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The two holes that will accommodate the spindle should be bored out first, but only to a depth of about 7mm before boring the larger hole to the edge of the door for the body of the mortice latch. I recommend that the diameter of these two holes for the spindle be about 18mm, much larger than the thickness of the spindle. The reason for this larger hole is so as to accommodate the mechanism on the inside of the door handle, which, could restrict the movement of the handles if the holes are too small. When these two holes have been bored, preparations can be made for fitting the mortice latch into the door. The first step in doing this is to locate and mark the centre of the door thickness, and set the marking gauge to it, gauging a vertical line so that it crosses the horizontal line as shown here on the right.
The hole can now be bored into the edge of the door to receive the body of the mortice latch, which should be to a depth that is slightly deeper than the mortice latch body length. |
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The diameter of the wood bit required is usually about 22mm or slightly larger, but can vary depending on the type of latch used, so it's best to refer to the makers instruction for the recommended size.
Because the diameter of the hole is quite large in relation to the overall door thickness, care must be taken that the wood boring bit does not wander away from the centre line mark as it travels into the door. The danger being that there is only about 6mm left on either side of the hole, and if the wood bit is not kept in line, it could break through the side and ruin the door. |
With the hole now bored out to the correct diameter and depth, insert the mortice latch into the door, adjusting its position so that the centre of the spindle hole lines up horizontally with the two holes in the door face. Ensure too that the vertical line that was marked on to the door edge earlier with the marking gauge can be seen through the two screw holes in the forend of the mortice latch, all of which helps to centralises the latch both horizontally and vertically. With the mortice latch held in this position, using a sharp pencil, draw around the forend outlining its position. After removing the mortice latch, use a square to define the top and bottom horizontal lines, and a ruler to define the two vertical lines so that they are clear to work to.
The rectangular area within these pencil lines will need to be recessed to receive the forend of the mortice latch so that it sits flush to the door edge. Using a sharp chisel, carefully recess the edge of the door to the outline of the forend to a depth that is equal to the thickness of the metal. Using the two fixing screws, fix the mortice latch in place, making sure that it fits flush, not too deep or proud of the surface of the door edge.
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With the spindle inserted into one of the handles, push it through the door, positioning it so that is centrally located into the latch vertically and horizontally. Ensure too the the edge of the handle is parallel to the edge of the door before fitting two of the four screws at the top and bottom (at opposite corners) of the handle. Check that the handle has free movement before fitting the handle on the opposite side of the door. Before fitting the remaining four screws, check again that the both handles move freely.
Continued on page 3
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