Dorma C553 Grade 2 Entry Keyed Lever Lockset

Yes. The C553 cylindrical lever lock is adjustable for doors from 1-3/8 to 1-3/4 inches thick, which covers both the standard 1-3/4 inch commercial door and the thinner 1-3/8 inch interior doors common in older buildings. It ships with a 2-3/4 inch backset latch (the 15250, 1 inch faceplate, square corner), so the cross-bore has to be 2-3/4 inches from the door edge, not the 2-3/8 inch residential backset.

It does. The C553 comes with the 5001 strike, an ANSI 1-1/4 x 4-7/8 inch square corner strike, so it drops into a frame already prepped for standard ANSI/ASA strike. If your frame has a small T-strike or a residential lip strike instead, the frame needs to be prepped or a filler plate used.

Entrance function, single cylinder. The C553 is keyed on the outside only and the inside lever always retracts the latch for free egress. It is the function you put on an apartment entry, an office door, or a tenant suite, where staff key in from the corridor and anyone inside walks out without a key. It conforms to ANSI/BHMA F109.

The C553 is certified to ANSI/BHMA A156.2 Series 4000 Grade 2 and built on a cylindrical chassis Dormakaba positions for hotels, apartments, churches, municipal buildings, retail, offices and warehouses. Grade 2 is the mid-duty commercial tier. For a high-abuse opening (a school corridor, a heavily trafficked main entrance), a Grade 1 entry lever such as the Marks USA 195RAB Survivor Series is the step up.

Yes. The C553 is offered with a J cylinder, SFIC less core, so you supply your own small format IC and key it into the building's existing system. If you are not on an SFIC system, order the D conventional cylinder instead. Both cylinder options are available in every finish and every lever style the lock is built in.

If the old knob lock was a 2-3/4 inch backset cylindrical unit with an ANSI 4-7/8 inch strike, the C553 goes into the same cross-bore and edge bore, since it ships with a 2-3/4 inch backset 15250 latch and the 5001 ANSI strike. If you are coming off a 2-3/8 inch backset residential knob, such as a Marks USA 110AB entry knob, the bore location is wrong and the door will need re-prepping.

The Stanley Security QCL150 entry lever is the nearest match. It is a Grade 2 entrance function lever in the QCL100 Series, supplied less cylinder with a square 2-3/4 inch backset latch and a 4-7/8 inch by 1-1/4 inch ASA strike. The Dorma C553 is also Grade 2 entrance function with a 2-3/4 inch backset and a 5001 ANSI 1-1/4 inch by 4-7/8 inch square corner strike, so the door prep and strike pocket carry over. The Orca Hardware OCL250 is another Grade 2 entrance cylindrical lockset in medium duty. The QCL150 ships less cylinder, so plan the cylinder separately; the C553 is offered with either a conventional cylinder or SFIC less core.

The Marks USA 195RAB is a Grade 1 entrance function clutched lever lockset in the Survivor Series, furnished less core with an American lever. The Dorma C553 is certified to ANSI/BHMA Grade 2 for entrance function, so on a high-traffic opening where the specification calls for Grade 1, the 195RAB meets that grade in the same keyed entry function. The clutched lever on the 195RAB spins free when locked, which protects the chassis against force applied to the lever.

The Lockey E985 and E995 electronic keypad lever locks both fit doors 1-3/8 inch to 1-3/4 inch thick, the same range the Dorma C553 covers, so the door thickness will not stop you. The E985 offers remote control with key override; the E995 is remote control with battery power. If the door is thicker, the Alarm Lock Trilogy T2 DL2700 is a Grade 1 standalone electronic cylindrical lock with digital keypad, 100 user codes and IC/SFIC compatibility, fitting doors 1-5/8 inch to 1-7/8 inch. Confirm the leaf thickness before choosing, since the ranges do not fully overlap.

Only if the opening wants storeroom behavior. The Marks USA 175RF is a Grade 2 storeroom function clutched lever lockset with a small format IC prep, less core, a 2-3/4 inch backset and an ANSI strike - the same grade and backset as the Dorma C553, and it matches the C553 SFIC less core option. The functions differ: the C553 is entrance function, where the outside lever can be left unlocked for the day, while a storeroom lock keeps the outside lever locked at all times and requires the key on every entry. On a storeroom or mechanical room that is the right choice; on an office or apartment entry it will lock staff out.

