Entry door latch

[Jeremy Parrett]

My entry door stop hasnt been working for a while.  Another Beaver owner removed the 5 screws that hold the plate onto the top of the door as I removed the bolt on the other end of the arm under the door lintle. We could see the mechanism; a pawl is pulled out of a slot in a round metal plate attached to the arm bolt when you pull the door latch .This releases the arm to swing. This pawl is spring loaded. Some WD40 followed by white lithium grease freed it up. After reattaching  the door top plate and the arm to the door lintle we now have a door stop that clicks/locked  when the door is opened!!
Now if I could fix the dead bolt that locked us out one day.........

[Keith Oliver]

My deadbolt is identical to the one at home.  Any trouble with it, toss it, go to home depot for an identical replacement.  Get them to key it to your old key.  Takes about 5 min to take out/put back.

[Jeremy Parrett]

Hi Kieth,
The 'throw' on my deadbolt is longer than any you can buy in the store.  I have removed it twice.  I had to replace the lock body after a locksmith drilled the old one out (We were locked out of the coach) .
So far cannot see why it will only throw the bolt halfway out.  Now I am parked for the winter here in Baja California, I have some time to play with it.

[Jeff Watt]

Jeremy,

Are the door stops the same on all models? If mine has one, it doesn't work very well - a slight breeze will close the door. If it is the same, I'll have to go have a look.

[Jeremy Parrett]

Hi Jeffrey,
  If your door closes by it self the "stop" is not working. Mine is an arm that hinges  in the middle,attached to the door frame and the top of the door .Gerald might know if yours is the same as mine.    If you have a plate on top of your door held in place by 5 screws ,try removing the screws ,disconnect the arm bolt on the door frame and lift the plate up to see the mechanism.While someone else worked the inside door latch, applying  WD40 followed by white lithium grease should free  up the pawl.   I have caught the awning on the door twice and I am very happy to have fixed this gremlin.

[Gerald Farris]

Jeffrey,
The locking  mechanism that Jeremy is referring to is a "Pos-A-Loc" door latch that was made by PTL Engineering. The "Pos-A-Loc" latch keeps the door open once it is opened fully until the door handle is operated in the same manner as opening the door.  With this design latch the door latches in the fully open or fully closed position, and releases from either position in the same manner.

Your 2005 Thunder probably does not have the "Pos-A-Loc" latch installed. It was phased out by Monaco, after they purchased Beaver for cost reasons.

Gerald

[Joel Ashley]

Our 2006 Monterey doesn't use the pos-a-lock described by Jeremy.  A previous thread this fall discussed issues with the simple scissor hinge mechanism, like ours, that Jeffrey probably has.  Loose or missing screws on the bar's mountings, either on the door or the door frame, can affect operation, as can a loose "central pivot rivet", or a worn stop flange.  The entry door is subject to a lot of use and wear, and a little abuse when inadvertently slammed.  The points mentioned, when faulty, allow for sloppiness, and a detent (near the "rivet") that won't set to hold the door open.

Joel

[JimDyer]

My 98 Marquis must not have the "Pos-a-Loc" either, but the one before. I have to use a bungee coed to keep the door open........but lately it doesn't want to lock on the deadbolt unless I slam the door and then lean in with a second hand to keep the deadbolt lock from binding. DW can't work it at all. Any ideas on what to do to it?

trim the weatherseals?

[Gerald Farris]

Jim,
Trimming the weather-strips is not the correction you want. You can make the door close a little tighter on most coaches by shimming the striker bracket in with small washers between the bracket and the door frame. This will make the door a little harder to close, but it will be tighter and the dead bolt will align with the frame for easier operation.

Gerald

[JimDyer]

Gerald, mine isn't built with a striker plate. On the lock side, there is about .020 clearance between the metal door and the metal frame. On the hinge side there is about 3/8" gap, filled with two strips of plastic foam which are intended to flex and allow the door t come to the correct position. I'm thinking the foam has hardened and now won't compress to the proper thickness.

[Gerald Farris]

Jim,
If weather-strips harden, they will virtually always harden in the compressed position since that is the position that they are almost always in. If the weather-strips harden in the compressed position they will not have enough resilience to seal the opening and cause a leak. That and wear are the main reasons for weather-strip replacement.

Since I am not looking at your coach, I can not tell exactly what your problem is, however if you are going to be at Quartzsite or Las Vegas, I will be glad to help you with the problem then.

Gerald

[Jeff Watt]

Thanks Gerald/Joel,

I was beginning to think I did not have a locking door, I just thought that the level of coach Beavers are at, then a locking door would be standard. My 2000 Triple E had a locking door so I naively thought a Beaver would. I'll have to have a look at the hinge mechanism to see if it needs some tightening or adjusting. It isn't too bad, but it would be nice if the door stayed open when i want it to stay open.

Jeff

[Joel Ashley]

Don't feel bad, Jeffrey.  When ours was brand new, Beaver Coach Sales had to do some tweaking on the entry door, but missed the fact that it wouldn't "lock" open.

Being naive about rigs with front entry doors like ours, I didn't know what a properly operating door was supposed to work like.  Eventually I got tired of the wind easily slamming the open door, and zeroed in on that top scissor hinge device.  The next trip to BCS, they also zeroed in on it, and replaced it (on a new coach no less).  The detent and small stop finger near the pivot have worked correctly since, and the door does not come off the fully opened position without some effort.

Mounting flanges on the door top and on the door frame must not be loose, the little stop finger can't show much wear, and the detent bubble should seat well into its dimple on the opposing arm when the door is fully open.  

Joel

[JimDyer]

Thanks, Gerald. We're staying in florida this year, but maybe I'll see if Alliance has a set of door seals.