Good doorlocks

[Tommy T.]

12 hours ago, earthdome said:

If they are the same brand of door lock you may be able to get a kit to make them all the same. I did that a few years ago when I installed new doors. If you get the kit read the instructions very well because some of the lock components are spring loaded and it is a huge PITA to get them back in if they pop out. I did this with Schlage locks.

Good suggestion, thanks! I will also ask at the door-lock shop to see if something like matched lock sets can be ordered.

Thanks also for the comment about spring loaded parts. I took apart some steering equipment on the yacht for maintenance and did not read the instructions carefully and suddenly about 20 little needle bearings jumped out at me and scattered all over the cabin. It took me half an hour just to find them, and the springs THEN had to figure out how to re-install... A sailor's nightmare!

[hk blues]

1 hour ago, jimeve said:

Fingerprint locks, Jeez. we have the top of the range padlocks.

I guess they have to justify the astronomical house prices somehow Jim!

Here is the other extreme though - I'm always surprised that owners in my subdivision don't change the locks when they move in - i saw how many keys were being passed from contractor to contractor. 

[Tommy T.]

On 1/18/2020 at 4:18 PM, hk blues said:

I'm always surprised that owners in my subdivision don't change the locks when they move in - i saw how many keys were being passed from contractor to contractor. 

L owns some apartments she leases out. When she had some that she had to evict due to noise and improper rubbish disposal, late payments...and on and on, I suggested that she install new locks. They really are not expensive and it's an easy replacement. She admitted she had not really considered that before. In USA that's standard procedure for many rental apartments - or to just re-key the locks...

[Tommy T.]

On 1/10/2020 at 4:10 AM, Viking said:

There is both showrooms and stores not very far from the location of our house in Manila, so you don´t need to go to your local branch and ask any questions, but thank you very much for offering your assistance 

Well today I visited Hafele to look at door latch kits for our home. The only brand that they carried in their store here was their Hafele brand. However their online catalog showed more brands, like the Assa. The ones I looked at were solid and seemed well-made to me - possibly as good as the Assa I had before in USA. I reserved three each of the lockable and keyed inside door latches and the CR type security latches - all told the price will be just a tad over P10,000. We will probably get the Yale/Assa outside door locks at Wilcon for about P12,000 each... We both prefer the European-style lever handles over the knob version - so easy to open with an elbow when the arms are loaded with stuff.

Edited extra comment: the store here said they can order stock from the main Hafele supply which is in Manila - so you should be in good shape when you arrive here and start looking for hardware.

I also visited Ace hardware today and was underwhelmed - they did carry a couple of the high-end Yale/Assa, but mostly they looked to me like rather low-grade, cheap, local products with brand names that are totally unfamiliar... Which, of course are more affordable to most people here and do a passable job - they just don't last as long as some of the others...

Yesterday, L and I went to Wilcon and looked at latches there also. They carried much more variety, but a lot of it was cheap local brands or cheap foreign brands that felt sloppy and loose to the touch...no thanks. But they carried a decent collection of the Yale Assa Abaloy brand, which you mentioned before. Not all Yale locks are Assa, just some of them. In particular, they had a really nice "High Security" outside door lock using special keys with side as well as standard pin configurations - all on one key. These were half to one third the price of the electronic card/fingerprint/code lock systems - and they had two locks - the standard one on the latch itself, and a deadbolt. We asked one of the sales staff to inquire about the possibility of ordering two sets that would use the same key, but have not heard back yet. I will follow up about that once I learn the answer.

 

Edited January 20, 2020 by Tommy T.
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[jimeve]

3 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

or to just re-key the locks...

Is that same as changing the barrel of the lock?

[Jollygoodfellow]

On 1/16/2020 at 7:34 AM, Tommy T. said:

there seem to be no locksmiths

I had one unlock my condo door once. Took about 10 seconds and P500.

[Gary D]

We paid about 5k each for our Yale lock sets. I think it was from Allhomes.

[Tommy T.]

1 hour ago, jimeve said:

Is that same as changing the barrel of the lock?

Best to ask that of a locksmith. But I believe the same barrel can be used and just the pins inside can be re-arranged? And I guess it depends on the quality of the lock and availability of parts? For a cheap lock here, it's probably not worth it - just buy a new set...I know they are fairly cheap. But you get what you pay for.

Edited January 20, 2020 by Tommy T.

[Tommy T.]

1 hour ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

I had one unlock my condo door once. Took about 10 seconds and P500.

Thanks JGF... I should re-phrase - I have not found any locksmiths here in Davao City. P500 can be well worth it, depending on the cost of the original lockset - and the cost and hassle of breaking into your own dwelling! 

[Tommy T.]

On 1/9/2020 at 4:17 AM, Viking said:

Assa Abloy is a well known brand here in Sweden, that was actually what I had on my mind to bring with me, but if I can find it there, all is good 

Here is an update on my lock progress...

I went to Wilcon again (soon I will need to just move there or camp out) today. At L's urging I looked at the lever handle door locks there and found exactly the style we both liked. They are Yale brand, but say Assa Abloy underneath the Yale name. I tried them in their sample board and they all felt fairly solid and mechanically sound.

So I bought all we needed - 4 with keyed lock entry for bedrooms and roof deck, 3 with "privacy" locks for the CR's. With a 10% off sale price, it was about 8k for the lot. That is 2k cheaper than the Hafele brand I looked at yesterday of which we did not like the design as much.

L also suggested that I ask about the secure key locks for the front and back doors. These are also Yale Assa Abloy and seem fairly heavy duty. They have keys with the side dimples rather than the usual vertical notched keys. They do not exactly match the others in colour (more golden brass rather than "antique" brass, which is a bit more blue-grey), but close enough. They only had three left in stock and were phasing them out because people did not like that they could not be duplicated by the key copier shops. Exactly! That's what I wanted. So I bought two for about 10k each with the 10% sale discount. L was not with me but checked them out later and was very pleased, too, with the design and quality.