Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.


--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

On Jul 25, 1:32*pm, David Nebenzahl wrote:
On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.

--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

Excuse my lack of terminology and thanks for the quick reply!

Latch and strike. Got it!

Ah yes, that makes sense - the jambs and house moving over time.

That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.

"meatnub" wrote in message
...
On Jul 25, 1:32 pm, David Nebenzahl wrote:
On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the
latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.

--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

Excuse my lack of terminology and thanks for the quick reply!

Latch and strike. Got it!

Ah yes, that makes sense - the jambs and house moving over time.

That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.

--

it's frequently hard to drill new holes if they are close to the existing
holes. you have to plug the existing holes with something. glue in a golf
tee or dowel, let harden overnight, and drill the new holes in the correct
place..

On Jul 25, 11:23*am, meatnub wrote:
Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

Easier could be file the hole on the strike a bit larger , chisel a
bit, or not, and keep screws in same location.

On Jul 25, 2:16*pm, "charlie"
wrote:
"meatnub" wrote in message

...
On Jul 25, 1:32 pm, David Nebenzahl wrote:





On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the
latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.

--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

Excuse my lack of terminology and thanks for the quick reply!

Latch and strike. Got it!

Ah yes, that makes sense - the jambs and house moving over time.

That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.

--

it's frequently hard to drill new holes if they are close to the existing
holes. you have to plug the existing holes with something. glue in a golf
tee or dowel, let harden overnight, and drill the new holes in the correct
place..- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

true. i will have to see .. hopefully not...

On Jul 25, 2:35*pm, ransley wrote:
On Jul 25, 11:23*am, meatnub wrote:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

Easier could be file the hole on the strike a bit larger , chisel a
bit, or not, and keep screws in same location.

i was thinking - would they sell strikes that might have wider opening
so i could just replace old with new use same screw holes?

charlie wrote:

"meatnub" wrote in message
...
On Jul 25, 1:32 pm, David Nebenzahl wrote:

On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:


Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the
latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.

--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken


Excuse my lack of terminology and thanks for the quick reply!

Latch and strike. Got it!

Ah yes, that makes sense - the jambs and house moving over time.

That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.

--

it's frequently hard to drill new holes if they are close to the existing
holes. you have to plug the existing holes with something. glue in a golf
tee or dowel, let harden overnight, and drill the new holes in the correct
place..



If misalignment of the latch and strike is what's the problem, they
might be just a little way from engaging OK.

If so, you may be able to remove the strike plate and file its opening
longer on the correct end, then reinstall it without having to chisel
anything more than a bit of the wood on one end of the hole behind it.

I've done it that way myself several times. Take a look see and maybe
you can do it that way.

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

Or- looking at the latch end of the equation:
If the strike is in a part of the door frame that you don't want to mess
with, for some reason, you could also attack the other end of the problem.

If the door is not level because of the house settling, you could shim the
hinge(s).

"meatnub" wrote in message
...
Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

meatnub wrote:
On Jul 25, 2:35 pm, ransley wrote:
On Jul 25, 11:23 am, meatnub wrote:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with
apparently original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the
techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard
you push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob
tongue (the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb
recess metal thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

Easier could be file the hole on the strike a bit larger , chisel a
bit, or not, and keep screws in same location.

i was thinking - would they sell strikes that might have wider opening
so i could just replace old with new use same screw holes?

No, but if you remove the strike plate, it might be a simple matter to
enlarge the hole, either top or bottom, depending on where the latch is
hitting.

On Jul 25, 2:58*pm, "HeyBub" wrote:
meatnub wrote:
On Jul 25, 2:35 pm, ransley wrote:
On Jul 25, 11:23 am, meatnub wrote:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with
apparently original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the
techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard
you push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob
tongue (the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb
recess metal thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

Easier could be file the hole on the strike a bit larger , chisel a
bit, or not, and keep screws in same location.

i was thinking - would they sell strikes that might have wider opening
so i could just replace old with new use same screw holes?

No, but if you remove the strike plate, it might be a simple matter to
enlarge the hole, either top or bottom, depending on where the latch is
hitting.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Well, good advice all around from everyone, much appreciated. I'll
post a follow up after I get around to it this weekend.

And thanks for the civilized responses! I never know with some of
these newsgroups.

On 7/25/2008 11:58 AM HeyBub spake thus:

meatnub wrote:

On Jul 25, 2:35 pm, ransley wrote:

On Jul 25, 11:23 am, meatnub wrote:

What do i do to repair this?

Easier could be file the hole on the strike a bit larger , chisel a
bit, or not, and keep screws in same location.

i was thinking - would they sell strikes that might have wider opening
so i could just replace old with new use same screw holes?

No, [...]

Actually, not true. Yes, you can't walk into a hardware store (at least
not most of them) and expect to find a strike that has a bigger opening
than the one you have. But depending on where you are, there may be
places that do sell such things. F'rinstance, 'round heah (Berkeley),
there's a place (Ohmega Salvage) that has lots of stuff from and for old
houses, and I've actually bought just what you were asking about there,
a strike with a larger opening. Some second-hand building supply places
may also have such things.

And yes, as has been suggested, if it's only a little out of alignment,
say 1/8" or so, then you can just file the strike. Been there, done that.


--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

Make sure the screws in the hinges aren't loose letting the door to
sage.

Jerry




http://community.webtv.net/awoodbutc...oodWorkingPage

On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:05:09 -0400, (Jerry -
OHIO) wrote:

Make sure the screws in the hinges aren't loose letting the door to
sage.

Jerry

A long screw will pull the jamb over, but will never prevent "sage".

