good flaky crust comes from cold, hard fat.
Lard is best but you can use a combination of shortening and butter.
(margerine has too much liquid)
Make sure your fat is good and cold, rub it into the flour to the size of corn flakes and then add your cold water.
try your recipes with the above technique and see if you don't get better results.
PS a nice old lady told me to put a tsp of white vinegar in with my cold water! she said it made it better.
