I live in a house built in 1864. There are very nice mortise locks all around, with brass faces at the door edge. The cases are made of cast iron. One of these cases has a cracked side, which allows the bolt to move around and can make it hard to open the door. Is it possible to find parts for such a thing, or else a replacement lock that won't require changing the door mortise?
Thanks!
ebay
A welding service may be able to repair the case.
BTDT,,, didnt hold.... welding cast IS a doable thing... PERSONALLY< I would braise it. the 2 pieces are heated HOT, and braised together with brass rod- its quite strong enough to hold, and is easily ground down to size again.. WORST situation would be bevelling the edges so the weld did not end up thicker than the case. teh case-when the whole thing is heated, will not crack/warp, which can happen in arc welding
--Shiva--
I agree with Shiva on this one. Yes, it could be welded but brazing would be the easiest. Even a body shop could probably do this for you. Do you know anyone who works on old cars, etc. as a hobby and has an acetleyne torch?
Leon Rowell
--Shiva-- wrote:
NONONONONONONON
braising cast IS THE ART... you find someone that KNOWS what he is doing... I do 'antique cars' and will braise sheet goods without thought, BUT Cast MUST be carefully heated, or you end up with a LOT of pieces... I watched the handle off a cast iron skillit be rebraised on, and to do so required that MOST of that skillit be almost as hot as the actual joint, JUST to avoid stress fractures
--Shiva--
Welding yes, brazing I don't think so.... I've brazed a few cast pieces with no problems including exhaust manifolds, old cast floor registers, and a couple of cast pulley housings from an old barn. Latest one was the exhaust manifold off of my '57 Ford Retractable (bolt hole broken off of drivers side). No preheating just brazed them up at the break. I didn't even have to have the manifold surfaced.
Leon Rowell
--Shiva-- wrote:
Where do you live?
I know of a lock shop in Boston that has many thousands of old mortise locks
How about post their name and adress?
I've junked out a couple mortise locks i the last few years, and I'd rather donate them to someone who cares.
The name of the company is Back Bay Lock & Safe Co.
1-617-277-1600 They moved about a year or so ago & I do not have their exact location. Every building in the city used mortise locks at one time or another; often I would repair what I could, fashion a spring, replace hubs, new spindles etc... but more often we would end up using a wrap around plate & convert the door to a knob & install a deadbolt. I have done many lockouts on the old units by sliding a spring along side (the real old units do not have deadlocking device) & flippin the button down. I have even done lockouts on newer mortise locks by pushing the knobs through the lock & getting the inside hub to turn. Of coarse it was probably a carpenter who installed those units because the knobs were in backwards.PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.