Mortise lock recommendations (anyone a locksmith?)

Fabrik8

Fabrik8

Overcomplicator
Joined
May 27, 2015
Location
Huntersville
I've been watching a lot of international TV shows, and have noticed that mortise locks are very common in Europe, because I notice nerdy details like that. I know that in this country, mortise locks are fairly rare for anything but commercial/institutional and high-end residential (or very old houses before cylindrical locks were invented). I also know that they're much more secure than the average cylindrical lock. We'll be getting new entrance doors at some point, so I starting thinking about this.

Are there any brands that lend themselves to normal residential use, for example something other than a $500 Emtek residential set (which are beautiful but too expensive)? I know mortise locks are decently expensive compared to the normal Schlage/Kwikset/Baldwin cylindrical locks, but there has to be a large price range if mortise locks are so common in Europe for general residential.

I'm mostly thinking about things like handleset style, for a front door, etc., versus the normal commercial stuff which would make your house feel like a doctors office or dormitory.
 
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I googled mortise lock and found some under $100. Quality is unknown and might be made in China. Quality of wood in the door would be a consideration since a large hole is necessary
 
I got one for my sliding shop door from Lytten locksmith in Gastonia. It's just the deadbolt on mine, but they had other options. They had quite a few in stock, and the guy I talked to was super knowledgeable. Mine was special order because I was fitting it in a piece or rectangular steel tubing that was 1.5"x3" so I couldn't use the normal offset. I highly recommend swinging by and talking with them. They know locks better than anyone else around.
 
Chris_Keziah said:
Trilennium by Endura Products.
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I'll check them out in-depth, I poked around for a few minutes. I see they're a local company, so that's very attractive. They use Emtek hardware for some of the stuff, which I already like.

BetterDoor.com is a local distributor; any idea if that is a direct sales outlet for the same company? Endura and BetterDoor are both in Colfax...
Edit: I see they're listed as an "online retail partner" so probably directly affiliated. No problem there, just curious about the connection.
 
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I’d be more interested in the strength of your door jamb than the security of the lock itself. once the jamb is upgraded, then consider upgrading your lock set.
 
rockcity said:
I’d be more interested in the strength of your door jamb than the security of the lock itself. once the jamb is upgraded, then consider upgrading your lock set.
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It all has to change with a new door and a mortise lock, because the striker, etc, is completely different.
 
Fabrik8 said:
I'll check them out in-depth, I poked around for a few minutes. I see they're a local company, so that's very attractive. They use Emtek hardware for some of the stuff, which I already like.

BetterDoor.com is a local distributor; any idea if that is a direct sales outlet for the same company? Endura and BetterDoor are both in Colfax...
Edit: I see they're listed as an "online retail partner" so probably directly affiliated. No problem there, just curious about the connection.
Click to expand...

BetterDoor.com is Endura's homeowner retail store so to speak. I work for Endura on the manufacturing side so if you have any questions just shoot me a pm.

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So the Endura stuff is pretty cool, but doesn't save any money over a Emtek mortise set. If my math is correct, $250-ish for the multi-point lock assembly, $170 or Emtek multi-point trim (third party supplier) and then the wild card of the router template kit (pricing unknown). You do end up with a badass product in the end though, so there's that...
 
Chris_Keziah said:
BetterDoor.com is Endura's homeowner retail store so to speak. I work for Endura on the manufacturing side so if you have any questions just shoot me a pm.
Click to expand...

Very cool, I will definitely do that when I get a chance. The local aspect is a pretty strong selling point for me, given the available options.
 
I would do some research into a mul-t-lock core, or like an abloy. Those seem to be pretty solid.

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However if you lose your key and need to pay a locksmith to pick the lock, you might be s.o.l.

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