Good Morning America - does this door fit?

[Moonstruck]

Ihttp://www.airforums.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=278258&stc=1&d=1484656 621

I'm in the UK and just imported a really lovely 1975 TradeWind in through Southampton. Here's her first picture in her new home - fresh off the ship.

Does this door fit? I ask the question not to be obvious. The answer is almost but not quite - the bend in the door is less than the frame - hence there are gaps top and bottom!

The reason I ask is because in looking at 1975 and indeed all Trade Winds from that period not a single one has a door with a window in it.

So, the questions are:
1, Is this a replacement door, in which case am I stuck with the problem?
2, Can I do anything to make it a better fit?

[dznf0g]

Well, it appears to be a door from that era, if not original. And I doubt there were different narrow body rib curvatures. I would bet the door has sprung....flown open while travelling and thrown to the open position. It can be repaired, but is an involved process of removing the door, making a jig, removing most all interior side rivets, clamping to the jig and reinstalling new rivets. I know there have been very good threads on the forum showing the process, but I haven't paid a lot of attention to author nor titles, as I haven't needed to be involved with this process.. I'll search, but I would bet someone will come along with the exact info you need soon.

[dznf0g]

This should give you a start and some contacts.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f453...oor-26820.html

[dznf0g]

I think you have a bigger issue than this:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f453...ly-123413.html

I have done this to minor fitment issues.

[OTRA15]

Thanks for that link.

Originally Posted by dznf0g

I think you have a bigger issue than this:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f453...ly-123413.html

I have done this to minor fitment issues.

Post #3 in the thread linked above is here:

Originally Posted by cwf

If you carefully put a wood block just at top of where curve starts, you can GINGERLY press the bottom inward with hands place on the hinge or latch side above and below where the bend starts (straddle the board).. Then press in. Take it slowly

When we took our FC20 in for brake and bearing inspections last fall, I watched the mechanic (after asking permission) adjust our main door using a block of wood in a similar fashion. It was amazing how little force was needed to spring the door back to conform to the door jamb. With the block of wood supporting the middle of the edge of the door, pushing on the top or bottom corners is like using a 3' crow bar, so there is a lot of leverage.

Hence the phrase "take it slowly" in the quote above. I would try this method with your door in place, after taking careful measurements before you start. You will note improvement if it is working in your favor. You can re-position the block to enable re-curving to happen where you need it.

Remember, the framing inside the door is only about 1-2" thick, so that the leverage being applied can bend the door fairly easily IMO.

The further techniques of taking the door off to get the curve you want involves more risk obviously, and is not for the faint at heart! If you are good with your hands, hopefully you will not over-bend things.

Good luck!

Peter

PS -- Wondering about the source of the phrase "get bent" here . . .

[Moonstruck]

Guys,
thank you so much for our good advice on this. I'm not in a rush to fix this as it rained cats and dogs Saturday night and no water got in. I'm sure the trick is to manufacture some wooden formers that can sit in the frame and limit the force you can apply to the door. That way you gently work it to fit rather than risking going too far
Again, many thanks!
Marc

[OTRA15]

If you use a thin wood block to start with, the door jamb will limit the amount you can bend the door. As you make progress, increase the thickness of the block. Hard to explain how simple the mechanic at our AS shop made it look. [<---quicker than that sentence!]

[DavidsonOverlander]

Check the door where the deadbolt is installed to see if the hole drilled in the door is large enough to compromise the door strength. On our '74 Sovereign the hole left so little material that the inside edge of the door's frame had cracked and no amount of bending was going to close the gap. Hopefully that's not a problem on yours as it's much harder to fix than just bending.

[Foiled Again]

I went to a hardware store grand opening where the gave away cheap wood yardsticks. Made layers from 1/8 to 3/8 inch thick. That worked for the bottom of the door. Gotta borrow a ladder to do the top.

Leaned on the door more than whacked it

PAULA

[SeeMore]

Sometimes a picture(s) or video helps convey an answer better than a stream of words:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7-PprGeESE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y27XmtJGJBk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wC_N-eIsa8c