Friction door hinge

[billmill3461]

Does anyone know if there is a way to add a friction hinge to an existing entry door?

[MikeES]

Is there a way to change the hinges on a friction hinge door to remove/disable the friction hinge?

We do not like the friction hinge at all...it works so hard my wife cannot close the door. When opening or closing the door flexes the whole side wall of the camper! When traveling we have to dead bolt lock the door or it will eventually come open because of the pressure on the latch.

The hinges have been lubed heavily but did not change the force needed to close/open the doors. The dealer promised that the would loosen up quickly with use.

Is it as simple as new straight hinge pins? Or is this a whole new door?

[crash]

We too dont like the friction hinges.Sorry.

[MikeES]

I did find more about the friction hinge door. The top and bottom hinges are the friction hinge and the center is free. The hinges are screwed to the door but riveted to the camper walls. We went and checked out over a dozen new Sprinters and found a big difference in the resistance, the easiest ones would be acceptable., but most were similar but still were easier than ours. Our door frame is getting bent and has pulled away from the door body. This after only using the camper for 3 camping trips (total of 15 days).

The dealer has not heard from Keystone on a solution for ours.

[summerhummer]

Any more news on this. I saw the friction doors on the lot played with it and it was great. I was wondering how to retro fit. Again I don't have it in my camper but was looking to make a modification to add it. It worked great on the lot for me. Way cool. Sorry you are having issues.

[123mcquigge]

Okay here it is, not a fan of the friction hinges on the entry door.
Went out to start the reloading of the trailer after a Canadian winter, and the door was extremely stiff. So I proceed to get the WD40 to grease the hinges, and slowly trying to work the oil in,.....the bottom hinge pin sheared off where the screen door attaches to the hinge. Now my question is....WHERE CAN I GET A REPLACEMENT HINGE OR PIN to fix it? I found a place in the US, but really looking for some place here in Canada. Thanks in Advance. (here's the one in the US) http://store.lci1.com/hinge-assembly-6-leaf---white-controlled-motion-p903.aspx

[AdkWoody]

I have a 2013 Sprinter 320BHS with the friction hinges. We absolutely LOVE them! The kids can't open or close the door too hard and the wind NEVER bothers them!! We purchased our rig brand new and I never once oiled or greased the hinges. Just last year (2019) the bottom hinge pin broke and the very bottom piece fell off. I've been meaning to find a replacement but haven't yet. The only issue is now the screen door opens/closes weird when by itself. I need to fix the awning bottom hinge bar first!

I did think that the hinge was hard to open and close when I first tried it, and I did have a fear that the rivits or the frame would give over time. Here we are 7 years later and they are still holding strong!

[ChrisB]

I have a solution that I am very happy with. Unfortunatley I spent a lot of time contacting the dealership who refered me to the fabricator, who refered me to the component manufacturer... lipert. None of them offered assistance. Both of my doors were coming apart due to this technological advancement. My camper was just over the one year mark when we started to have trouble. We had no choice but to dive into this and get it resolved. Unfortunately I have had trouble uploading pictures to this forum. If anyone would like to evaluate our process, what we learned and how to accomplish the solution just let me know.
The first door took us about 3 hours as we were figuring out all the issues. The second door only took us about an hour because we waited to get it done and had to relearn and take photos this time.
Hope this give you hope. By the tine we finally got it done we could barely close the doors anymore.

CB

[flybouy]

CB have you tried this https://www.keystoneforums.com/forums/faq.php?faq=vb3_reading_posting#faq_vb3_attachment s First you must click "Go Advanced". Then click on the "Paper "Clip" icon to the right of the fonts control.

That will open a new box "Manage Attachments" where you chose a file then you must click "upload in that window.

Hope that helps.

[ChrisB]

ok, one more time.

