Need to replace a worn out cylinder lock (yes, conclusion of the ongoing
3-year front door refurb - qv!)Didn't realise there were so many options to choose from: apparently I can have it in brass, satin chrome or polished chrome (or anything else?):
Is the choice purely cosmetic (if so I don't care), or is one any better than others in terms of durability etc?
Ta David
The Yale 1109 cylinder is the most basic one you can buy and the differences are purely cosmetic. The Yale X-Tech series would be a better choice. Best would be to fit a complete XBS nightlatch, which is BS 3621 kite marked.
Colin Bignell
We've been told that even the latter is as much use as a chocolate teapot. No rationale yet, though..
It is good for a rim lock. Ideally, you don't fit a rim lock at all, but a BS 3621 mortise lock at each of 1/3 and 2/3 of the door height. However, I was presuming that, if he was looking at the 1109, the OP was not wanting the no cost spared option..
Colin Bignell
I have fitted a PBS1. It is very good. I don't know the difference between it and the XBS1. They look very similar.
Christian.
It's not really a rim lock, as rim locks are entirely surface mounted, so can be kicked off. On the PBS1, the lock wraps around the edge of the door and the main mounting screws drive into the door through the edge, giving much better strength. OK, maybe not quite as much strength as a mortice, but getting there. You will almost certainly lose the hinges before the lock in a kicking attack, I would have thought.
The problem with mortice locks is that
(a) they're a complete faff to lock and unlock, needing a key even from inside (b) the keys are the size of Tunisia (c) If you have a fire in the night, your children will end up as frazzled blackened balls pressed against the locked door
Christian.
Oh come ON! It's nbot rocket science and you don't need to be Mr Universe!
Don't be silly.
No such luck.
Mary
I would generally agree. But we have a nice 6 pin Yale cylinder mortice on one door...
I really can't be bothered to find my keys just to take the rubbish out or answer the door.
It doesn't matter for the wimmin, with their handbags. My keys go in my pocket and a Yale cylinder key is much more comfortable than a Chubb mortice one.
Christian.
Funnily enough that's exactly the reason I go for a chubb mortice type lock rather than a yale type one.
If I was the nervous door locking type, I'd be using a bolt/chain for when I was in the house, rather than actually locking the thing.
cheers, clive
On Thu, 20 Jul 2006 14:34:57 +0100, "Christian McArdle" had this to say:
A cylinder key is much more likely to wear a hole in your pocket, though.
Er, but you need a key to open a chubb mortice, whilst a yale can be opened without one. How do you find the opposite?
Christian.
[...]
I have mortice lock on front and back doors, together with a bog-standard Yale-style (night latch?) on the front. I used to lock the front mortice - reasoning that an openable-without-key front door would be rather handy for a burgular (thinking ease of removing heavy stuff, compared to a broken window).
Then house guests warned me of the possible difficulty of finding the key etc. in a fire emergency. From then on, I use just the bolt and chain.
Any comments? Same goes for window locks all round; I used to hide the keys, now I leave them in a reasonably accessable place (from the inside). I'm pretty sure all this raises an important health-and-safety issue - though when I mentioned this before, nobody agreed.
Best regards,
Jon C.
You don't need a key to open it if it isn't locked - like I said elsewhere, a bolt/chain provides the security should you need it while you're in the house.
OTOH if when I'm taking the rubbish out the door shuts behind me, I don't need to have my keys with me to get it open again. I've always hated that about yale type locks. Ok, you can put the latch/whatever on, but that's just an extra layer of faff to forget about - and I will...
cheers, clive
I prefer to keep doors and windows openable in an emergency. My laptop can be replaced. Children and wives are less easy. The Yale lock can be locked so that the handle is disabled. I do this when leaving the house empty for a while. What would be good is that this mode could be invoked without the use of a key, as I would do it much more often. Even better if the mode was disabled when the door was next unlocked.
Christian.
Putting the latch on the PBS1 is very easy, you just press the button as you turn the lever. If the door is already open and you can't be bothered to turn the lever, simultaneously pressing the bolt in and pressing the latch button works well. It is certainly less work than moving a bolt or unhooking a chain. It is also has much better security than either.
Christian.
Maybe - hut I'd still fail to do it at some point.
If I'm in the house, which is the situation we're talking about here, I think the security provided by a bolt + chain should be enough. When away from the house, there's proper mortice locks for security.
cheers, clive
On Thu, 20 Jul 2006 15:29:41 +0100, "Christian McArdle" had this to say:
How many wives have you got?
:-)
Clearly far more options than I'd realised...
Does the X-Tech and XBS bit refer to the lock itself or the cylinder part, or both? Really I'm just wanting to replace a worn cylinder, for which I know the 1109 is a like-for-like replacement. Are the X-Tech and XBS ones similarly?
If not, does anyone know if the hole in the door would be in the same place for all these locks, or would it need 'moving' (which is not likely to happen!)?
Thanks David
By all means fit another cylinder, don't buy junk. virtually no security though. The ideal is a mortice lock with a 6 pin cylinder with thumbturn on the inside fitted with security escutcheons. To conform to Insurance requirements they have to conform to certain standards, ie bought as a set. Find a locksmith.
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