Three things: lever style, finish, and cylinder. Levers are LC, LG or LR. Finishes are 605 bright brass, 606 satin brass, 613 oil rubbed bronze, 619 satin nickel, 625 bright chrome and 626 satin chrome. Cylinder is either D conventional or J SFIC less core. All three lever styles are built in all six finishes with either cylinder, so the combinations are open.

Handing on the C553 follows the lever you pick, not a separate left or right order code. Pick the lever style and finish and the chassis itself is non-handed cylindrical hardware. Worth confirming lever orientation against the door swing before you install a run of them across a building.

The C553 is the keyed entrance function, so restrooms and closets need different functions. Within the same medium-duty Grade 2 tier, the Orca Hardware OCL210 covers passage, the OCL240 covers privacy, the OCL2170 is the half dummy, and the OCL250 is the Grade 2 entrance equivalent. Cal-Royal's Calypso CAL20 privacy and CAL30 passage are the Grade 1 versions if the job spec calls for heavy duty.

A mechanical entrance lever like the C553 is the right call when you want keys, no batteries, and no audit trail, and it is the cheapest way to standardize a lot of doors on one keyway. Go electronic when you need codes instead of keys or a record of who entered: the Alarm Lock Trilogy T2 DL2700 is a standalone keypad cylindrical lock with 100 user codes and IC/SFIC compatibility, and the T3 DL3075 adds audit trail. Note those fit thicker doors, 1-5/8 to 1-7/8 inches on the DL2700, against 1-3/8 to 1-3/4 on the C553.

It's built for that. The C500 chassis carries ten different functions in the family, so entrance, passage, privacy and storeroom doors across a property can all run the same chassis, lever design and finish. On the C553 specifically you get the entrance function in six finishes and three lever styles, and the SFIC less core option lets a property manager key the whole building into one interchangeable core system.

No. Despite the similar Sierra bent lever styling and a 4-7/8 inch by 1-1/4 inch ANSI strike that matches the C553 5001 strike prep, the Stanley QTL230E is catalogued with a deadbolt function in the QTL200 Series, not a keyed entry latch. The Dorma C553 is an entrance function cylindrical lock with a 15250 latch at a 2-3/4 inch backset. If you want the Sierra lever in a keyed entry, the Stanley QCL150 is the Grade 2 entrance function version of that lever.

Stay in the same medium duty Grade 2 cylindrical family and change function. The Orca Hardware OCL210 is a Grade 2 passage cylindrical lockset and the OCL240 is a Grade 2 privacy function cylindrical lockset, both medium duty. The Orca OCL2170 is a Grade 2 half dummy lever for a door leaf that needs a pull only and no latch. The Dorma C553 is a keyed single cylinder entrance lock, so if the room does not need a key, one of those three replaces it without changing the grade.

No. The Marks USA 110AB is a Grade 2 entrance/office lockset, matching the C553 on grade and function, but it is a round knob on a 2-3/8 inch backset. The Dorma C553 is a lever on a 2-3/4 inch backset. That backset difference means the cross bore and latch location do not line up, and the knob will not satisfy an ADA-driven lever requirement. Where a lever is required, the Marks USA 195N is an ADA compliant American lever in the Survivor Series, though it is Grade 1 passage function rather than keyed entry.

Move to a purpose-built classroom lock. The TownSteel XCE-2000 is a Grade 1 heavy duty electronic classroom cylindrical lockset with keypad for doors 1-3/4 inch to 2 inch, and the XCE-9000 is the classroom intruder version with keypad over the same 1-3/4 inch to 2 inch range. The TownSteel FCE-2000 is a Grade 1 heavy duty motorized classroom lockset with RFID on a 1-3/4 inch door, and the FCE-4000 is the RFID intruder classroom version. The Schlage XE360M is a Grade 1 classroom/storeroom wireless tubular lock on a 1-3/4 inch door. The Dorma C553 is an entrance function lock, which does not provide the lockdown behavior a classroom intruder specification calls for.

