uPVC door lock mechanism problem

[sparxy]

Came to open my uPVC door today and the handle felt odd - it also only opened after giving the handle some welly towards the bottom. Operating the lock mechanism whilst the door is open shows the two hooks aren't fully retracting (overhanging by about 5mm), and the door handle has some slop that wasn't there before. It will retract fully if you give it some force downwards, but I don't really want to be in a position where I am locked out.

I'm unsure whether it's just old, or if someone has been up to nefarious things in the night (we have had a lot of reports of people trying doors in our street).

Having looked at various threads on here, it would seem that I can remove the hooks (leaving the centre lock) whilst arranging for a replacement mechanism since I'll need the whole lot out to measure it.

Can I just remove the whole hook assembly top and bottom, or do I need to cut/remove anything else?

Cheers

 

[Wayners]

Usually unscrews. Limited experience myself and never been able to buy the correct parts. Just have to give it ago

 

[sparxy]

Just an update that I forgot to post - got a new mechanism for £45 delivered, there was no gearbox available separately. Whilst I was waiting for the delivery I had cut off the mechanism either side of the centre gearbox so I could secure the door without locking myself out.

After fitting the new one, I took the old one apart and found the cam (appears to be cast metal) that actuates the bars (that actuate the hooks and rollers) was broken into 4 pieces, so presumably the slop introduced by the breaks prevented the hooks and rollers from retracting completely. The edges of the breaks were all discoloured In a different way so unsure if its been like that for some time or not!