We Make it Easy to Order Interchangeable Cores Online

Interchangeable Cores come in many varieties, but they can be easy to order.
Best, Schlage, Medeco, Yale, and other top brands in stock.
Click the product you need, or keep reading below to find out more.

For being a new customer, you get 10% off of list price by entering the code CORE at checkout. Repeat customers get even better discounts ;-)

Just two things to remember: 1. The easiest way to order mortise housings is to select your hardware from the "compatible with" dropdown on the product page, and 2. Choose your brand if you have Large Format Interchangeable Cores (LFIC/FSIC).

But if you want to learn more about interchangeable cores, keep reading...

Interchangeable cores (IC) are a convenient way to be able to switch out locks without having to dismantle the entire door handle or lockset. Because they can be changed so quickly, Interchangeable cores are frequently used in large commercial, institutional and residential settings.  

A facilities or office manager doesn’t have to be a lock expert, and you don’t have to call the locksmith every time you need to change a lock. They can just use a special key called the “control key” to remove the lock in 2 seconds and replace it with another one. 

Lock cylinders for interchangeable cores have two parts: 1. Housing and 2. Core which combine to make the full cylinder. 

The most common format is the Small Format Interchangeable Core (SFIC), a standardized size across every brand, so they literally are interchangeable. We recommend SFIC whenever possible, if there is no specific reason to use something else.

You may also come across Large Format or Full Size (LFIC or FSIC), which are all different proprietary sizes depending on the brand. So, even if you are ordering only the housings, and someone else is providing the cores, be sure to find out what brand of IC you’ll need from the building manager or designated locksmith.

Benefits of Interchangeable Cores

For general contractors:

• You just completed a construction project with limited access, and now need to give the tenant their keys? If you use interchangeable construction cores, you can get new keys and have one person from your team switch out all the locks in a day, rather than hiring a locksmith to do it.
• Your door subcontractors don’t need to provide cores. They can have their installers supply and install the housings, or provide housings from the factory, and your team can put in cores just before TCO. This way, you don’t have to worry about last-minute lock installations, because with IC they’re quick and painless.

For facilities managers:

• Someone locked themselves out of their suite or office? You can give them a new core and new keys without having to pick the lock, share the master key, or re-install the cylinder.
• Is an employee moving offices? You can simply move their interchangeable core to the new door without having to make new keys.
• Let’s say you have a new tenant moving into your office building. They need 30 locks, but their office manager likes a particular brand for whatever reason. No problem! As long as that brand offers Small Format Interchangeable Cores (most of them do), they will fit in your existing SFIC housings, and you’ll save money on both the housings and the installation cost.

For landlords & administrators:

• A new tenant/student is moving in? Just order a new interchangeable core and swap it out. The old IC can be re-keyed for future use.

Any other questions, feel free to ask us using our contact form -- just click the green button below!