Lockfitting/carpentry

[jsw1]

Hello this is my first post so nice to meet you all. I'm a keen diy'er and hope this is not a stupid question to you all. I'm currently fitting the odd mortice lock for friends and family, my question is when replacing a mortice lock obviously there not all the same size so what do the pro's do with the keyhole on the door because you'll have to move it do you fill it in if so what with or do you just look around for the same size lock? so you don't have to move it.

[NickBristol]

Generally, fitting the same size lock is the way to go. If it is quite a modern lock in the door at the minute, just replacing the lever pack is another good option.

Most mortice locks are either 64mm or 76mm (although notably Chubb are 67mm & 80mm) so it's easy to check what size needs to go in. All the major lock brands supply both sizes and any decent locksmith would carry both sizes. Depending on how different the lock that goes in is to the one that came out, you might need to do some alteration around the forend.

In the odd case where you need to fit a different size and need to alter the keyhole position, either cover it with a larger escutcheon plate or move the handles a little in the case of a sashlock, then fill in the two old screw holes appropriately if needed.

[jsw1]

Thanks for the advice.