Design Hardware Full Surface - Heavy Duty Continuous Geared Hinges

A full surface continuous geared hinge mounts to the face of the door and the face of the frame, so nothing has to be routed or morticed in. That makes it the choice on retrofit work and on doors you don't want to machine. Full mortise sits in the hinge pocket for a flush look and is usually the new-construction pick. Design Hardware builds this heavy duty geared line in both full mortise and full surface, so you can match the mounting condition you actually have.

That is what a continuous geared hinge is for. It carries the door's weight along the full height of the opening instead of at three or four butt hinge points, which is why sagging doors and worn hinge pockets get fixed with one. This Design Hardware unit is rated heavy duty for commercial use and runs 32 self lubricating concealed bearings per hinge, so there is nothing to grease on a maintenance route.

The Design Hardware Full Surface heavy duty continuous geared hinge is a heavy duty aluminum geared hinge built on 6063 T6 aluminum alloy with 32 self lubricating concealed bearings, offered in 83 inch and 95 inch stock lengths. For a full surface geared hinge carrying a stated fire rating, the BEST 664HD is a heavy duty full surface continuous geared hinge with a 90 minute UL fire rating, and the NGP HD5700 is an 83 inch full surface continuous geared hinge rated 10C fire rated 90 minute on hollow metal with a 1/16 inch door inset for 1-3/4 inch to 2-1/4 inch doors. All three mount full surface, so the leaf geometry is comparable; the difference is the published fire rating on the BEST and NGP parts.

The Design Hardware heavy duty continuous geared hinge in the full surface configuration applies to the face of the door and frame. Where the opening is prepped for a mortised hinge instead, full mortise geared hinges include the ABH A120HD heavy duty aluminum continuous gear hinge with Easy Install Technology, the Pemko FM-RG Series Grade 1 aluminum full mortise raised geared hinge with 180 degree swing, the Pemko CFM84SLF-HD1 84 inch full mortise short leaf flush Grade 1 hinge, and the BEST 651 stainless steel full mortise continuous hinge with hospital tips. Design Hardware also builds this geared hinge in a full mortise type.

The Design Hardware heavy duty continuous geared hinge is a full surface and full mortise aluminum geared hinge sold in 83 inch and 95 inch stock lengths. Where the door leaf is 1-3/8 inch, the Pemko FM-SLF short leaf flush continuous geared hinge is built specifically for 1-3/8 inch doors with Grade 1 construction, and for thicker leaves the NGP HD5700 full surface geared hinge covers 1-3/4 inch to 2-1/4 inch doors.

The Design Hardware heavy duty continuous geared hinge is stocked in both 83 inch and 95 inch lengths, and the 95 inch length suits a nominal 8 foot door leaf in either 626 satin chrome or 613 satin bronze oil-rubbed. Several comparable geared hinges are catalogued at shorter lengths - the NGP HD1100A, NGP HD5400A and NGP HD5700 at 83 inches and the Pemko CFM84SLF-HD1 at 84 inches - so for a tall opening the 95 inch Design Hardware hinge avoids cutting or stacking.

It can be field cut, and the spec notes that doing so is what turns a non-handed hinge into a handed one. Cut from the correct end for your swing and keep the templated hole pattern intact so the fasteners still land where the frame and door are prepped.

It is built to ANSI A156.2 and ANSI A156.7. A156.7 is the continuous hinge standard; A156.2 covers bored and preassembled hinge/lock hardware referenced alongside it. If your facility spec calls out a fire rating, that is a separate listing and not something carried on this product.

The body is 6063 T6 aluminum alloy, which does not rust the way a steel butt hinge does and is the usual material for geared continuous hinges on exterior aluminum and hollow metal openings. If your spec demands stainless rather than aluminum, look at a stainless full mortise continuous hinge such as the BEST 651 instead.

Templated hole patterns come machined in, so the fastener locations are fixed and repeatable across every hinge you hang. On a full surface application that means you are mounting to the door and frame faces without cutting hinge pockets, which is why these go in quickly on occupied buildings where the old butt hinge prep is chewed up.

Full surface mounts on the face of both the door and the frame. Half surface mounts on the door face but into the frame rabbet, which is common when the frame can be morticed but the door cannot; the ABH A460HD and the NGP HD5400A are half surface versions. Concealed hides entirely in the gap when the door is closed, like the NGP HD1100A. The Design Hardware heavy duty geared line covers full surface and full mortise.

No. The Design Hardware heavy duty continuous geared hinge in full surface form applies over the face of both the door and the frame. A half surface hinge mortises into one member and surface applies to the other - the ABH A460HD heavy duty aluminum continuous gear hinge is a half surface unit rated to 450 lbs capacity, and the NGP HD5400A is an 83 inch half surface continuous geared hinge in aluminum alloy. They are not interchangeable with a full surface hinge because the frame preparation differs.

The Design Hardware heavy duty continuous geared hinge is non-handed unless it is cut in the field, so one part number covers both hands of a pair and it ships with templated hole patterns. Comparable geared hinges such as the Pemko FM-RG Series Grade 1 full mortise raised geared hinge and the ABH A120HD with Easy Install Technology are separate full mortise designs, so if the opening is mortise prepped the selection changes even though the handing question does not.

The Design Hardware continuous geared hinge is a heavy duty commercial unit with 32 self lubricating concealed bearings per hinge. Where the opening does not need that duty level, the BEST 641 steel full mortise continuous hinge with hospital tips is a medium duty pin and barrel style hinge, and the BEST 651 stainless steel full mortise continuous hinge with hospital tips is also medium duty. Both are mortised rather than surface applied, so confirm the door and frame prep before swapping.

The Design Hardware heavy duty continuous geared hinge is a commercial geared hinge for standard swing openings. For rooms where a door may be blocked or where pinch and ligature safety is a concern, the Pemko DSH1000 is a Grade 1 anti-barricade continuous hinge with 100 degree bidirectional operation, and the ABH A135HD is a heavy duty aluminum continuous gear hinge built with a safety design. Those address opening behavior the standard geared hinge does not.

The Design Hardware Full Surface continuous geared hinge mounts on the face of the door and frame, so the leaves remain visible. For a concealed look, the NGP HD1100A is an 83 inch concealed continuous geared hinge in a heavy duty configuration, rated 10C fire rated 90 minute on hollow metal. Concealed hinges require a mortised pocket in the door and frame rather than the surface application the Design Hardware full surface unit uses.