Euro cylinder lock won't fit

smulx

I just moved in to a new house and am changing the locks. I changed most of them just fine but am having issues with the french doors at the back. The cylinder I removed looks exactly the same size as the new one. If I lay them down, end to end, they look identical. But the new one just won't fit in the door. The metal bracket that holds the lock in place has a slight ridge and the new lock won't go past there. I've tried angling it different ways and put some WD40 on, but it just won't fit. Anyone know if there's anything I can do? Or if I might need a slightly different lock type. I took a picture to show what I mean - https://imgur.com/wE0xEnO

Thanks.

martinthebandit

Can you get the old lock back in?

smulx

Yeah, the old one is back in now.

martinthebandit

smulx wrote: »

Yeah, the old one is back in now.

Then either;
.....the new one is not identical to the old one, or;

.....your trying to fit it wrong way round, or;

......the new one should fit.

Are there any markings on the old lock?

Jackmydad

I thought they were all the same "end on" so to speak.
But I've only ever done my own.
I've had some that were really tight to fit though.
Have you compared old with new?
By measurement if you have some calipers.

martinthebandit

Jackmydad wrote: »

I thought they were all the same "end on" so to speak.
But I've only ever done my own.
I've had some that were really tight to fit though.
Have you compared old with new?
By measurement if you have some calipers.

Newer euro locks definitely have a right and wrong way round, there should be 'additional security measures' built into the bit that faces the outside.

Some even require the removal of the door handles to enable fitting

smulx

I tried fitting it both ways around from both sides of the door, but that didn't make any difference. There aren't really any markings on the old one. I assume you mean like indentations to ensure only that lock will fit in to the door. Here's a picture of them side by side - https://imgur.com/a/qq0syba

I don't have any callipers unfortunately, I just laid them down and closely checked the different dimensions and they appear identical. Obviously they aren't though, there must be one part that's slightly different. I assumed euro cylinders were all the same size so they could be easily changed. But if some have very slight differences in their dimensions, how am I meant to change them without having to use a trial and error approach?

Norman_Castle

The metal bracket that holds the lock in place has a slight ridge and the new lock won't go past there.

The screw holds it in place. The handles should fit around the lock. Possibly just a mismatch between lock and handles.

Try loosening the door handles before fitting it.

Mr.Generous

Norman_Castle wrote: »

The screw holds it in place. The handles should fit around the lock. Possibly just a mismatch between lock and handles.

Try loosening the door handles before fitting it.

Absolutely agree with Norman, loosen the handles and it'll suddenly fit, then tighten them again.

smulx

I forgot to mention, I did try that too. I ended up taking the handle off completely so I could get a better look at the metal bracket. I still couldn't get it to go in though.

tacpot12

The next think to try is a different lock cylinder, perhaps from a different manufacturer. Or call a locksmith out to bring a selection of locks to see if they have one that will fit.