Solid-Brass Closet Spindle with Knob and Rosette in Antique-By-Hand - 3" SpindleStep 1: Meet the mortise lock and door knobs.Ye Olde Mortise Lock Above I have illustrated the basic guts of an early twentieth century mortise lock. Most mortise locks today follow this same basic design. I have left out the springs and displaced the inside hub so you can get a good view of the outside hub. NOTE: Mortise case contains springs that may fly out when you open it. They could go anyplace, including your eye. Notice that the inside hub and outside hub are different. Ah, now you begin to understand. They are different because the outside hub locks and the inside hub does not. Below I have drawn the hubs large so that you can really tell the difference. HubsAt right you see the inside hub on top and the outside hub below. Both hubs have "wings" to retract the latch so that you can open the door, but notice that the outside hub has an extra feature. The outside hub has two things sticking out.
Let's call them legs, because we are going to put something between them. I have heard the thing that goes between the legs of the outside hub called different names, but let's call it the locking lever. The "legs" on the outside hub are designed to receive the locking lever. When the locking lever is inserted between these legs, the outside hub cannot turn. Therefore it is locked. The inside hub has no legs, therefore it is always unlocked. That's how you want it to be so that you can get out in the event of an emergency. Notice the illustration at the beginning of this article where I have shown the "stops," also known as "locking dogs" or "buttons." They are located in the "front" of the lock, that is, the part of the lock that you can only see when the door is open. The latch and the bolt stick out of the "front." When you push in one of the stops, the locking lever is inserted between the legs of the outside hub and the outside hub is locked. When you push the other one, the locking lever is retracted and outside hub is unlocked.
In the illustrations at right I show the locking stops in both the locked and unlocked positions. Here you can see how the hubs work together to accomplish the function of a doorknob that is locked on the outside of the house and unlocked on the inside of the house. The square hole in the hubs (shown at right in black) are designed to receive a device called a "spindle." If you think of the doorknobs as wheels, then the spindle is the axle. Note: in order for the lock to work properly, the spindle must be inserted correctly. For the lock to work properly, the spindle must be inserted exactly halfway, so that both sides can swivel independently. If the spindle is inserted too far in either direction, you may find that if you turn your doorknob counterclockwise it will come off in your hand! In the next section I will discuss the design and use of the swivel spindle. Swivel Spindles In the above illustrations I have tried to show all the variations you might find in spindles used in early twentieth century mortise locks, but I acknowledge that might be impossible.
In the first illustration I show some of the variations you might find: Spindle shim Threaded spindle shafts are made to accommodate threaded doorknobs. Threaded doorknobs are usually secured to the spindle with a "set screw" that tightens against the spindle to make sure the doorknob does not loosen or tighten. Non-threaded spindle shafts often have threaded holes to accommodate a special doorknob screw. Some spindles have a roll pin to keep the spindle from being inserted too far. Some locks have a bigger hub hole on the outside than on the inside, and these require a spindle with a "shim" so that it rest snugly in the square hub hole rather than spinning uselessly inside it. Notice in the illustration the small black shaft that holds the two halves of the spindle together. This is a threaded shaft that allows the halves to rotate independently. About 1/16" to 1/8" of this shaft should be visible. If the halves are turned so that they rest against each other and the shaft is not visible, the halves will not be able to turn independently and the lock will not work correctly.
In the second illustration above, I show the proper alignment of the spindle inside the lock hubs. Notice that you can see the spindle shaft between the hubs, indicating that both halves can turn independently. Symptoms of Bad Spindle Alignment Spindle unscrews and you end up with the knob and half the spindle in your hand. Meanwhile, you are locked in! Knob will not turn from either side when locking stop is pressed. Knob turns clockwise freely for a full revolution or more. Excessive "play" in doorknobs, doorknobs flop back and forth. Spindle Installation A reader, Dave from Arizona, writes in this helpful process: Insert the spindleMount the handle near the end of the the spindle on the spindle opposite the one that contains the larger flat (ie. the one that screws into the larger Flat)Push the button that locks the outside and lets the inside operateAdjust spindle -- move it in or out -- until you can turn the inside handleHolding the spindle in that postion
, screw on the outside handle and tighten its set screwReposition the inside handle to its normal position and tighten the set screw. In the above illustration I show the probable location of the doorknob or set screw. Some of the symptoms of bad spindle alignment shown above also occur as the result of worn out doorknob threads, loose set screws, or missing doorknob screws. Back Plates & Rosettes Set Screws & Washers Antique Replacement Door Knobs, Parts, Strikes, & SpindlesFind the replacement door parts you need for your renovation project here. You'll find door knob and door lock parts as well as door parts such as striker plates and skeleton keys. Or build a completely custom door set, simply by choosing a doorknob and door knob plate combination.Edit ArticleHow to Take out a Mortise Lock Removing a mortise lock from a front door of a nice older home can be a daunting task, but you can do it. This applies to many of the locks used on pre-war (WWII)homes, usually set in really nice solid doors and worth fixing or at least not painting when it is time to re-finish the old door.
Look carefully at the shank of the inside knob. Usually there is a set screw or two that retains the knob on the spindle. Once the screws are backed off you can then unscrew the knob. The threaded spindle is usually in two halves. One half will slip out and then the other half can be tipped out of the hole. Note: if you have a threaded two piece spindle the correct way to orient the set screw is so that it squeezes the two halves together. (A variation here is a non threaded spindle. Here the set screw goes into a hole on the spindle and the knob will slide of the spindle when the set screw is removed.) Remove the knob rose plate, if necessary. Unscrew the lock cylinder. Remove the face plate. If you need to remove the grip handle, this is usually either mounted with wood screws from the outside, or some have a through bolt(s) from the inside. If you get stuck and can't figure something out, first pick up the phone and consult with your local locksmith.