wish, you can sand the outsides of said box in order to remove the Booker’s logo and marketing silkscreening. Then, if you want to, feel free to stain the box in whatever color you desire.
4. Either modify the original plexiglass front piece or laser cut your own new replacement piece (so that it is free of any marketing logos, etc) to a size of 12″ x 3⅝”
5. Now you have a box that can contain either a pint glass, a wine bottle, or a whisky bottle, etc. And the application of a padlock can “secure” that resource until someone liberates it by picking the lock. If they succeed, they either win the right to fill their glass for free or they can claim the bottle inside, etc. The game lends itself to very fast resets and reloads, and of course can be adapted to whatever degrees of difficulty you wish by simply changing out the padlock.
Good luck and have fun!