#38 · Tuesday, 13 January 2026

Ladder answer

• CRANE 5 letters
• SCANNER 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• INSURANCE 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

CRANE sits inside SCANNER, which sits inside INSURANCE — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: ACREN · NESRCAN · ENAICSUNR.

LockCode answer: 8591

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 7491: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 7, 4, 9, 1 are in the code.
2. 8267: 1 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 1 of 8, 2, 6, 7 are in the code.
3. 0735: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 0, 7, 3, 5 are in the code.
4. 5681: 1 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 3 of 5, 6, 8, 1 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 2 codes remain possible.

With 2 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.