What Comes In Milwaukee's Door Lock Installation Kit And Is It Worth Buying? (According To Reviews)

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Installing door locks can be more challenging than you might think. Most modern doors are quite thin, and it's all too easy to accidentally come in at an angle to puncture the side when you only have less than ½-inch of leeway — particularly when working with a material that isn't solid wood. You also need to be precise in your measurements. Even a slight misalignment can make it so that the latch and bolt cylinder don't connect properly. Many door lock kits include a paper guide to help you line up these drill points, but they don't do much to keep the drill straight or prevent the bit from jumping when it makes contact with the wood. There are devices like the Ryobi Door Latch Installation Kit for knobs, but what about locks?

Fortunately, Milwaukee makes a device called the Hole Dozer Door Lock Installation Kit. This is a special jig that promises to make the process of drilling out the holes for installing door locks significantly easier. There are a few things you need to consider before buying a Milwaukee tool like this one, though. You might be interested in hearing a bit more about what comes inside that plastic sleeve to make sure that you'll be getting everything you need and that the contents are worth the cost. It's also never a bad idea to see what past users and professional reviewers have had to say about it, so you can get an idea of how the kit performs in real-world testing. That way, you'll have all the information you need to decide for yourself if the device is right for you.

The first item that comes in the package is the Hole Dozer Door Lock Installation jig itself. This is a plastic housing with access slots designed to make it simple to drill out holes for the latch and bolt cylinder. According to Milwaukee, "Our all-access slots solve the frustration of plug removal, making you more productive with less downtime between holes. The new slot design also gives you increased pilot visibility for accurate placement and faster chip ejection, keeping your cut cool." This jig has a slide in the face of the latch hole that allows you to perfectly line up the slot for cutting different placements. It also has a non-slip clamp that's adjusted with a knob at the back of the jig. This clamp also auto-centers the bolt cylinder hole on the side of the door.

The kit also comes with two bi-metal hole-cutting saws: a 2 ⅛-inch hole saw and a 1-inch hole saw. These have a new 3.5 TPI (tooth-per-inch) design that Milwaukee claims offers superior durability and a longer cutting life. They also have a thermoset coating, which keeps the bits cool and allows for faster and more energy-efficient cutting. These are rated for use in aluminum, plaster, drywall, and wood and come with a Rip Guard Limited Lifetime Tooth Break Warranty. Many have commented that purchasing these hole saws alone would cost nearly as much as the kit itself, making this particular Milwaukee product a no-brainer at its price.

Finally, the kit includes an arbor with a ⅜-inch shank and pilot bit for the hole-cutting saws, two 3/32-inch drill bits, two ⅛-inch drill bits, a hole saw arbor adapter, and a hole saw arbor spacer.

Now that you know what comes in the kit and how it works, it's time to take a look at what the people who've actually used it have to say about it. The Milwaukee Hole Dozer Door Lock Installation Kit has a 4.5 out of 5 on both Amazon and the Home Depot website, with the latter site having over 3,900 reviews and 81% of customers stating that they would recommend the kit to other buyers. Customers generally seem to like the kit's basic functionality, accuracy, and value, though there are some who are less satisfied with the jig's build quality. "For the most part, the jig is easy to use and pretty accurate," said one reviewer who stated that he was a handyman. "It's a little dicey getting it to stay in place and drill straight. The other issue is the longevity of the jig and the hole saws. As much as I tried not to, I caught the edges of the jig with my drill. They got chewed up a bit."

Professional reviewers seem impressed with it as well. "I've used a ton of lockset drilling rigs in my day," said Thomas Gaige of Pro Tool Reviews. "While they will all get the job done, you end up really compromising and learning how to compensate for a poorly thought-out design. Milwaukee seems to have all that licked."

Mr. Locksmith shared similar findings when comparing the kit to a comparable model made by DeWalt, commenting that the Milwaukee version seemed a bit more heavy-duty. "They are both good for if you have a couple doors to install," he said. "However, if you have got something around for more long term I prefer [the Milwauke.]"