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fmzjwill · 07-08-2003, 02:24 PM

The lock on our exterior door appears to have been broken and we are unable to enter our 1978 Sovereign . The key just spins in the lock. Anyone have any ideas on how to remove the lock assembly from the outside without to much damage? Or how we can enter the trailer without breaking a window?

smily · 07-08-2003, 03:31 PM

Where is your bed?

If it is twins in the middle you can acces from storage bin door.
It is a tight squeeze but possible.

If you have rear bed you can send small child through storage bin door through the tambour door below bed.

The rear window is an emergency exit but I dont know that you can open it from the outside.

At the sacrifice of a screen, you can slide thin metel wire or strip between gasket and window frame and roll the window latch to the unlock position. Most of the trailers that are this old will have loose window latches that can easily be rotated with a thin piece of metal.

Good luck,
Smily

overlander64 · 07-08-2003, 06:43 PM

Greetings Fmzjwill!

Welcome to the Forum and the world of Vintage Airstreaming!

Another option, especially if you have roadside assistance coverage through your coach insurance provider or a separate motor-club-type coverage on your coach, is to obtain the assistance of a professional locksmith. A competent locksmith should be able to get the door open without damage utilizing the tools of the trade - - in a worse case scenario, the lock cylinder might need to be drilled out, but the locksmith that I deal with only does that as a last resort and only if he knows that he can obtain a complete replacement cylinder. Even without insurance, if the locksmith knows that it isn't an emergency situation the charge isn't likely to be great - - when I had to have a lock with defective cylinder repaired on one of my outbuildings, the charge was only $60.00 for the call and repair as it was done at the locksmith's convenience.

Good luck in solving your lock issue!

Kevin

fmzjwill · 07-08-2003, 08:16 PM

Thanks for your info. Since we have the center twin beds, we will give the hatch a try first and then go the locksmith route if necessary. Our trailor is parked on Lake Superior 300 miles from us so it will be awhile before I can let you know the outcome. Thanks again for your help.

BruceACampbell · 07-08-2003, 09:11 PM

Which style of lock do you have? A 5/8" lock in a paddle handle style or a seperate doorknob/deadbolt like on a house? This sounds like a broken tailpiece/activator just behine the lock cylinder, but the attack varies with the style. Any pictures?
I might be able to advise a bypass by PM.

davidz71 · 07-08-2003, 09:13 PM

My '77 Excella developed a stubborn habit of not always unlocking no matter which way I turned the key. I ordered a new tumbler from Inland RV and followed the directions which entailed drilling out the tumbler, picking out the pieces and slipping the new one in (it just pops in). It was somewhere in the neighborhood of $54 or so.

fmzjwill · 07-10-2003, 07:16 PM

Bruce,
Our Airstream has the paddle handle style lock. The handle is attached to the bolt with a sheer pin. We leave the keys with relatives in the area so they can use the place once in a while. They have trouble figuring out when the door is locked and when it is unlocked. Last year they forced the handle and sheered off the pin. I suspect that they've done the same thing this year. I got in through an unlocked window last year and was able to open the door from the inside latch. This year all the windows are locked. Any good ideas?? Thanks, Fiona & Mike

dscluchfc · 07-11-2003, 12:13 AM

Get the keys form the relatives, and send them the repair bill....that is a fair idea in my opinion.

COArgosy78 · 09-17-2003, 06:17 PM

We now have this problem. Dont know how, we winterized the trailer this last weekend and left it in Buena Vista like always. My husband decided to go back today to install a bypass on the hot water heater and lo and behold THE LOCK WAS BROKEN. Vandels, kids... dont know, but now we can't get in to it. It is exactly what Bruce was talking about on the earlier thread.