Jerry - OHIO wrote:
Make sure the screws in the hinges aren't loose letting the door to
sage.

Jerry




http://community.webtv.net/awoodbutc...oodWorkingPage

11th reply, and the first one to get it right- always check the simple
(and cheap) stuff first, like loose or stripped-out screwholes. If the
screws are loose, and won't tighten down, get a little longer screw, and
jam a toothpick in there before you replace the screw. Do 1 screw at a time.

--
aem sends...

Phone book. Locks and locksmiths.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"meatnub" wrote in message
...
Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:16:20 -0700, "charlie"
wrote:


That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.

--

it's frequently hard to drill new holes if they are close to the existing
holes. you have to plug the existing holes with something. glue in a golf
tee

This could be expensive. First you have to join a golf club and
that's hundreds of dollars, thousands for a really fancy one.

or dowel, let harden overnight, and drill the new holes in the correct
place..

Yeah, He needs to call a lock smith.
"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
...
Phone book. Locks and locksmiths.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.


"meatnub" wrote in message
...
Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

On Jul 25, 1:04*pm, meatnub wrote:
On Jul 25, 1:32*pm, David Nebenzahl wrote:



On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.

--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

Excuse my lack of terminology and thanks for the quick reply!

Latch and strike. Got it!

Ah yes, that makes sense - the jambs and house moving over time.

That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.

If all the good advice you have here doesn't work, you may have to
make your own new strike plate. Easy done with a hack saw, drill and
countersink and file,. For material stop by a sheet metal shop and
scrounge a piece of .060" stainless steel. Scribe the outline of the
old strike plate on it, scribe a new location for the latch opening,
cut, trim, file to fit and install in the old location. Spray paint it
with Rustoleum brass if esthetics are vital. Used this scheme many
times in old houses with significant success...

Joe

Joe wrote:
On Jul 25, 1:04 pm, meatnub wrote:

On Jul 25, 1:32 pm, David Nebenzahl wrote:




On 7/25/2008 9:23 AM meatnub spake thus:

Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

First of all, terminology: the parts of the door you seem to be
concerned with here are the latch (the thingy that sticks out of the
door) and the strike (the metal plate that's supposed to receive the latch.

Hard to tell for sure from your description (pictures might help), but
it's possible that the problem is that the latch isn't aligned correctly
with the strike. This is the most common problem with doors that no
longer close correctly: the house has moved over time, and the jamb,
which carries the strike, has moved it out of range of the latch.

Pretty easy to tell if this is the case: hunker down so your eyes are
level with the latch. Close the door and see where the latch hits on the
strike. If it's missing the openings in the strike, then that's your
problem.

*If* this is the problem, the usual solution is to move the strike (not
the latch, which would be much harder to do). Remove the strike, mark
the new location, chisel out a new mortise for it, drill new pilot holes
for the screws, screw it back in.

--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

Excuse my lack of terminology and thanks for the quick reply!

Latch and strike. Got it!

Ah yes, that makes sense - the jambs and house moving over time.

That's what I thought I would have to do - remove the strike and
chisel a new opening in the strike. I've been a little hesitant in
doing this, but I think since all I have to do is move the strike 1/4
of an inch or so, hopefully I won't have to chisel that much and make
things worse. Though I don't think I can do much harm, as long as I
don't chisel where the strike needs to be screwed in.


If all the good advice you have here doesn't work, you may have to
make your own new strike plate. Easy done with a hack saw, drill and
countersink and file,. For material stop by a sheet metal shop and
scrounge a piece of .060" stainless steel. Scribe the outline of the
old strike plate on it, scribe a new location for the latch opening,
cut, trim, file to fit and install in the old location. Spray paint it
with Rustoleum brass if esthetics are vital. Used this scheme many
times in old houses with significant success...

Joe

I have actually found sources for vintage looking strike plates. I
wanted some to match the existing in my house because I didn't want to
have to redo all the door jambs (a lot of doors were removed by a
previous owner, but the frames were still intact. Also a couple strike
plates were missing on installed doors.) I don't remember where I found
them from, but there were at least two different sizes/shapes, and mine
apparently was less common. I can find out if it helps though, the
extras are still in the envelope that they came in.

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel

On Jul 25, 12:23*pm, meatnub wrote:
Wife and I moved into an 60 year old (or so) row home with apparently
original door knob closures. Sorry don't know the techinical word.

The door or the knobs are out of alignment, and no matter how hard you
push the door against the door jamb, you can't get the doorknob tongue
(the metal part that sticks out) to go into the doorjamb recess metal
thingy (the part where the doorknob tongue goes into).

The previous owners put those brass looking doorknobs with crystal
clear doorknobs and brass plates... but never did anything about the
doorknob part on the doorjamb itself.

What do i do to repair this?

Update:

I found that for our main bedroom door, the problem is that the door
the latch is in, is about 1/4 to 1/2 inch away from the strike &
doorjamb. So that about an 1/8" or so tip of the latch barely sits in
the strike. The other problem is, the doorjamb seems to be pushing on
the door, so that when you close the door (and you have to kind of
REALLY push on it to close for the latch to enter the strike), since
the latch isn't all the way in the strike, the counter-force from the
doorjamb pushes the door and forces the latch out of the strike
causing the door to re-open in a heartbeat.

So.. what to do? I either have to find a doorknob assembly with a
longer latch that will rest deeper in the strike or i have to find a
way to make the strike sit out further from the doorjamb? Or take the
door off the hinges and rework it so it's closer to the strike/
doorjamb? (don't like/think i need to do this last option)

Thanks in advance...