Knackered door on our Argosy

[bkahler]

One of the things not mentioned in the Auction when we bought the Argosy was the condition of the entry door.

As you can see from this photo the door is warped out at the bottom corner from just above the door latch to the bottom.


Looking at this photo ou can see how badly deformed the latch area is. I think what happened was the door lock broke and the PO had to pry the door lip up so they could unlock it.


Any suggestions on how to fix something like this besides todal door replacement

Thanks,

Brad

[LI Pets]

No need to replace mine was a lot worse than that.

Do a seach you'll find my pic's on how to fix it.

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by LI Pets

No need to replace mine was a lot worse than that.

Do a seach you'll find my pic's on how to fix it.

Bob, I found the following topic http://www.airforums.com/forums/f456...ays-30029.html
Was your door just tweaked to a different curve or was there an area where the door was stretched as well? Our door on the Argosy has a very distinctive stretch right by the door lock.

I like the method you used to straighten the door. I'll have to look into building a jig like yours and give it a shot. Nothing to lose at this point

Thanks!

Brad

[davidz71]

I used the ole' 2X4 between the door and door frame then push in on the bowed out area. It worked on my '77 Excella for a tighter fit at the top of the door.

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by davidz71

I used the ole' 2X4 between the door and door frame then push in on the bowed out area. It worked on my '77 Excella for a tighter fit at the top of the door.

Craig,

That will probably work to bring the bottom of the door in but I still have the problem with the large deformation around the door lock. I'm willing to try the wood forming trick. In my instance I might have to reinforce the face of the wood with a strip of steel bar stock. Possibly 3/16" to 1/4" thick.

I just realized I still need to look at the door frame itself to see if its been knackered any.

Thanks,

Brad

[CanoeStream]

I didn't find the 2x4 method to work very well and your problem looks a lot more complex than the problem I had. See http://www.airforums.com/forums/f453...oor-26820.html for LI Pets' method. You've pretty much got to disassemble the door, reassemble on a jig, drill all new holes for olympic rivets and put back together in the desired shape.

[Gunnyusmc]

Call David Tidmore at 800-378-5883 at Roger Williams Airstream and talk too him.
Mine was broken in half and he fixed it.
They are just west of Ft. Worth, TX in Weatherford, TX.

Don

[LI Pets]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Craig,

That will probably work to bring the bottom of the door in but I still have the problem with the large deformation around the door lock. I'm willing to try the wood forming trick. In my instance I might have to reinforce the face of the wood with a strip of steel bar stock. Possibly 3/16" to 1/4" thick.

I just realized I still need to look at the door frame itself to see if its been knackered any.

Thanks,

Brad

Brad when the door is set in the jig, you can use C-clams to straighten a lot of that lock area, also you can use a hammer on the door frame.

Mine was bent in about 5", its 99% straight now.

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by LI Pets

Brad when the door is set in the jig, you can use C-clams to straighten a lot of that lock area, also you can use a hammer on the door frame.

Mine was bent in about 5", its 99% straight now.

Bob,

Thanks for the info. We're going to be moving the Argosy into the shop sometime in the next few weeks which means I will be able to remove the door without worrying about the weather. As I make progress I'll post pics.

Thanks again,

Brad

[safari57]

Brad,

It would not hurt to have a body shop take a look at it. They deal with bent car doors all the time and many of the techniques they use may be adaptable. For the time it takes to run it past, or convince a body man friend or friend of a friend to give you their thoughts, it might save you some effort.

The reason I suggest this is that we looked at a 63 Airstream in our long search for our trailer and the door was in about the same condition as yours. It turned me off right away. Several months later we ran into the couple who bought it in a campground and the door was looking very good. He used the damaged door as leverage to get the price way down, then took it to his brother in law's body shop one evening and they fixed it. I do not know what that all entailed or if it was done in one evening or over several, but it did look very well repaired (you'd not know it was damaged/repaired unless you'd seen it as we had).

Barry

[bkahler]

Barry, talking the Argosy to a body shop is something we will consider but not easy to do. Right now its not running due to motor and transmission replacement. I might also take the door itself to a friend of ours in Texas who does outstanding body work and see what he can do for it.

So we do have several options, just have to figure out which is the best one.

Thanks!

Brad

[safari57]

Brad,

I know of what you speak. I've too often had a vehicle in pieces but needed a repair of components that needed to be on the vehicle and at the shop to have it done right. Very frustrating.

Good luck, and let us know how it turns out and how you end up doing the repair.

Barry