Key Doesn't Turn Properly in Dor-O-Matic Exit Device

I'm going to have to say it. The Dor-O-Matic 1690 exit device is built cheap, sold cheap, and needs ongoing care in order to work properly. You have loose and lost screws, caps falling off, pinion gears breaking, and dogging shafts stripping out like butter under a hot knife. I've made a lot of money servicing these devices as a result. If you're a handyman, you can, too - as long as you know the tricks.

If your key doesn't work properly in your Dor-O-Matic bar, it could be one of two things.

1. Your key cylinder and/or your key is worn out. Lock cylinders use soft brass pins (tumblers) and the action of the key against them is like a saw on wood. The key is a poor copy, or the cylinder pins are worn out, if you insert your key and it doesn't turn unless you jiggle it. Also, the lock cylinders that come with these devices are of the poorest, cast-metal quality. If this is the problem, you need a new RIM CYLINDER, or you can call the locksmith to re-key the cylinder with new tumblers.

2. The pinion gear is broken and is slipping, or the rack and lifting mechanism have slipped away from the lifting rods. Sometimes the latter happens because the cover of the device has lost a screw and it is loose. The cover of the Dor-O-Matic is made so that it holds everything in place - quite an engineering marvel, if you ask nobody.

What you will need.

A Phillip's driver and a new pinion gear. You can find the gear online. Just do a search for Dor-O-Matic parts. The gear is a small round gear. Also, buy a new plastic bushing while you're at it. In fact, if you have lots of these doors, by a few pinion gears and bushings, and get a couple of hex-key dogging shafts and extra screws for the caps. Don't buy the entire dogging mechanism. They seldom break.

Let's fix number 2.

1. Remove the cap. Here is what you will see. The top screw will allow yo to remove an arm which has a hole in it, through which the pinion gear stem passes. This arm holds the pinion gear in place and keeps it from moving out of position. The bottom screw, once removed, allows you to remove the lifter. Once the screw is removed, just work out the lifter.

Picture 1

2. After you remove the pinion arm and the lifter, here is what you have. See picture number two. Look at the very top of the entire lifting mechanism. You will see a round piece of metal with a hole in it. Also, at the very bottom, there is another hole, which you cannot see. These are the top and bottom lifting rods. Now, look in the very center of the picture and you will see the pinion gear. In this picture, you will see a little rust on it. Notice that, around the pinion gear, you see a rack with teeth on the right side running up and down. When you remove the cover and see your door configured this way, with the pinion gear AT THE TOP OF THE RACK, it means that your door can be left locked or unlocked by key. That means that, if you put the key into the outside cylinder, you can turn your key 360 degrees and pull it out, and the door will stay unlocked. Turn it the other way, and it will stay locked. That, then, would be called the classroom function - lock or unlock by key.

While we are here, I am going to teach you to make it so that the key will unlock the lock and allow a person to enter, but, when he removes his key, the door will lock back behind him. By using this trick, there is no chance somebody will accidentally leave the door unlocked. Usually, this is used on churches.

Picture 2

To make this lock always lock back, simply remove the entire lifting package, which consists of the rack and the housing in which the rack sits. (You can leave the pinion gear in if it is not broken.  If it is broken, worn or missing teeth, which is why your key isn't working properly, replace it. Note - there is a usually a flat spot on the pinon gear. Install it face up!)

Now, with the lifting package removed, reinstall the pinion gear, but with the pinion gear coming to rest about one third of the way down in the rack. Actually, the pinion gear will stay where it is. You will be moving the rack up just a bit. Now, when someone uses a key to come in, their key will lift the rods, unlock the door, and go back into lock down mode automatically when the key is removed.

Once you have installed your pinion gear, reinstall the lifting package. Then, reinstall the pinion arm and lifter in the same way you removed them. The lifter takes a little effort to put into place, but it's easy to do. Just play with it.

Picture 3

Just FYI. In picture 3, I am touching the pinion gear. The two pan head screws you see are holding the lock cylinder in place. If you ever over-tighten them, they could break through the aluminum! Also, below the pinion gear, you can see two other Phillip's screws. If these are loose, be sure to tighten them. Just grab the bar and move the device. If there is movement, tighten them. Looseness here could also be effecting your bar's operation.

And, while you're at it, if the front of the push bar itself, the floating part of the bar, is really loose and looks like it is coming off the stationary part of the bar, remove the end cap. Look inside and ONLY LOOSEN the two screws holding the end of the bar onto the door, and remove the device from the door. Carefully flip the device over. When you do, you will see a number of Phillip's screws. These screws hold the bar together. Tighten them. If you are missing any - be sure to order the right screws. You cannot put just any screw in those screw holes! In fact, you are better off if you order a few of these to keep in your kit.

Well, that's it. One more note, though. The rack part of the lifter can go on with the teeth on the right or left. All that will effect is which way the key will turn.

This is really easy to do. Just take pictures of every step you take. Then, if you get lost, you can find you way again! If you think about it, there really aren't that many parts involved.