38 • HISTORY & HERITAGE
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Guide to reproducing a 16th century church door lock
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FINDING A REPLACEMENT LOCK for a 16th century church door is like hunting for a needle in a haystack , nothing ever lines up . When asked to match a wooden cased deadlock on an old friary door , Trevor Stroud came up with a reproduction lock based on a Chubb 3G114E . Here , Trevor explains how …
“ The keep , metal strapping and escutcheon matched the existing lock on the opposite door of the old friary . The keyhole had to avoid the beading on the outside of the door .
“ From a well-seasoned , planed and prepared piece of oak purchased from my local wood turning shop , I marked out exactly where the key hole needed to be , this being the critical measurement .
Case Block
“ I then routed out with a plunge router the for-end of the 114 to a depth of 25mm , making sure it was exactly square to the oak block . The next step was to lay the body of the lock into the channel for the for-end and scribe around the lock case and then route out the shape to a depth of 23mm .
“ With the bolt thrown to its maximum , mark and route out the channel for the bolt , making sure the bolt sits nicely at the bottom of the routed channel .
Routing Details
“ With a piece of brass stock or , better still , an old B . S . bolt , which will have its anti-saw pins still in place , drill and tap both bolts making sure all is parallel and square . Join these with a length of studding . You can now adjust the front bolt to align with the face of the wooden lock case .
Internal Strapping Details
“ Now route out the remainder of the bolt channel making sure it is a perfect fit . Make up the strapping bars that hold the lock body in place and again route out the wooden case to allow these to fit snugly on to the 114 case . Also I like to have the front bolt work running on a strip of brass , which also needs flushing into the wooden case .
“ Once you have the 114 snugly fitted and the bolt work to the correct length , make sure there is no binding or slackness to the bolt work operation .
“ Make the keyhole , bend up the strapping for the wooden case and the keep , make or purchase the escutcheon .
External Metal Straps & Escutcheon
Finished Lock-case
“ Before final assembly , seal the whole of the wooden case and keep with finishing oil and thoroughly wax , this will not only preserve the case but also acts as a good lubricant for the bolt work .
“ To attach the lock to the door , four brass fixing screws are located under the black strapping ., the straps being held by eight brass panel pins on the top and bottom of the wooden case .
“ Longer keys are usually required . I find using rim keys or , in extreme cases , safe blanks , solves the problem .
“ The 114E loses its B . S . rating but , set in a substantial block of oak with a sizeable keep and strap , the 25mm bolt throw will withhold most attacks . But , as always , it is a compromise between the insurers , fire authority and conservationists .”
Time-honoured locksmith , Trevor Stroud , specialises in the servicing and reproduction of historical locks and keys . Although now semi-retired , he continues to work with ACME Locks and Keys of Canterbury , where he was first taught his trade by Michael Boty and John Frizelle . The three locksmiths worked as a team until John unfortunately passed away . John ’ s son Frazer now runs ACME and continues to work with Trevor .
LOCKSMITHJOURNAL . CO . UK | JAN / FEB 2017 Sponsored by Burg-Wächter