Change or rekey · Stamford
Vintage Mortise Lock Service in Stamford
The key turns freely in the round cylinder on the door, all the way around and back, without the bolt shifting at all. The cylinder itself wobbles slightly when you press it, as if it has come loose inside the door.
Vintage Mortise Lock Service
In plain words
Most old mortise locks fail for boring reasons. A coil spring that has been compressed a hundred thousand times since the house was built finally breaks, or the grease inside the case dries into something like wax and the levers stick in it. Neither justifies cutting a new hole in a solid oak door. The service opens the case, cleans out the old lubricant, replaces the springs with the right size, matches any worn follower or lever and lubricates the mechanism lightly. The same case goes back into the same pocket, and the knob returns to level with the crisp snap it had decades ago.
How the visit goesSomeone painted the door years ago without removing the hardware. The faceplate, the strike and the little thumb-turn are all under several coats, the deadbolt scrapes when it moves, and the knob is stiff enough to leave marks on your hand.
Stamford
How the visit goes
Condition of the wood around the pocket
The mortise pocket and the screw holes in the door edge carry the whole lock, so their state is part of the assessment. The locksmith probes the faceplate screws for grip, looks for cracks running from the pocket into the stile, and checks whether an earlier repair enlarged the pocket or packed it with something soft. Stripped holes, a split edge or a case that shifts when the knob is turned change the plan: dowelling and re-drilling, a hardwood filler, or longer screws may be needed before the rebuilt case can be trusted. Finding this now avoids surprises once the lock is back in the door.
Cutting a bit key to the lock
For a bit-key lock, keys are made to the case rather than copied from a pattern. A blank with the right bow, shank and bit size is chosen, then the bit is filed by hand to clear the wards inside the case and to lift each lever to the correct height. The key is tried, marked, filed again and tried again until it turns the bolt cleanly from both sides. A second key is made to match while the first is fresh. Where a working original exists, it is used as a guide and the new key is cut to it, and a worn original can itself be gently restored if the customer wants to keep using it.
Looking after the finish
The brass or bronze knobs and escutcheons on an old door have earned their patina, left alone unless you ask otherwise. Paint cleaned from a faceplate or strike leaves the bare metal as found, not polished bright. If you would rather see them shine, check the finish first: unlacquered brass takes a gentle polish well, kept off the keyhole and spindle; polishing a lacquered piece can scratch through it and start tarnish underneath. Lacquered reproduction parts resist tarnishing rather than darken to match; an unlacquered reproduction is built to age and blend in over a season or two. A light wipe when dusting is all the upkeep the trim needs; wet cleaners find their way into the case.
Vintage Mortise Lock Service
In the van
- Bit key blanks
- Dry graphite or PTFE lubricant
- Warding files
- Deadbolt lever springs
- Cylinder set screw
What affects the quote
Same fees day, night or weekend
1Strike and hinge work
Where the door has dropped or swelled, adjusting or moving the strike and tightening or packing hinges is part of the fix. It is small work but it is listed, so you see what was done to the door.
2How many keys you want
Bit keys are made individually by hand and cylinder keys are cut per copy, so the count you ask for is a line of its own. Decide who in the household needs one before the visit.
3Bit key or cylinder lock
A bit-key case has keys filed by hand on the bench, while a cylinder lock is rekeyed or fitted with a new cylinder on a key machine. The two take different time and materials, and the quote follows.
Vintage Mortise Lock Service: questions
Which parts usually need replacing?
Springs, first and foremost: the latch spring, the hub spring that returns the knob, and the small springs on the deadbolt levers. After that, the spindle and knob set screws, a hub whose square has worn round, a worn deadbolt lever or follower, and on later locks the cylinder set screw or the cylinder itself. Bolts, cases and trim are almost always kept, cleaned and refitted rather than replaced.
Will the door look any different afterwards?
Usually not, when the original case is repaired: the same knobs, escutcheons, faceplate and strike go back on in the same positions, and the only visible change is paint or grime cleared from the edges that were catching. A replacement case is chosen to match the pocket so original trim is reused wherever spacing allows, though an occasional case needs a small pocket or fixing change, explained beforehand.
What exactly is a mortise lock?
It is a lock built as a flat rectangular case that sits inside a pocket cut into the edge of the door, rather than through a round hole bored across it. The case holds the latch, usually a deadbolt, the hub the knob spindle turns, and the springs. On the faces of the door you see the knobs, decorative plates and either a keyhole for a bit key or a round cylinder. Most doors built before the middle of the last century carry one.
Change or Rekey Locks
Vintage Mortise Lock Service near you
For people in Stamford who like to know before they call: these pages describe each lock service in detail, from the routine rekey to the less common safe opening or master key design. They explain the steps, the parts involved and the decisions you may be asked to make on the day.