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Cheers, that all makes sense. So I shouldn't undo the torx screws and the gearboxes come out with the strip?
Might wait until it's not blowing a hoolie until attempting that.
Polygon-
As @ElephantBreath said, if the cylinder is gritty and rough to turn the key, graphite is recommended for lubricating it, but flush out with something that's not going to set, or collect more muck in the future.
So I shouldn't undo the torx screws and the gearboxes come out with the strip?
Exactly. If you remove a short M4 machine screw from the handle area or next to a hook, put it back in.
If your mechanism has screws holding the gearboxes onto the face plate, leave them in place and remove the complete strip as one. If after cleaning and lube, it's still poor, remove the centre gearbox and see if its the centre or hook gearboxes. If its the centre, you can get replacements for some, but not all.Here's an
Top. Avocet mechanisms with the gearbox rivitted on.
Middle. ERA mechanism with gearbox screwed on
Bottom. ERA gearbox.
user69121
I use 3 in 1 spray oil for the multipoint locking mechanism.
If it's gritty, it could be building debris, or quite often flakes of pvc from when the frame was routed. Remove the locking mechanism and give it a good brush off with a paintbrush and flush it with a load of spray.
Handles, 2 or 3 screws, pull off the handles and spindle.
Cylinder, remove the screw inline with the cylinder and turn the key to 11 o'clock or 1 o'clock to align the cam so that you can withdraw it from the gearbox
Draw a datum line across the strip and door edge, so you get it back in the same place.
Watch out for the screws that hold the centre and hook gearboxes onto the strip, many are torq, but some are pozi head machine screws. Other gearboxes are swaged into place.
Remove the screws that hold the strip to the door.
Pull the strip and gearboxes out of the frame. Sometimes they are quite tight, but check for missed screws before going mad.
Use a handle and spindle to work the mechanism and give it a thorough clean.