The HES 5900
When people talk about good things coming in small packages, they
may have been talking about the
new 5900 series electric strike
from “HES.” What’s the big deal?
First you need to have a little
background information.
Electric Strike
In 1986, HES introduced a
revolutionary idea in electric
strikes. The 9000 series was the
first electric strike that would
fit into a standard ANSI A115.2
frame preparation without cutting
or modifying the frame. They did
this by using a reverse ramp that
allowed the latch to slide out of
the frame as easily as it slid into
the frame. For this type of electric
strike to function properly, the cut -
out in the reverse ramp must align
perfectly with the deadlatch, (see
photo 1) . If not, it will not work.
In 2006 the idea was revisited
by engineers and the problem was
solved. The simple solution was to
allow the reverse ramp to be field
adjustable in the vertical position.
This allowed the installer to com -
pensate for door sag or simple
misalignment. The solving of this
20 year old problem allowed the
latest addition to the HES lineup.
The 5900 series. The cool thing
is that it looks wonderful, installs
quickly, and works great.
the new electric strike into place,
(see photo 3). Photo 4, shows the
inside of the frame. It is easy to see
the hole in the dust box as well as
the wires that pass through it.
One of the adjustments that can
be made before installation, is changing the strike from “fail secure” to
“fail safe”. On the back side of the
strike there are two screws, (see
photo 5). Loosening the two screws
and sliding them to the opposite
position, changes this setting.
Twisted and sagging door
frames caused installation is -
sues in the real world. These
problems could not be solved at
the time, so the 9000 series was
shelved in 1989.
The 5900 series includes everything needed to install and adjust
the electric strike, (see photo 2) . The
blue things are crimp connectors for
wiring. The flat things by the screws
are spacers. They can be used to
compensate for frame twist.
I want to take the strike apart
and show you the insides. If you
remove two screws, (see photo 6),
the strike plate can be removed,
(see photo 7). Just to let you know,
there are five different strike plates
available in seven different finishes.
The 5900 is very easy to install.
Simply remove the strike plate
that is already installed in the door
frame. Drill a small hole in the
back of the dust box for the electri -
cal connector to pass and screw
Earlier we touched on vertical
adjustment to compensate for
door sag or misalignment. Photo
8, shows the two screws that can
be loosened so the ramp can be
1. Here is the reverse ramp that
makes this electric strike unique.
The red arrow shows the cutout
that enables the deadlatch to
pass while the latch is pushed
back into the latch housing
within the door.
2. The 5900
comes packages with the
accessories
needed to
install the
strike.
