How to Cut Out the Door Plate in a Frame: Strike Plate Installation 101

There are several ways to mark the hole for the latch on your door frame. First, close the door until the protruding latch hits the door frame, and use a pencil to outline the shape of the latch against the frame. 

Cover the end of the latch in an even layer of blue toothpaste, then close the door. Make sure the latch extends and hits the frame, locking the door if you need to. This effectively stamps the toothpaste into the frame at the exact location you need to cut. Open your door, and take note of the toothpaste mark.

Next, you’re going to trace a stencil for your cuts. Take your strike plate and position it over the marking for the latch hole. The marking should be in the center of the plate. Hold the plate in place, then use your pencil to trace the outline of the plate onto the door frame. Make sure you also trace around the inside of the plate. This is the guide you’ll use to drill the latch hole.

The latch hole has to be the correct depth, or your door won’t completely lock. To get this figure, lock the latch with the door open (so it’s sticking out of the door). Use a tape measure to measure the depth of the latch (from the edge of the door to the tip of the latch). This will be the depth of the latch hole. Alternatively, you can use a tool to measure the depth of the latch hole in the door frame.

Set your drill to the depth you measured in the previous step. Next, find the center of the guide you traced for your strike plate. Use your 7/8-inch drill bit to drill two overlapping holes into the door frame, one centered above the midpoint and one centered below the midpoint of the guide. 

Once drilled, the latch hole should fill most of the space within the inner guideline, but you may need to clean up your cut. Use your smaller chisel to square off the edges of the hole so they match the guidelines.

Before you cut the hole for the door plate (the door plate mortise), make sure the latch works properly. Close your door and lock it. The latch should completely lock. If it’s difficult to lock or gets stuck, use a chisel to fine-tune the hole until the latch fits.

Use the sharp edge of your larger chisel to score the outline of the mortise along the outer edge of your strike plate stencil. Then, carefully chisel away the wood inside the stencil to the same thickness as your door plate.

It’s important to use the right chisel technique when cutting a mortise. Dig the chisel into the door frame horizontally to create a ridge that’s the correct thickness. From there, wedge your chisel into the ridge and dig out the excess wood. Repeat the process every 1/3 to 1/4 inch until you’ve dug out the entire mortise at the correct depth.

The strike plate should fit right into the mortise. To install it, put the strike plate in place and use a pencil to mark the location of the screw holes. Remove the plate and drill pilot holes over the marks using your 3/32-inch drill bit. Install the plate by screwing it into the door frame.