5/8″ Radius Door Hinges

The radius is the spec that makes or breaks a hinge order. A 5/8 radius hinge has rounded corners with a curve equal to the edge of a US quarter. Get that wrong, and the leaf won’t seat flush in the mortise no matter how nice the finish looks. A small difference in corner geometry can cause binding, misalignment, and rework. Knowing your 5/8 radius hinges is as critical as knowing your fire rating or load spec.

So before anything else, confirm what’s already cut into your door. Press a quarter into the rounded corner of your existing hinge. If the curve matches the coin, it’s a 5/8″ radius. A dime’s curve matches the smaller 1/4″ radius. This one test saves you the headache of re-mortising or returning hardware. Residential door hinges are commonly available in both 3-1/2-inch and 4-inch sizes with choice of 1/4-inch and 5/8-inch radius corners or square corners.

Western Building Center carries 5/8″ radius hinges in oil-rubbed bronze in both common residential sizes — a 3-1/2″ and a 4″. Match the height to your door: 3-1/2″ for most interior doors, 4″ for heavier and exterior doors.

Sizes, Materials, and Grades

Hinge height climbs with door weight and thickness. The standard residential progression runs from 3-1/2″ x 3-1/2″ for lightweight interior doors up through 5″ x 5″ for the heaviest. Standard-weight plain bearing 5/8″ radius hinges come in sizes including 3.5 x 3, 3.5 x 3.5, 4 x 4, 4.5 x 4, 4.5 x 4.5, 5 x 4, 5 x 4.5, and 5 x 5.

Material is where Montana conditions earn a say. Steel is the most economical choice for a hinge material, however, it will eventually rust if used in damp areas such as kitchens and bathrooms. For bathrooms, kitchens, mudrooms, and any exterior or entry door taking real weather exposure, stainless steel or brass holds up better. Brass options are typically extruded for durability, and the better ones run a stainless pin — furnished with stainless steel, rust-proof pins for added durability.

Grade comes down to bearing type and cycle rating. Plain bearing suits standard-weight, low-use doors. Ball bearing handles heavy doors and high traffic. Spring hinges help a door close on its own. Plain bearing is for standard weight doors and low usage applications; ball bearing for heavy doors and high usage applications; concealed bearing for standard weight, high usage; and spring hinge for standard to moderate weight doors to help assure the door closes.

The cycle numbers tell you what each grade is built to survive. For BHMA Grade 1, that’s 2,500,000 cycles with heavy weight ball and concealed bearing; Grade 2 is 1,500,000 cycles with standard weight ball and concealed bearing; and Grade 3 is 350,000 cycles for light weight plain bearing.

Spec	Residential / Light-Duty	Heavy-Duty / Closer
Typical size	3-1/2″ x 3-1/2″ to 4″ x 4″	4″ x 4″ and up
Door weight	Under ~70 lbs	Up to ~260–330 lbs
Bearing	Plain bearing	Ball bearing or closer
Material	Steel, brass, stainless	SS304 / SS316
Door thickness	1-3/8″	1-3/8″ to 1-3/4″

A common light-duty example: 3.5 x 3.5 plain bearing hinges with button non-rising pins and caps, recommended for doors weighing less than 70 lbs and not exceeding 3’0” x 7’0”, for low frequency residential applications — not recommended for use with a door closer.

Standard Hinges vs. Heavy-Duty Closer Hinges

Past the radius match, the real question is whether your door needs to close on its own. A plain butt hinge just hangs the door. A closer hinge controls how it shuts.

The heavy-duty closer hinges in the 5/8″ radius family are a different animal. These combine precision radius fit with the performance of a heavy duty self-closing hinge. Built from stainless steel, they deliver smooth, controlled closing for demanding architectural and commercial doors. They come in two closing actions — mechanical self-closing or hydraulic soft-closing, with fire-rated and hold-open options.

Capacity scales with how many hinges carry the door. Door weight runs up to 150 lbs with 2 pieces, 260 lbs with 3 pieces, and 330 lbs with 4 pieces, in SS304 with SS316 available on selected models. These fit doors 1 3/8″ to 2 1/4″ thick. That’s the hardware for garage entry doors, high-traffic openings, and fire-rated assemblies where controlled, code-compliant closing matters.

One construction detail worth knowing on heavier interior doors: the screw layout. A zigzag screw pattern distributes load across the leaf instead of concentrating stress in a straight vertical line, reducing door sag and minimizing wood compression over time — especially on heavier interior doors with frequent cycles.

Installation and Replacement

Most folks buying these are swapping worn hinges, not building from scratch. The trick to avoiding a sagging, misaligned door is simple: keep the door closed and work one hinge at a time. Pull the old leaf, set the new one, and screw it down before moving to the next. The closed door holds your alignment for you.

Be ready for a little fitting. Hinge manufacturers have never standardized the location of their screw hole patterns. Every manufacturer puts their screw holes in a slightly different place. This means that when you replace hinges you will almost certainly have to do some filling and redrilling. The exception is template (architectural) hinges, which are built to a standardized template for each size hinge.

Most residential 5/8″ radius hinges make this easy. Hinges come fully assembled with matching screws. Pins are removable with a punch and hammer.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if I need a 5/8″ radius hinge? Hold a US quarter against the rounded corner of your existing hinge. If the curve of the coin matches the curve of the corner, you’ve got a 5/8″ radius. A dime matches the tighter 1/4″ radius. The new hinge has to match the mortise already routed into your door and frame, or it won’t seat flush.

What size hinge does my door need? Match height to door weight and thickness. Lighter interior doors take a 3-1/2″ hinge; heavier and exterior doors take a 4″ or larger. A 4″ x 4″ full mortise hinge suits doors around 1-3/8″ thick. For the heaviest doors, sizes run up to 5″ x 5″.

Steel, brass, or stainless — what holds up best in Montana? Steel is the budget pick but will eventually rust if used in damp areas such as kitchens and bathrooms. For moisture-prone interior rooms and any exterior door taking weather, brass or stainless steel resists corrosion far better. Exterior and entry doors favor stainless or brass in 4″ x 4″ or larger.

Can a 5/8″ radius hinge close the door by itself? Yes, if you choose a closer hinge. These come in mechanical self-closing or hydraulic soft-closing versions, with fire-rated and hold-open options. They’re a common pairing for garage and high-traffic doors that need controlled closing. A standard butt hinge has no closing mechanism.

My door is sagging — do I need all new hinges? Not always. A sagging door often just needs better anchoring. Replace one screw per leaf with a longer 2-to-3-inch screw driven through the jamb into the stud behind it. That pulls the door back into structural support instead of relying on short screws biting into the jamb alone.

Are the screws included? Typically, yes. Hinges come fully assembled with matching screws. Brass models, for example, often ship with #10 x 1″ flat head Phillips wood screws, packed one per box and poly-bagged with fasteners.