Broken Door Handle? Be Prepared With This Simple Mod

[FishByFly]

2 we

[RosenBob]

It seems that Airstream production reads this blog. Our new 2019 Flying Cloud has a small section cut out of the screen door so you can access the tab that controls the latch with a screw driver. I tested it and was able to open the door once I knew which tab to pry up.

[RFP]

Originally Posted by RosenBob

It seems that Airstream production reads this blog. Our new 2019 Flying Cloud has a small section cut out of the screen door so you can access the tab that controls the latch with a screw driver. I tested it and was able to open the door once I knew which tab to pry up.

Attachment 350886

Maybe I'll get a "thank you" note!

[GMFL]

Originally Posted by RFP

Maybe I'll get a "thank you" note!

Thank you ROB! From Airstream......

[ondaroadagin]

Silly! All this work around to avoid bad engineering...Airstream!

[pcskier]

Originally Posted by RFP

Maybe I'll get a "thank you" note!

WOW. They totally got this idea from you! No I must wonder...will this be covered in the manuals or given as a 'walk-through' tip?

[Zybane]

How about they not design a stressed item like a door handle out of pressed on pot metal...

[RFP]

Originally Posted by pcskier

WOW. They totally got this idea from you! No I must wonder...will this be covered in the manuals or given as a 'walk-through' tip?

Nah... I don't believe for a second that they got the idea from me. Especially in view of the fact that there is a much better "fix" for the problem: that being the tapping of the handle shaft and using a machine screw and washers to secure the handle shaft to the actuator (a "fix" nicely documented elsewhere, and not by me).

[steilkurve]

Originally Posted by RosenBob

It seems that Airstream production reads this blog. Our new 2019 Flying Cloud has a small section cut out of the screen door so you can access the tab that controls the latch with a screw driver. I tested it and was able to open the door once I knew which tab to pry up.

Attachment 350886

Interesting. Is there a whole in the door frame like RFP did or is the enlarged notch enough to access the latch even with the door closed? I'll inspect my 2020 Bambi to see if it has it too.

[PB_NB]

steilkurve; I took my door apart today to chase a leak and had a good look at the inner handle. It looks like a different part than what I have seen in the other photos.

Perhaps this has been beefed up. The swagged area is quite pronounced and does not appear to want to fall off the plate.

I think I will just leave this and add a pull handle to close the door.

[RFP]

Originally Posted by PB_NB

steilkurve; I took my door apart today to chase a leak and had a good look at the inner handle. It looks like a different part than what I have seen in the other photos.

Perhaps this has been beefed up. The swagged area is quite pronounced and does not appear to want to fall off the plate.

I think I will just leave this and add a pull handle to close the door.

Good morning, PB_NB

That looks like the same ol' same ol' to me. I would recommend going ahead and doing the simple "tap, washer, and screw" mod... then you are done with worrying about the handle.

[Hans627]

I've read all the comments in this thread. Thanks to all for posting your creative ideas and pictures.

And for clarification, is the issue more the door handle breaking or pulling out of the base plate (backer plate)? Threading the end of the handle and putting a washer and screw into it will fix the pulling out issue but not the handle breaking issue.

Thanks!

[eagletoo]

Hi Hans,
GMFL (Ronnie) details this excellent mod (tapping/installing a machine screw) to correct this weakness. Info is found in the 23D thread:
https://www.airforums.com/forums/f45...le-199246.html

The base problem lies in how the handle is attached to the door mechanism and not the poor handle material itself.

[66Overlander]

Originally Posted by PB_NB

steilkurve; I took my door apart today to chase a leak and had a good look at the inner handle. It looks like a different part than what I have seen in the other photos.

Perhaps this has been beefed up. The swagged area is quite pronounced and does not appear to want to fall off the plate.

I think I will just leave this and add a pull handle to close the door.

Your photo looks like every one that has had the handle pull off. Pulling the door closed by the handle will eventually loosen it. The handle on our 2015 didn't become loose until after about 3 years and 20,000+ miles of usage. We then did the tap and screw upgrade to make the handle tight again before it pulled completely off. The sooner you do the tap and screw upgrade the better.

We considered the extra pull handle option as a secondary improvement, but decided that would not work well for us and returned the handle before we installed it. We thought that it was unnatural trying to pull the "to be added" handle thru the little screen door sliding opening and feared we might eventually hurt our fingers or wrists.

Others seem to like that option, so your mileage may vary.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by RFP

Good morning, PB_NB

That looks like the same ol' same ol' to me. I would recommend going ahead and doing the simple "tap, washer, and screw" mod... then you are done with worrying about the handle.

Looks like an easy fix so I will go ahead and do it. I was more concerned about the leaking door handle and there doesn't seem to be a way to fix that.

Thanks RFP and 66O for your help!

[PB_NB]

Got this done, took all of 10 minutes start to finish. I used a Stainless Steel Tek Screw rather than drilling and tapping. I ground down the cast nub first then ran the drill point tek screw in and out a few time to clear out the metal shavings and inserted a SS fender washer.

Simple and I expect easier to do now than to climb out the EXIT window later.

[FishByFly]

What size SS tek screw?

[PB_NB]

I will have to check and see what size I used. I have a ton of left over hardware from various projects. I just grabbed one screw that was bigger than the original hole in the back of the handle.

I think it was a No 10 Tek about 3/4" long No 3 Robie head. I will have to grab one and measure for sure.

I was worried about it going right through the handle but it didn't as it was short enough.

The retrofit was quite simple using the self tapping screw. The base material is cast or pot aluminum so it is very soft.

[PB_NB]

Here is a shot of the SS Tek screw that I used to with a SS fender washer. Please measure your handle to make sure that what ever method you choose doesn't cause your drilling process to go right through the handle! There may be different thicknesses of handle shafts out there.

You have to work these forward and reverse several times to clear out the cuttings. A shorter screw would do as well but I had these ones lying around. These are generally used so sheet metal applications but I made it work for the door handle mod.

Go easy with it as well since you are cutting into soft material and you want to keep the new threads in the end to secure the screw.

You can also run a drill bit into the hole first to get the hole diameter closer to the drill point diameter on the screw.

The drilling and tapping method demonstrated by RFP is a good choice if you are not familiar with these screws or have never used these before.

Please don't do this if you are not 100 percent comfortable with this process! Last thing you want to do is destroy your door handle.

[Mollysdad]

Originally Posted by Too tall

My burning question is what is under that plastic that I'm going to drill into?

It's not plastic, it's a casting of some metal.