The Dorma C553 is offered with a J SFIC less core preparation, letting you drop in the cores you already stock. The Marks USA 175RF is a small format IC storeroom lever, also supplied less core. The Alarm Lock Trilogy T2 DL2700 is IC/SFIC compatible on the electronic side, and the BEST 9KZ EZ Series is an electronic keypad cylindrical lock with key override. Ordering these less core keeps a single keyway across mechanical and electronic openings in the same facility.

The Lockey 1600 is a heavy duty mechanical keyless knob lock with an adjustable backset for doors 1-1/8 inch to 2 inch, and the Lockey 2830 is a mechanical pushbutton keyless knob lock with auto-locking passage function over the same 1-1/8 inch to 2 inch range. Both are mechanical with no batteries and no cylinder to key, unlike the Dorma C553, which is a keyed single cylinder lock. They are knobs rather than levers, so check whether the opening is subject to a lever requirement before committing.

The Alarm Lock T3 DL3075 is a Grade 1 electronic cylindrical lock in the DL3200 Series with audit trail and keypad access, which records who entered and when - something a mechanical keyed lock cannot do. For a two-sided credential requirement, the Alarm Lock DL5200 is a double-sided electronic cylindrical lock with 100 user capacity and battery operation, fitting doors 1-5/8 inch to 1-7/8 inch. The Dorma C553 is a keyed single cylinder entrance lock, so key control is your only record with it.

The Stanley Security QCL200 cylindrical lock ships keyed different with an SC keyway and a 118F ANSI 1-1/8 inch by 2-3/4 inch strike. Note that strike differs from the 5001 ANSI 1-1/4 inch by 4-7/8 inch square corner strike the Dorma C553 uses, so on a frame already prepped for the 4-7/8 inch ASA cutout the smaller 118F strike will not cover the pocket. The Dorma C553 with a conventional cylinder is the option that keeps the 4-7/8 inch strike prep.

The SDC Electra 7200 Series is a solenoid controlled cylindrical lock with dual voltage 12/24VDC, made to be released by an access control system, and it fits doors 1-3/4 inch to 2 inch. The Dorma C553 is a mechanical keyed entrance lever with no electrical connection, so it cannot be released remotely. Check the leaf thickness before you swap: the C553 covers 1-3/8 inch to 1-3/4 inch, and the 7200 starts at 1-3/4 inch, so only a 1-3/4 inch door is common ground.

Six finishes are built: 626 satin chrome and 625 bright chrome for the usual commercial brushed and polished stainless look, 605 bright brass and 606 satin brass for brass-trimmed buildings, 613 oil rubbed bronze for dark bronze schemes, and 619 satin nickel. If your other openings are 626, that is the most common commercial spec and it is offered in all three lever styles.

It depends on what you are managing. The Kwikset 912TNL SmartCode Z-Wave Tustin lever is keyed one side and fits doors 1-3/8 inch to 2 inch, which spans the 1-3/8 inch to 1-3/4 inch range the Dorma C553 covers, so it suits a unit entry where codes replace rekeying between tenants. The CENTRIOS CEB100 is a Grade 1 smart Bluetooth cylindrical lock in privacy function, which is an interior bath or bedroom door rather than a unit entry. The Schlage NDEB is a Grade 1 heavy duty ENGAGE Series cylindrical lock with a 2.4 GHz Bluetooth Low Energy reader for a credentialed common door, fitting 1-5/8 inch to 2 inch doors. The C553 remains the mechanical keyed choice where no batteries or credentials are wanted.

The Cal-Royal CAL20 is a Grade 1 extra heavy duty privacy lock in the Calypso Series covering doors 1-3/8 inch to 2 inch, which includes the 1-3/8 inch to 1-3/4 inch range the Dorma C553 fits, so both will hang on the same leaf thicknesses. Its passage companion is the Cal-Royal CAL30, Grade 1 extra heavy duty in the same 1-3/8 inch to 2 inch range, for corridor and closet doors that need no lock at all.

It can be, with a change in how access is granted. The Accentra nexTouch NTB613 is a Grade 1 cylindrical keypad lock with pushbutton entry in the nexTouch Series, so users enter a code at the door rather than carrying a key. The Dorma C553 is a Grade 2 keyed single cylinder entrance lever. Choose the NTB613 where you want to change access without pulling cylinders, and the C553 where the building is already on a key system and the opening should stay mechanical.