How To On Striker Plates

KentWhitten

I have been given the job of installing locksets on this job I'm doing. Good news is I blew right through installing the actual door handles and strikers. Bad news is now here. The striker plates. They were not done properly on the jambs and the doors are now installed, not that it would make much of a difference.

I have a hinge mate that will not do it...cuz it's fer hinges LOL. But I'm wondering if there is such a tool for the strikers. This has to saddle I guess over the jamb stop, but I'm lost. I'm thinking in a desperate attempt at making just a wood one for now. I have a router with the bearing bit. It's the quickest way for me.

And the only reason I'm asking really is I have over 200 to do, so now I need some production baby!

Any help from you door guys would be appreciative. BTW, these are cheapo Chinese things with odd striker plate dimensions and the tolerance for the hole is not much.

Thanks

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If you correct your mind, the rest of your life will fall into place ~Lao Tzu

Custom Cabinetry - Portland, Cape Elizabeth, Scarborough, Kennebunkport, Yarmouth, Falmouth, Cumberland, Ogunquit, Maine

Salmon Falls Cabinetry

mdshunk

http://www.amazon.com/Woodhaven-8580.../dp/B000JJJDBY

Tom R

I don't know of one, - - although I'm sure there's one out there, - - but yeah, - - I would just go ahead and make one slightly oversized according to the size of your guide.

Two-pieces forming an L-shape made of MDF screwed together would work fine, - - with two finish nails that get tapped into the edge of the jamb as holding-pins. Make them so they tap in where the casings will automatically cover the holes. If they need to be rounded at the corners start off by drilling out the corners first with the proper diameter (according to the radius) speed bit first, - - then cut your straights.

Actually, - - now that I think about it, - - I think I may have seen cheap plastic ones made by (Porter Cable??) in the box stores in the router section of the tool department.

I would still just make them myself, though, - - especially if, like you say, - - they're some weird size.

dougchips

Int or ext doors? Are the jams bare or did the factory try to drills the holes?

We find with most production doors that we have to take out about 1/8-1/4 towards the outside, if it makes any sense.

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firemike

Porter Cable makes (made?) a cheap plastic one that nailed on the jamb and fit most popular plate sizes. They were less than $15 I think, and were fairly accurate, had inserts for the different sizes. I seem to lose/misplace them before I wear them out, but they work nicely.

Home Depot and Lowes sell them as far as I know, haven't bought one in a year or so though.

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-Mike-

KentWhitten

Ah sorry, more info was needed. These are interior prefinished (cough) cherry with casing already on. I've got these odd chinese strike plates. They're taller than ones you normally use, a good 4" I would guess.

The builders got a deal on them, can't imagine why LOL. The jambs have a spot where they routed out a tiny, tiny bit...very shallow, so it wasn't really worth their time or mine for them to do that.

I figured I would have a tough time finding an adjustable one to accommodate it, so I was assuming I would be making my own tomorrow. Hoping that Rockler or Woodcraft might, but Rockler only had the porter cable one. Not quite going to work, but close.

Thanks for the help.

__________________
If you correct your mind, the rest of your life will fall into place ~Lao Tzu

Custom Cabinetry - Portland, Cape Elizabeth, Scarborough, Kennebunkport, Yarmouth, Falmouth, Cumberland, Ogunquit, Maine

Salmon Falls Cabinetry

Tom R

Framerman, - - you can still make it with just enough of a lip to wrap the reveal and still pin it.

or, - - if you don't want the pin-holes . . .

Instead of pinning it you can make it extra tall and hold it in place with one hand, - - and use a laminate router in the other (because it's smaller and easy to control with one hand).

Good luck and let us know . . .

Mike Finley

What Tom said.

200 calls for a custom made jig if you can't find a premade one.

send_it_all

Or you can use two sided tape or possibly even velcro. I would apply some blue painter's tape to the jamb, then stick the 2 sided tape or velcro to that rather than sticking it straight to the jamb.

go do it

i must be missing some thing.

why complicate it with power tools.

set the stricker plate in place and CUT around with a sharp utility knife and then chisel out the excess.

i have done BILLIONS of doors this way, take about 2 min. maybe one min.

like i said i must be missing something for you guys to suggest a router.

because by the time a router jig is set i would be finished

Tom R

Yes, you are missing something, - - it's 200 doors.

