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I'm replacing my locks in my house and I can't get this strike plate removed. It had two pieces. I was able to remove the latch assist (curved piece to help slide in). Now I'm just stuck tugging at this thing. It curves into the trim on the door frame. What kind of strike plate is this, and how can I remove it?

strike plate

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    How did it get in this orientation? It must fit flat against the door jamb, correct? The way it is right now it would block the door from closing, correct? If you push it on the outside edge does it move toward the jamb? Does it pull out if you grip in with pliers and pull? This is a left hand door, correct? diy.stackexchange.com/questions/2784/…
    – Jim Stewart
    Jun 10, 2017 at 23:39
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    It looks to me like it was folded and the trip put on top.
    – Ed Beal
    Jun 11, 2017 at 1:54
  • @JimStewart I folded it that way in an attempt to pull it out. It was reinforcing the strike plate. I ended up breaking it at the crease and hammering it into the frame. At least that got it out of the way.
    – hack3rfx
    Jun 11, 2017 at 2:22
  • Please accept an answer or supply and accept one of your own to resolve this question.
    – isherwood
    Sep 23, 2017 at 19:50

3 Answers 3

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(This isn't its original shape, is it? I'm guessing that it was attached flat to the frame, and you bent it while trying to get it out?)

Maybe it's meant to reinforce the strike plate, to make it harder to kick the door in. I never saw anything like this - but if you can't yank it out, even with pliers, then obviously it's attached to something behind the door trim. I see these options:

  1. Pry off the door trim piece (on the left in the photo) and see what the hell is under there.
  2. Cut off the exposed part of the metal thingy with a Dremel.
  3. Leave it in place, attach the new strike plate on top of it. (If there's enough space between the frame and the door.)
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    thanks for the suggestions. I ended up doing something similar to your second suggestion. It was easy to do and didn't interfere with the new one.
    – hack3rfx
    Jun 11, 2017 at 2:24
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I know this is old but somebody might still pose this question in the future what that is called an adjustable strike they come with pre-hung doors the Carpenters are supposed to take them off before they install but none of them ever do so what I always do I'm a locksmith just bend it back and forth back and forth and I'll snap it a spot will you easily be able to put the new strike plate in its place it'll still be a piece of metal sticking out but it won't catch anything cuz it'll be covered by the lip of the strike

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  • Hello, and welcome to Home Improvement. Thanks for the answer, but it's really hard to read. Would you edit it to add punctuation and sentences, and perhaps a paragraph break or two? Thanks.
    – Daniel Griscom
    Apr 26, 2019 at 14:46
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Mike's answer is correct. I had the same problem and found the plate was screwed in from the back of the jam. I guess it must have been put in place prior to the jam being fixed into the stud frame. In my case, I drilled holes from the inside of the jam and drove the screws out with a steel rod and hammer. (There was just enough room for this between the jam and the stud.) This leaves holes to be filled, but in my case the jam was painted, so just needs to be filled with wood putty and repainted. In case it is helpful to others, the centres of the screws holding my plate were 9/32" up/down from the bottom/top of the plate and 2.875" back.

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