Sound familiar?Toronto
- The call
- 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.
The knob flops loose on its spindle and never springs back to level. When you turn it the latch pulls in, but you have to push the knob back yourself, and lately the latch has started staying inside the door instead of catching.
In plain words
The trim on the door face is the other half of the lock. The knobs ride on a square spindle that passes through the hub of the case, held by small set screws, and the escutcheons cover the spindle and keyholes. Slack in a knob, a knob that pulls off in your hand, or a thumb-turn that spins without moving the bolt usually traces to a worn spindle, a stripped set screw or a hub whose square has rounded. The service replaces spindle and screws, matches a hub or lever from stock or makes one, and fits everything so there is no free play before the latch starts to move.
Vintage Mortise Lock Service · Toronto
How the visit goes
Scene 1
The door before the lock
Before blaming a lock that may be perfectly sound, the locksmith looks at the door. With it open, the lock is cycled; with it closed, the latch and deadbolt are tried again. A lock that works open and fights when shut is telling you the door has moved. The gap around the door is checked top to bottom, the hinges are watched for a sag when the door is lifted, and the strike plate is inspected for bright wear marks where the bolt has been scraping past. In an older home with a solid wood door this is a routine finding, and correcting it is often most of the repair.
Scene 2
When a case is fitted new
If the old case could not be saved, the replacement is fitted to the door rather than the door to the replacement. A reproduction or modern mortise case matching the measured height, depth, backset, faceplate and hub is chosen with the goal of it dropping into the existing pocket; where a small difference remains, the pocket is trimmed with a chisel by the least amount that works, never bored out. The original knobs, escutcheons and strike are refitted wherever their spacing allows, and a new cylinder is keyed to match the rest of the house if wanted. The result reads as the original lock from either side of the door, with the reliability of a fresh mechanism.
Scene 3
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.
In the van
- Deadbolt lever springs
- Mortise cylinder and cam
- Bit key blanks
- Hub followers and lever packs
- Light lock oil
What shapes the quoteBloordale Gardens Lock & Key Co.
- Whether the door has to come off its hinges
- Some mortise cases can be serviced with the door hanging in place, while a tight jamb or a stubborn case sometimes means lifting the door off its hinges onto a level bench. That step is identified once the case is open and the repair needs are clear.
- How 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.
- Missing or mismatched trim
- Sourcing a knob, escutcheon or thumb-turn to match the survivors, from salvage or reproduction stock, is quoted as parts plus the search. Reusing your own trim from another door avoids that line.
FeesSame any hour
Questions people ask us
How long does servicing a mortise lock take?
A single entry lock that needs cleaning, springs and a strike adjustment is generally done in one visit of an hour or two. Filing a bit key adds bench time, and a set of interior latches is longer simply because there are more of them. A case that needs a part fabricated, or a replacement case that has to be ordered to size, may mean a second visit; the locksmith says so at the assessment.
Can my interior doors be serviced too, and can one key work all of them?
Usually yes to the first, and to the second once the locksmith checks the locks. Interior mortise latches with privacy turn buttons are lighter versions of the entry lock and respond to the same clean and re-spring. Interior locks in a house were sometimes supplied to one bit key, and where the key sections, warding and levers actually match, the locksmith can restore that arrangement so a single key opens several bedroom and bathroom doors. It is a practical thing to have when a child locks a bathroom from inside.
Why does the deadbolt scrape or need a shove to throw?
Two causes cover most cases. Either paint has built up on the faceplate, the bolt or the strike so the bolt drags across it, or the door has dropped so the bolt is entering the strike pocket at an angle and rubbing its edge. Occasionally a bent deadbolt lever inside the case adds friction. Cleaning the paint back, adjusting the strike and checking the lever all happen as part of the service.
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Vintage Mortise Lock Service · Bloordale Gardens, Eringate, Etobicoke, Glen Agar, Islington, Princess Margaret, Thorncrest Village, West Deane Park
- Town
- Toronto
- In business
- 13 years
- Hours
- Open 24/7
- Nights, weekends and holidays, same fees
- Phone
- (289) 804-4797
- Visits
- On-site assessment preferred. Request a visit or call.
2021 census: what it means at the door
Every square is one home in a hundred.
- 58 in 100 homes · older homes
- 23 in 100 homes · mostly attached
- About 58% of homes in Toronto were built in 1980 or earlier, according to the 2021 Census.Older homes tend to have had many hands on their doors: owners, tenants, tradespeople, family. A locksmith visiting such a house pays attention to who holds keys now, and rekeying or a keyed-alike set often matters more than any new hardware.
- Single-detached houses make up about 23% of homes in Toronto (2021 Census).Shared entrances mean fobs, intercoms and buzzers alongside conventional locks. A locksmith can service the mechanical side of those doors and advise on how the fob system and the cylinder work together when management asks.
Nearby
On-site assessment
Request a visit.
The knob flops loose on its spindle and never springs back to level.
(289) 804-4797, open 24/7.