jammed mortice lock

[JohnD]

Have you still got the old lock? i would be interested to see inside how the levers jammed. Superglue? Dirt? Wrong grease? When did it last work properly?

I have known cheaper locks fail due to rust, but not a Chubb.

 

[DC77]

I concur. If the lock is in use not daily but say once a month it should be fine. I have only ever heard of a Chubb failing like this on prolonged exposure to salt air and corrosion set in.
DC
Teamlocksmiths

 

[agb]

Photo in album jammed mortice lock 3. Key still will not turn it. Lock was at least 15 years old and was used daily on main entrance to house. worked perfectly up to Monday morning when I locked it as I went out. Couldn't open it on my return

 

[JohnD]

your picture is [net]24777/19992_23078938.jpg[/net]. You can insert this into your own post (see //www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=129539

View media item 19992
quite a lot of dirt in there but otherwise looks OK. Out of interest you can lift the levers out one at a time and see what they are like on the rubbing surfaces. The design causes most dirt to fall away from the levers.

I suppose you have no covered escutcheon due to the lever latch handle set. You can get a draught stopper which stops dust blowing through, that fits under the handle set against the door. I bought one recently on ebay, "Keyhole Draught Excluder"

I take my outdoor locks off every 5 years or so to clean out and lube and touch up the paint round the keyholes.

 

[DC77]

All is now clear. The new picture is showing that the lock bolt is almost fully withdrawn. Put your thumb on the lever post and push the remaining bolt out of the lock case and your key will open it again.
A screwdriver in the curtain and turn, would have opened it. But I can not see how you managed to arrive at this situation. It is commonish for non curtained locks to bridge between locked and unlocked but I have never seen it happen on a curtained lock.
It is not that old you can tell by the straight stamping on the levers. Older levers have a curved stamping.
Out of curiosity how much did you have to pay?
DC
Teamlocksmiths

 

[agb]

Thanks DC
He sawed of about an eighth of an inch off the bolt to open the door.

Yes - I could push the bolt back, and now the key will operate it - but it wouldn't before I pushed it in
The locksmith was with me for 1hr 45min and fitted a new Union lock which has a significantly larger strike plate. I paid £95 and was well satisfied. Should I be?

 

[DC77]

Yes, sounds very a fair price to me.
DC
Teamlocksmiths