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Figure 2
but the mess you cause in doing
this will not earn you any thanks
from your client.
For those of you who find the
brute force option as vulgar as
I do there are a couple of other
techniques:
Whilst it is more difficult
to confirm the underlying
cause for a right-mounted lock
(both gravity and accidental
manipulation could have pulled
the snib down), with a lock on
your left-hand side you can
be sure that the snib has been
pushed up in error, meaning
means there is sufficient play
in the latch and sufficient
movement in the keep (or gap
between the latch and keep)
for the latch to slip past, despite
being deadlocked.
It is reasonable to assume
that the closing operation
can be reversed to allow for
opening, and in many cases,
the thin spreader that is
normally reserved for plastic
or composite doors can prove
surprisingly useful used in
conjunction with thick Mica
sheet. A thin metal wedge can
often be used to spread the
door and frame just enough
that the Mica sheet can retract
the latch sufficiently for the
door to open again.
In one instance, a single
sheet of Mica was not enough,
however I was able to slide a
second sheet behind the first,
thus making it strong enough
Figure 3
to move the latch. This may
not work every time, but it is
definitely worth attempting, as
the damage will be minimal.
IF YOUR LOCK IS
INSISTENT ON REMAINING
OBSTINATE, THERE IS
ANOTHER SOLUTION:
This assumes that the latch
is of the Yale type, with the
snib located as per figure 3 –
and out with the drill!
Side-tracking briefly, one
of the most important things
when you drill is the lifespan
of your drill bits. Most use
carbide-tipped bits, but using
a cordless drill I have found
that the bits can shatter.
Carbide-tipped bits like to
operate at very high speed
and I swear by my 18v Makita,
but awesome as it is, it still
can’t produce the necessary
rpm for these bits to survive,
so wherever possible, I must
exhort the use of a mains
voltage high-speed drill.
If you’re in a block of flats,
there will usually be a socket
somewhere in the common
areas for vacuum cleaners,
however there is usually a
friendly neighbour, who is
only too pleased to let you
plug your drill in for a few
minutes.
Firstly, drill through the
faceplate of the barrel, on
either side, thereby revealing
the mounting screws. Take
Figure 4
care when drilling out the
screws as your drill bit will
want to wander.
Once the rim cylinder is
pulled out, it’s always worth
double-checking that the latch
will definitely not open at this
point, remembering not to
put too much tension on the
screwdriver – it is only to prove
that the snib has fully engaged.
The mounting plate should
now be exposed through the
hole where the rim cylinder
was.
The position of the next hole
will depend on the type of lock,
but for a standard Yale-type
latch. Next, drill a 8-10mm hole
through the mounting plate on
the side of the 32mm hole, from
where the cylinder was extracted
from and closest to the latch,
figure 4.
Begin to angle the drill
towards the latch through the
back-plate of the night latch. Be
careful not to go too far into the
lock as this may cause damage to
other parts.
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Figure 5
With a light from a phone or
torch, the snib bar should be
visible and by simply lifting or
lowering the a piece of wire or
screwdriver - figures 5 and 6,
the mechanism should turn
the latch as normal with your
flathead screwdriver.
Although, this is the most
common location there are
occasions where the snib is not
located in this position, so it is
always advisable to try this first,
before destroying the door or
doorframe.
Upon successful completion,
another nightlatch and rim
cylinder should be able to be
installed, and there will be no
other indication that you have
had to effect a repair.
Alternative solutions are
always useful to solution and
even more so when shared,
so if you do have a solution to
any of the problems, I would
be more than happy to include
them in future articles.
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