Rockwood BFLG12 Latch Guard Covers

Latch guards protect an out-swinging door, where the latch and the gap between door and frame are exposed on the secure side and can be jimmied or shimmed. On an in-swinging door the stop already covers that gap, so a guard adds nothing. The BFLG12 is a handed latch protector for that out-swing condition. Note the handing: on an out-swinging door you determine hand from the outside, and the guard has to match.

Yes, the BFLG12 is handed and you specify the hand on the order. Get the door hand off the opening before you order, because a guard made for the opposite hand puts the protective leg on the wrong side of the latch and does nothing for you.

The BFLG12 ships with #8-32 x 3/4 inch oval head machine screws. Machine screws mean the door has to be tapped or already have threaded holes, which is what you want on a hollow metal or aluminum door. If you are mounting to a wood door, wood screws are available on request, so call that out when you place the order rather than assuming the machine screws will bite.

Use a protector built for a narrow stile. The Don-Jo LP-307 is a 2-5/8 inch by 7 inch 12-gauge steel latch protector for aluminum storefront entrance doors on an out swing, and the Don-Jo GLP-307 is a 2-5/8 inch by 7 inch latch protector for aluminum entrance doors, also out swing. Where the stile is wider, the Don-Jo NELP-207 runs 3-1/2 inches by 6.5 inches in 12 gauge steel for aluminum entrance doors, out swing. The BFLG12, at 12 inches by 6 inches, is proportioned for a full door face rather than a glass front stile.

The BFLG12 latch guard is .050 inch stainless steel in a US32D satin finish (630 satin stainless steel on the finish option). Stainless in that thickness is the usual choice for exterior and heavy-traffic openings because it does not need paint or plating to resist corrosion, and the satin finish hides handling marks better than a bright one. It is a commercial-duty part, not a residential trim piece.

The BFLG12 is a 12 inch latch guard sized for the latch area of a standard out-swinging door. If you are protecting the latch on a door with a panic device, look at the Trimco PG8000 Series, which covers panic guards as well as latch guards. Rockwood also builds made-to-order sizes for the BFLG12, so an odd length to clear a device or a vision lite can be quoted.

Finish is US32D satin stainless only, listed as 630 satin stainless steel. Length is not fixed the same way: Rockwood makes the BFLG12 in made-to-order sizes, so if 12 inches does not suit the opening you can have it built to your dimension. If you are standardizing a building on one look, 630 satin stainless is the same finish family as most commercial pulls, push plates, and exit device trim, so it matches without a special order.

A latch guard is a steel plate that covers the gap between the door edge and the frame at the latch, so a pry bar or shim cannot reach the latchbolt. It does not add locking hardware, it blocks access to what is already there. On an out-swinging door with only a latchbolt it is the single cheapest way to stop a loid attack. With a deadbolt thrown you have more resistance to spreading, but the guard still covers the gap and protects the strike area, which is why institutional and multi-family specs commonly call for both. The BFLG12 is the stainless steel version of that plate.

They are close in size and different in build. Both are 2-5/8 inch by 7 inch out swing latch protectors for aluminum entrance doors. The LP-307 is specified as 12-gauge steel for storefront entrance doors; the GLP-307 is described simply as an entrance door latch protector at the same 2-5/8 by 7 footprint. If you are ordering a repeat for a door that already has one, match the exact part number off the existing plate rather than assuming the two interchange.

The BFLG12 is a latch guard cover, a handed stainless steel plate 12 inches by 6 inches with a 2-3/8 inch projection that shields the latch area of the door. If the opening carries an exit device and you want a guard sized around that hardware, the Trimco PG8000 series covers panic and latch guards. Confirm the device type and the swing before ordering either, since the BFLG12 is handed and must be specified for the door's hand.

It narrows them. The Don-Jo GLP-307, LP-307 and NELP-207 are each specified for out swing aluminum entrance doors, so they suit a door that pulls toward you and exposes the latch from the outside. The Rockwood BFLG12 is handed and specified per door hand at order time, which is how you match it to the swing and hand of the opening you are covering. Establish the swing and hand at the door before selecting, because a latch guard installed on the wrong side protects nothing.

Split them by door construction. The Rockwood BFLG12 is a commercial stainless steel guard at 12 inches by 6 inches with a 2-3/8 inch projection, offered in 630 satin stainless steel, and Rockwood notes made to order sizes are available for openings that fall outside the standard plate. The Don-Jo NELP-207 at 3-1/2 by 6.5 inches, and the GLP-307 and LP-307 at 2-5/8 by 7 inches, are the aluminum entrance door side of the same job. A facility with both hollow metal service doors and glass front entrances will typically carry one of each family rather than one part number for everything.