Ball bearings behind screws?

[vector40]

Was taking apart the Schlage deadbolt on the back door today... when I pulled out the screws holding the cylinder onto the plate on the other side, I noticed that there were a pair of ball bearings on the screwholes, right in front of the tips of the screws. Any idea what these are for?

[MrB]

To make it hard for someone to drill out the screws?

[vector40]

That's an interesting thought. But why would you bother, when you could just drill the shearline? This is two points and rather long connection foci; I don't see them being easy drills.

[mcm757207]

They are there, as stated, to make it difficult/impossible to drill out the screws.

[NKT]

They are anti-drill protection.

Remember, not everyone tries to drill a lock with a 2mm drill bit!

[raimundo]

some locks come with the ball bearings, medecos do, and they have shear line drill protection too, perhaps this is a highersecurity lock, and has anti drill pins. or the installer just knew about the technique and put them in for quality work.

[2octops]

They are for stopping someone from drilling the retaining screws.

If you drill the shearline, it makes it very difficult to decode the lock and fit a key for it. Also if you wanted to replace the lock with one keyed the same.

[BUNGYSTRAP]

Ball bearings commonly used for anti-drill along with snatch wires which do exactly that and chip the edges off of the drill bit rendering it useless.

[Eldoc]

Hi vector40
we normally use a tool named "defender" to protect the cylinder in the external site of the door (i'm talking about a european profile cylinder). Probably you yet know it, however it is like a knob, made to cover the cylinder, with 2 screws in the inner site, to block it with 2 holes across the lock and the door. Screws blocked form the internal site of the door of course. Some of these "defender" have a ball bearing in the screw hole, as anti-drill and the most sofisticated have have another protection to rend more difficult to try to drill the cylinder directly.

I'm old in my profession, but new here; I'm very interested to know better this interesting forum.

Bye

Eldoc

[vector40]

Thanks, Eldoc Glad to have you here.