The Cam You Need Isn't in Any Series
A cam lock is two parts: the keyed cylinder, and the flat metal cam bolted to the back that swings behind the frame to lock it. The cylinder is easy to buy. The cam is where people get stuck — the standard 100- and 300-series straight and offset cams only come in set lengths and offsets, and they never quite reach, clear or fit when the door, drawer or enclosure isn't standard. Worse, the original cam was often die-cast zinc that fatigued and snapped.
Straight talk: a standard 5/8″ cabinet cam lock kit is cheap off the shelf — if that's all you need, buy one. We're for the cam you can't buy: an odd length or offset, a custom shape, a stronger material, or the cam off a discontinued or industrial lock.
Lock Cams We Machine
Reproduced from your sample, or made to your dimensions:
| Cam shape | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Straight | Cam sits flush with the cylinder face — for thinner doors and panels |
| Offset (bent back) | Cam stepped back to clear a thicker door or a recessed frame |
| Long-reach / extended | Reaches a strike or frame further from the cylinder than any stock cam |
| Bent / hooked | Hooks behind a lip or catches a keeper at an angle |
| L-cam / custom profile | One-off shapes for enclosures, vending, gaming and equipment locks |
The spindle hole — how it mounts
Every cam locates on the cylinder's spindle through a shaped hole. We match yours exactly:
| Spindle hole | Detail we capture |
|---|---|
| Single-flat (D) | Round hole with one flat — across-flats size and orientation |
| Double-flat (double-D) | Two flats — across-flats dimension and slot width |
| Round with tab/notch | Diameter plus the locating tab or keyway position |
When You Can't Buy the Cam
- No stock cam reaches or clears — your door thickness or frame needs a length/offset that isn't sold.
- Discontinued or industrial lock — vending, gaming, enclosure, marine or equipment cams a hardware store never carries. See obsolete & discontinued parts.
- The zinc cam keeps breaking — you want it in steel or stainless in the same envelope.
- Unknown series — you have the cam but no idea what brand or series it is; we work from the part, not a catalogue number.
- A matched run — many identical cams for a panel, locker bank or cabinet run.
Materials — Stronger Than the Original
Steel
Carbon or tool steel for high-strength cams that replace failed zinc — hardened where the keeper bears.
From a sample →Stainless
304 or 316 for damp, outdoor and marine locks where a plated cam would rust.
316 stainless →Brass
Where you want corrosion resistance with a softer, non-marring contact and a traditional finish.
Metals →Made From Your Old Cam
Send the cam or photos
Mail the broken or worn cam, or send photos with the length, offset and the spindle-hole shape and size. We confirm what's usable first.
Measure & rebuild
We capture the profile, thickness, hole shape and bend, and rebuild the CAD to the original geometry. How reverse engineering works →
Confirm, machine & ship
You approve the drawing (free), then we machine, finish and check it against your sample. Reproducing from a sample →
What to Send Us
- The broken or worn cam, or photos of both faces with a ruler in shot
- Spindle hole — single-D, double-D or round-with-tab, and the across-flats / diameter size (the part that must seat on your cylinder)
- Cam length (centre of hole to tip) and offset/step depth
- Material thickness
- What it locks and the door/panel thickness, if known
- Material/finish you want — or ask us to advise
- Quantity and delivery country
No CAD, no part number, no problem. Rebuilding the geometry is our job — free, and confirmed with you before anything is cut. See how to order with no CAD file.
A note on branded locks. We make a compatible replacement cam to the original's form, fit and function from what you supply. We don't sell branded original products, cut keys, or imply affiliation with any lock brand.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — the main reason to have a cam machined. We make the cam to any length, offset, bend or custom profile, sized to fit your cylinder's spindle. If no standard 100/300-series cam reaches or clears the way your door needs, we cut one that does.
Yes. Send the old cam, or the lock with the broken cam, and we reproduce the metal arm from the sample — including odd shapes used on enclosures, vending, gaming, marine and equipment locks that no general hardware store stocks.
Yes. Many factory cams are die-cast zinc that fatigues and snaps. We machine the replacement in steel, stainless or brass, far tougher in the same envelope — a common upgrade when a cam keeps failing.
The cam mounts on the back of the cylinder via a spindle hole — usually single-flat (D), double-flat (double-D) or round-with-tab at a set across-flats size. We measure that hole from your old cam or the cylinder so the new cam seats and turns exactly like the original.
We machine the metal cam and other machined lock components. We don't cut keys or supply keyed cylinders. For a standard cabinet cam lock, a complete kit is inexpensive off the shelf — we're for the cam or part you can't buy: odd sizes, custom shapes, stronger materials, or discontinued and industrial locks.
Yes — one piece, no setup fee on machined parts. A single replacement cam is welcome, and we also make matched sets where a panel or cabinet run uses many of the same cam.
Send the cam or photos with the spindle-hole shape and size and you get a quote within 24 hours. After approval a single machined cam is usually days, not weeks. CAD reconstruction is free with your quote.
Get a Cam Quoted
Broken cam, sketch or photo — all accepted. Engineers reply in 24h.