I'll make the jig and have 'em all done when you're at about 50, tops.

And it'll be a neater job.

go do it

i don't know about that

time is time

setting a jig has got to take 1 min. and i would be done befor the router gets turned on.

and some pretty intricate work can be done with hand tools, with less chance of the router going haywire and ruining a door.

especially when the door is already hung

Tom R

I wouldn't set the jig, - - I'd make it long and hold it with one hand and route with the other.

The router would have a hard time going haywire, - - the bit stays within the jig.

So you're telling me I can walk in any door factory in America and there'll be guys there chiseling out striker plate mortises because it's faster that way??

I don't doubt at all you're an expert at what you do, - - and I'm sure you're faster than most with all your experience, - - but most guys (including myself), - - would be able to go faster overall with a jig and a router.


P.S. And by the way, - - anybody trying it should do the jamb-edge itself on the first pass with the router running in the opposite direction from normal (right to left), - - so you don't chance a blow-out sliver on your reveal.

go do it

So you're telling me I can walk in any door factory in America and there'll be guys there chiseling out striker plate mortises because it's faster that way??

the doors are not hung in a factory

and how much time savings are we crying about?

if i take 2 min. and a router takes 1.5 min. 1 1/2 hrs. maybe less

maybe iam getting lazy but dragging a round all the cords and routers and junk to ME it would be easier to do it by hand.

and anyway you can't hear the radio with that damn router going!!

In_Mexifornia

http://www.templaco.com/

go do it

thanks for the pic in mexifornia

but the painter will charge for the 400 screw holes to fill

of course the router will work and probably faster but not much

to mater to me personaly.

it would still be a days work no matter how it is done

all's well

framerman try a couple with a chisel and report back

Tom R

Just don't tell your customers you're a 'chiseler' . . .

In_Mexifornia

The templaco templates only leave a small pin size hole.

KentWhitten

OK, lol wow, did I start something?

I gotta say, I'm a production whore and I would never ever do anything unless it was at least the fastest way of doing the best job. I cannot do chisels very good personally, so I opt for the router and in this instance it worked great.

This is what I started with. Interior doors with hardly anything really for a striker plate. Check out the gasket on the doors. What in hell China was thinking on these LOL. Anyway, I figured I could just nail something to the face of the door stop. I hate doing it, but these guys don't care much. No nail holes need to be filled. I can't understand the thinking, but it ain't my building.



I just wanted something I could nail quick to the door stop and luckily for me I had I had the type of door stop I could nail a guide to. This is what I thought of this weekend. Quick and simple. Made it in about a minute or two. Nuthin' fancy. Pay no attention to the dirty fingernails.



All I did was drag around my little 1/4" hose from room to room and brad nail it on. Just 2 nails, not a bazillion like it shows LOL. I had previously went through and marked everything in one sweep. I exaggerated a little on the count, but there will be 200 doors TOTAL. 100 this floor and one hundred (or so) next floor.



And this is the finish product. After I routed it out, I used my fancy shmansy corner chisel, then I predrilled the two screwholes with my fancy auto centerer drill bit LOL. Whatever it's called. Then I marked all the strikers for boring out for the actual striker, then I went around and drilled and drilled and drilled, then I went to town cleaning it out with a (gasp!) chisel which I previously said I kinda suck at it so I didn't want anyone to see. Cheap Chinese striker plates were paper thin. You can bend them quite easily.

__________________
If you correct your mind, the rest of your life will fall into place ~Lao Tzu

Custom Cabinetry - Portland, Cape Elizabeth, Scarborough, Kennebunkport, Yarmouth, Falmouth, Cumberland, Ogunquit, Maine

Salmon Falls Cabinetry

WNYcarpenter

Am I wrong? Depending on the strike, I'd be willing to guess the strikes are square...Even when you do route out the material you still need, at best, a corner chisel and a hand chisel to finish the job... If you're doubling the size of the mortise, than a router, IMO, would be the fastest, and cleanest.

I was a little slow in posting....there you have it!