We have the 5/8" paddle lock with broken tailpiece/activator. Can you help us anyone? Please, as there is also a dead mouse inside that we set a trap for. I'm hoping Bruce sees this or the PM I sent him since he indicated a possible bypass. Leigh

gvanman · 09-17-2003, 07:03 PM

We just used our AS over the Labor Day weekend and had a similar problem. The lock cylinder has always been loose, but still worked. On the outbound journey, we had to stop as my wife needed to get something out of the trailer. I gave her the keys and watched in my mirror as she unlocked the door. She was obviously having a problem and when I saw her yanking on the door, I jumped out to stop her - I had just repaired the pin on the lock about a week before and could see that she was doing her best to break it again! After a bit of fiddling around, the door opened, she got her stuff out of the trailer and off we went again. I took the opportunity to lecture her on the delicate nature of the door lock and that finesse rather than brute force usually prevails. We arived at our destination - a friend of my wife's who has an up-north cottage - set up the camper and then did the sitting around the campfire drinking beer till late routine. I was awoken the next morning to my wife again having a problem with the door - this time from the inside! We were locked in and had to call her friend on the phone to come and let us out! The door was opened from the outside with no problem except for the laughter of our rescuers and our embarrassment!
I removed the lock and checked it out and all appeared to be OK.
Next stop was the family reunion in Rose City, Michigan. We set up the trailer outside the hall where the reunion is held as we do every year, so that the mothers with babies can use the trailer for feeding, changing and generally use it as a nursery. Me and the missus took off for a walk to look at an Excella that we had seen on the way in. On the way back we were tracked down by Anne's brother, who informed us that various mothers and babies were locked in the trailer and were panicking! I rushed back and found that someone had closed the door - it was open when I had left and I never thought that anyone would close it as it was a warm day. Found out that one of the kids had closed it and dropped the catch on the inside - fairly simple to talk one of the less panicked moms through the simple unlocking process!
What I have now, is a door that sticks shut, even when it is not locked! When I got back home, I tried to find the problem.
My conclusion is:-
When the wife was yanking on the door, I think that she moved the striker out by a couple of thou of an inch.
The lock 'bolt' has very small grooves on the straight edge and this is causing the bolt to hang up on the frame under the striker.
If I put pressure on the door at the same time as I pull the flap, then the door opens OK - likewise when opening from the inside, I have to pull the door at the same time as I work the handle.
If I don't put pressure on the door (from outside) and just pull the flap, it appears to be broken as it pulls all the way out.
Conclusion - make sure that this is not the problem with your door locks before taking any drastic measures like buying a new lock or drilling out your cylinders.
In my case, the solution is to remove the 2 rivets that hold the striker and re-mount it back a few thou of an inch - probably a simple 5 minute job!

COArgosy78 · 09-18-2003, 07:41 AM

Hi - thanks for your reply, but no, the paddle handle is broken. It just flops now instead of engaging the activator. Someone yanked way to hard on it and broke some part inside. The main problem is the mouse that we need to get out. Everything is winterized, so we could take our time to fix the lock, BUT that mouse is going to start stinking!!!! HELP!!!! Leigh

thenewkid64 · 09-18-2003, 08:05 AM

Without destroying the lock assembly there is only one other way to get in. Thru a window. Check to see if all of the window latches are closed and latched. If they are pick one window and see if a slim jim or other tool can be worked into the bottom of the window to pop the latches. Then you can open the window, pop the screen and climb in. This may damage the weather strip on the window, so try to stay on the bottom.

I would pick a window that you have verified you can get a replacement for, just in case you break it

The latcjhing emchanism will not allow the bolt to be pushed in to open the door, so there is no way to get it open from the outside unless you destroy the door latch IMO.

Good Luck

74Argosy24MH · 09-18-2003, 08:19 AM

I put one vent in with rivnuts and screws for the time when this happens. It is not a large opening and you would have to let a small adult or child go through and rivet it back on, but it beats breaking glass.

