Bad Idea, or Really BAD IDEA?

[1mrchristopher]

Meandering ebay and find a product being sold by these folks: http://www.gatorstrikeplates.com/ A strike plate ground out so far that any door will latch no matter how misaligned or poorly installed. Do they not realize that this completely nullifies what little security is afforded by a locking knob/lever?!?! Granted if you don't have a deadbolt, you may as well not bother locking your door, but this seems like a terrible idea on every front.

Am I too picky? If I came across this on a customers door, I don't know if I could, in good conscience, leave it in place.

[blue60]

I could see using it on a bedroom or Bathroom door where the "lock" is just for privacy, but on a front door

[jonny1234]

This isn't a bad idea.

If the front door isn't latching and relying purely on the deadbolt (which is common, and a problem with pets and wind), then restoring latching faction there would only add security and would be a net improvement. But, you're right, the deadbolt is where the strength of security lies and that absolutely needs to function.

Lots of 5.0 star reviews on Amazon, so there are folks who like the product. I would buy one.

JS

[Squelchtone]

This isn't a bad idea.

If the front door isn't latching and relying purely on the deadbolt (which is common, and a problem with pets and wind), then restoring latching faction there would only add security and would be a net improvement. But, you're right, the deadbolt is where the strength of security lies and that absolutely needs to function.

Lots of 5.0 star reviews on Amazon, so there are folks who like the product. I would buy one.

JS

Aren't you the owner of the company? it would have been polite to mention that.

Squelchtone

[Robotnik]

This isn't a bad idea.

If the front door isn't latching and relying purely on the deadbolt (which is common, and a problem with pets and wind), then restoring latching faction there would only add security and would be a net improvement. But, you're right, the deadbolt is where the strength of security lies and that absolutely needs to function.

Lots of 5.0 star reviews on Amazon, so there are folks who like the product. I would buy one.

JS

Aren't you the owner of the company? it would have been polite to mention that.

Squelchtone

Eh, details...

[jonny1234]

Yes, I am a part owner. My apologies for not being upfront about that. Didn't want to create a fracas here.

We're just starting this product, and I appreciate any constructive criticism, to make the product better or get rid of it if it ultimately is not a good product. The marketplace will determine this eventually.

We recommend this product be used on exterior doors only if the deadbolt is working properly, and will be improving the messaging on this.

But hypothetically, if a homeowner is so down and out that there is no security whatsoever at an exterior door, then at least this product restores "some" security where there was none before. Again, homeowners need to ensure their deadbolts are at least functioning properly.

Again, my apologies for not disclosing this previously.

JS

[deralian]

I'm not sure why any locksmith would buy a strike plate like this. Most of us just break off the tab and grind out the strike a little it it isn't latching. Our cost: free. That and the customer who uses this still has the issue of the wood needing ground out or removed to match the new hole.

[GWiens2001]

This strikes me as an end-user product rather than a locksmith product, intended for those with little to no mechanical skills and who buy the strike, go back home to install it, then are frustrated at having to go back to the store and buy a phillips screwdriver since they don't have one, all so they can do the job themselves. Then they have to figure out what tools they will need to enlarge the hole in the wood behind the strike. Cheaper than hiring a locksmith or handyman.

Our first thoughts looking at the problem this product addresses might be to look at the hinges, door frame and the door itself. We would try to figure out what is causing the door to be out of alignment (possibly on a seasonal or weather related basis).Yet how many homeowners are incapable of that kind of logic, let alone have the tools to grind the strike opening larger if that is truly what is required?

While most of us here have fairly decent logic skills and are used to figuring things out (hence our interest in locks and lock picking as a hobby and/or profession), there is a growing number of people who have no skills along that line. The product would at least give them something, which may (or may not) be better than doing nothing.

Do agree that jonny1234 should have mentioned his stake in the company so the other readers of the thread would understand his bias in favor of the product. But would be a product that fits the niche required for people who want an 'under $10' fix.

That is my two cents.

Gordon

[blue60]

Yes, I am a part owner. My apologies for not being upfront about that. Didn't want to create a fracas here.

We're just starting this product, and I appreciate any constructive criticism, to make the product better or get rid of it if it ultimately is not a good product. The marketplace will determine this eventually.

We recommend this product be used on exterior doors only if the deadbolt is working properly, and will be improving the messaging on this.

But hypothetically, if a homeowner is so down and out that there is no security whatsoever at an exterior door, then at least this product restores "some" security where there was none before. Again, homeowners need to ensure their deadbolts are at least functioning properly.

Again, my apologies for not disclosing this previously.

JS

I didn't mean anything negative by my comments but I would just fix the door, and I would never use just a knob on a outside door. .
But that said I do have one in my amazon cart to add to my next order.

[victorylocksmith]

Yes, I am a part owner. My apologies for not being upfront about that. Didn't want to create a fracas here.

We're just starting this product, and I appreciate any constructive criticism, to make the product better or get rid of it if it ultimately is not a good product. The marketplace will determine this eventually.

We recommend this product be used on exterior doors only if the deadbolt is working properly, and will be improving the messaging on this.

But hypothetically, if a homeowner is so down and out that there is no security whatsoever at an exterior door, then at least this product restores "some" security where there was none before. Again, homeowners need to ensure their deadbolts are at least functioning properly.

Again, my apologies for not disclosing this previously.

JS

very bad form johnny, we locksmith's are hard to winover and you shilling your own products without your explicit implication that you own the company creates a situation where it is very hard for you to win our trust.

[Comrade627]

Well while we're at it. This one place that goes by "Comrade's Customs" is baaaaaad a**. From my experience, the dude makes the coolest looking themed custom PCs out there for cheap (usually 10% of the total machine cost plus extra parts)! I'd so buy one if i could.

[Tyler J. Thomas]

It's a band-aid fix to a problem (either door sag from bad hinges, loose screws, or maybe even the door frame not being plumb, etc.). People, and some locksmiths for that matter, are either too lazy or inept to fix the actual problem so filing the strike is a fix I've seen many times. This is the same concept, only fabricated from the start.

The argument that it reduces security in favor of convenience is well founded but, as mentioned, the deadbolt is what is protecting the door and not the latch.

For anyone reading this that may be interested: material should never be removed from the strike in order for the door to latch. When knob or lever was installed it was, presumably, done so correctly. By that I mean the strike was installed to accept the latch as designed (that's why locks come with templates). If conditions have changed that no longer allow that, you need to identify the conditions because removing material from the strike is only going to temporarily fix the problem (unless the problem was caused by something sudden, such as weatherstripping installation). NEVER remove material from the latch.

When I apprenticed, I was told that it was alright to remove portions from the top/bottom of the latch as that did not reduce the security. I believed that for many, many years but the more I thought about it the more I realized that removing any material ultimately reduces the strength of any strike, no matter how insignificant it may be.

If all methods of correcting the problem have failed then you REINSTALL the latch. If your screw holes are so close that it's not possible, you drill the holes out to 1/4" diameter, insert a wooden dowel of the same size covered in wood glue, cut flush to the mortise and then mark for your new holes. It's desirable to have the new screws in place before the wood glue dries so it does not compromise a cured bond. This replaces the wood with new wood and is far more superior than using golf tees, tooth picks, or epoxy.

[dll932]

What bothers me: with those "Magnetite" doors (work like fridge doors and frames) there is no positive stop. Opening up the strike further in such a case could be enough for the deadlatch to be trapped. If that happened, the door could be VERY hard to open because of extra friction.

[jimu57]

My 2 cents. Just fix it right.