Replacing a door knob

WD40

Having been in the locksmith trade for 20+ years, I find Harloc to be the worst junk made. Worse even than some of the Taiwan junkers. I'd replace that one today, if not sooner. As to what's a good brand, my house has Kwikset (NOT THE SMART KEY) and also my parents house. The knob locks wear out in ten year or so, but that's good service.

I've not seen a Harloc in a lot of years, and I rather like it that way.

Some Harloc are installed in non standard door prep. Might have to enlarge the edge hole, and the cross bore might not be standard 2 1/8 inch.

Might have to depress the retainer I see in photo

Even if it's under warranty you'd have to send it back and go without a door knob. Since a new one is not terribly expensive, just get a new one and don't worry about it.

Here is how I found out my front door no longer locked:

A drunken college student was found on my couch one morning.

When we woke him he was waaay more scared than us.

As he ran out the door he said: "Sorry, I thought I was in my friend's house."

Well, that's a first. I'd never heard that one. Add that to my list of anecdotes and experiences.

just replace it, Schlage is a decent consumer grade lockset, and inexpensiv e enough that it's not worth trying to repair what you have. If you are co ncerned about security go to a real locksmith shop and see what they recomm end. Likely you will be told that any key in knob setup like what you have is relatively insecure and that you should consider adding a deadbolt. Me deco/Assa Abloy is a step up from most of the stuff you will find at the bi g boxes, but you'll pay for it.

good luck

nate

A similar thing happened in my daughter's dorm room. She was living in a suite with 4 bedrooms and a living room area. She awoke one Saturday morning to find an unknown girl sleeping on the couch. She ignored her, assuming it was a friend of one of her roommates. As each roommate woke up, they all let her be, each thinking it was a friend of another. Eventually they started asking each other and that's when they realized that no one knew her.

When they woke her up she admitted that she was really drunk the night before and didn't really remember how she ended up on the couch. As she was leaving, they all suggested she get some help.

That's what I get for living near a university.

I originally bought this house when I was working and going to night school. That was 35 years ago and the property value has skyrocketed so I'm staying put.

If I did not already own the house there is no way I could afford to live in this area.

BTW: I did not buy a new lock...I just found an old one in the basement.

I'm from Milwaukee and if a problem drinker asks for help, it's just assumed they need money for another drink.

Maybe I should forget about fixing the lock for a while and see if this happens to me.

What are the odds, the lock that failed was Harloc brand?

It was not a Harloc as far as I recall...but I am sure it was not an expensive one.

Schlage changed their design a couple years ago. I don't much like the new ones.

I haven't seen the new Schlages, but my Schlage front door lock looks like and is in the same condition as the OP's and it works as well as it did when first installed in 1984.

Are you sure you actually remember how it performed 30 years ago? A gradual degradation of performance over a 30 year period might not be noticed by the user unless a side by side comparison of new vs. 30 years old could be done.

I feel like I perform just as well as I did 30 years ago, but there's a good chance my wife might have a different opinion. Of course, I don't plan on having her do any comparisons to find out. ;-)

Tha lockset looks like crap. Spend the $$ and get something that looks decent and has a reasonable chance of working for a few years.

My Kwikset front door locks were working just as well when they were 29 years old as when I bought the house and they were 4 years old.

Unfortunately the hospital lost my keyring, and to get into the house, a friend drilled one of the locks out and replaced both the slamlock and the deadbolt.

There's a lot more to go wrong with you or me than with a lock.

nsive enough that it's not worth trying to repair what you have. If you ar e concerned about security go to a real locksmith shop and see what they re commend. Likely you will be told that any key in knob setup like what you have is relatively insecure and that you should consider adding a deadbolt. Medeco/Assa Abloy is a step up from most of the stuff you will find at th e big boxes, but you'll pay for it.

I was happy with the ones that I bought maybe 2009ish... what's happened s ince then?

nate

They went to a one piece molded exterior door knob. The cylinder has a compressable spring cover, which is easy to come off, but impossible to put back on. The spring cover will probably fall off, within the lock. I know I've had one come off, while I was trying to rekey the lock. The top pins are too short. The locks aren't designed to be master keyed.