John

COArgosy78 · 09-18-2003, 08:52 AM

Hello again - got Price calmed down about the dead mouse and on the phone to Charlie in Boise (parts dept). We are going to try removing the hinge pins from door, as Charlie suggested. The whole lock mechanism is quite expensive ($600+) if we can find one and apparently just removing the lock cylinder won't work cause the activator? whatever to open door is several inches below the cylinder hole and can't be reached. Thought i would post all that Charlie told us in case this comes up for others with a like trailer. Our windows are tight and don't think that would be the way to go. If worse comes to worse, we were planning some floor repair and might wait till next Spring to drop bellypan and go up thru floor. Will keep posting on progress. LEigh

DPeakMD · 09-18-2003, 10:15 AM

My lock just broke for the second time on my '72. I do not have any compartments you could potentially crawl through. This only seems to happen when the trailer's been on the road, so there are never any open windows!

I have perfected a technique to be in the trailer in under 5 minutes!

Take a flat strip of metal about 12" long and just thick enough to give you some pushing force. Slip it between the window frame and under the gasket and pass it towards the window latch on any window (I chose the one right next to the door on the slim hope that the inside handle would work--BTW, I almost never so lucky!). I choose a point on the vertical portion of the frame, almost directly even or slightly above so I could get some leverage to press it down.

As you slide the thin piece of metal through the opening start to bend it in an arc little by little until you make are able to push on the latch.

Go ahead and push the latch. On my '72 they were fairly easy to push out of engagement (YMMV).

Repeat above with the other latch.

Open the window and slit the screen or push it out and voila! You are inside.

Now try the inside latch. Still no luck? Try locking and unlocking on the inside. Still no luck? OK. Step two. Take the screw from the stem holding the handle on. Take the handle off. Unscrew the lock 'pin'. Now unscrew each of the 3 or 4 screws hold the lock in place. Once they are out, you can reach around the outside of the trailer through your open window (long arms!) and pull the lock out of it's inset space. The bolt will disengage from the frame and you'll have an open door. Whew! Glad that's over!

Save the now perfectly formed (bent) metal and it'll be even quicker to get in next time.

garry · 09-18-2003, 03:23 PM

Someone broke into our AS, broke the latch and handle to the right of the door. $600 for new assy and after new one installed we got locked in !!!!
After much fiddling around we somehow got the lock to work again. Took the latch completely apart checked everything but found no reason for the failure. Have not had the problem again but am not real comfortable knowing it will hapen again.

Garry

loechli · 09-19-2003, 08:52 AM

I have a 72 International with a lock that works, but very sloppy key cylinder.

Has anyone come up with a way to user a different door handle / lock mechinism.

I don't know what I will do if mine breaks, $600.00 is outragous.

Steve

COArgosy78 · 09-19-2003, 12:08 PM

If I understand correctly, the $600 cost is because the original manufacturer of that paddle handle door lock assembly went out of business, therefore it has become hard to locate a replacement. There apparently are replacement parts for some (all?) of it, cause Charlie said once we get in and get the assembly off the door, we can get it fixed. I just want to get in and then not have this happen again!!!!! The Window Breakin detailed above may end up being a 2nd option if the door hingepin deal does not work. Thanks for the explanation. Will keep you updated on our progress, altho Charlie said don't worry about mouse, so my husband hasn't indicated when we will get to this. Good Grief Charlie Brown!!!!! Leigh

Inland RV Center, In · 09-19-2003, 12:50 PM

The $600.00 replacement lock is for a 1970 to 1977 trailer, only.

In 1978 Airstream used a lock mad by Keeler Brass. They are no longer in business.

A replacement lock kit is available that fits the 1978 to 1991 trailers.

It's cost is less than $150.00.

As per Airstream, a small modification to the door is necessary.

Total installation time is 1 hour or less.

Not something everyone can do, but most certainly by the person that has a few basic tools and a little mechanical moxie.

Fun-Lovin · 09-19-2003, 03:36 PM

So what your telling us that we can upgrade our locks with the lesser expensive one? If this is true there sure will be a lot of happier people when the time comes that the lock has to be replaced due to failure or breakage.