our camper is a 43' 2017 carbon toy hauler. we bought it brand new. about a year and an half in the doors started to become a problem. difficult to shut and the latches not lining up properly. progressively until nearly impossible to close. spoke to the dealer, Outside warranty, and offered to give us a quote or i could try to deal with the manufacturer Keystone. spent several weeks sharing infromation with them and they finally said we should get in touch with the component fabricator, Lippert. after another several weeks of sharing and discussion, they said there was nothing they could do other than offer us new products to replace these. by then we were pretty fed up and decided to tear into the issue our selves.
We realized the friction hinges (poc components) are only the upper and lower hinges. the middle hinges are not. we also realized that the friction in the hinge was actually tearing the door apart. The door is not designed to overcome that much resistance and the door frame began to break away from the edge of the door. when we attempted to close the door, the door would flex at that point and basically stretch and that is when we realized why the door was getting hard to close. also noticed the edge of the fiberglass skin was exposed past the aluminum frame and as we attempt to close the door that gap would increase allowing us to see the foam interior of the door.
we drilled out the knuckle opposite the pins. tapped them out with a punch. ran the drill bit through the holes to clean them up and then using a long punch drove the center pin out the bottom of the hinge while it was on the door using cardboard to protect the camper skin. then we used a file to clean up the center pin and a drill. then cleaned up the interior of the knuckle with a drill bit. put them back together and slid at least one of the horizontal pins back in just to keep the center pin from dropping out.
if the door is damaged like mine, we had to unscrew the frame around the door and get it far enough apart so that we could reattach the galvalume base to the foam core with liquid nails. if the door skin has become detached from the galvalume base. we used contact cement to bind the two together again and clamped it up to dry. then we reassembled the door and have been very happy with the results.29351

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[sourdough]

Chris thanks for that very detailed repair. I'm hoping like heck mine doesn't give me fits but you've posted some good ideas.

[Snoking]

I hate the friction hinges on our Laredo, in the wind the door still get blown open or closed! Solution looking for a condition that did not exist. It is a double wammie with the Lippert fold in steps.

[ChrisB]

Good deal, hope it helps. We are still trying to determine what type of door arrestor we want to install and we are considering the new steps as well. Theyvwere on the model we walked thru. That was supposed to be the first upgrade. 2 years later we are still dealing with our originals that are too short.

[mike95776]

Thanks for this Chris!!! We just got back from a 10 day trip and I cussed every time I opened or closed the door.... I promised myself that i would fix this...



I see that you took off the hinges to drill them out... Is that really necessary...? Did you try just putting the center pin back in after you removed the side pins to see if that worked?

[LHaven]

we also realized that the friction in the hinge was actually tearing the door apart. The door is not designed to overcome that much resistance and the door frame began to break away from the edge of the door. when we attempted to close the door, the door would flex at that point and basically stretch and that is when we realized why the door was getting hard to close. also noticed the edge of the fiberglass skin was exposed past the aluminum frame and as we attempt to close the door that gap would increase allowing us to see the foam interior of the door.

Oh, yeah, tell me about it. (https://www.keystoneforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=44499) :banghead:
I didn't connect it to the hinges until real late in the game.

The new door I got from Lippert had its friction seriously reduced from the factory. I may reduce the friction on my other door someday if it starts showing evidence of spreading, but we use that door roughly 40 times less often than the one we replaced, so it's been fine so far.

The referenced thread also contains somebody else's instructions for another way to reduce the friction on those hinges.

[CedarCreekWoody]

I have found silicone spray helps the hinges once they get too stiff.

[LHaven]

Well the problem is that Average Joe doesn't know the design goals and can't tell too stiff from desired stiff.

Lubing doors designed to be stiff is a lot like waxing your skateboard -- really a good idea?

[CedarCreekWoody]

Yes, a very good idea if it has gotten so stiff that it won't latch without slamming or is beginning to separate the lamination of these door as has happened to some members.

[ChrisB]

Thanks for this Chris!!! We just got back from a 10 day trip and I cussed every time I opened or closed the door.... I promised myself that i would fix this...



I see that you took off the hinges to drill them out... Is that really necessary...? Did you try just putting the center pin back in after you removed the side pins to see if that worked?

Hope my post helps you. This is my first camper even though I have been camping for over twenty years. My father in law always owned one but would never pull it so we always traveled together. However. Since we received zero support from the manufacturer, the dealership or component manufacturer. We decided to permanently end this upgrade. I could not be happier. My doors have been fixed and smoothly open and close now. We still have not decided what type of door restraint to use but so far we have been happy the way it is. In my opinion that upgrade was poorly thought out and is only a source of future problems. The door nor the frame is designed to accommodate that much force. Without drilling out the hinge. We felt like we were not getting enough relief from the friction

[mike95776]

I drilled out the friction hinge pins from the opened door side... As you can see in my pics it was kind of a hack job as I did not hit the center of the pin... but in the end I "got er done"...

The door now swings easily... I just ordered 10" door catches RV T-Style Door Holder Catch| RV Door Holder 2 Pack (10 Inches, White) (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B083TCG5QV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) I hope these will keep the door at 90 degrees to the TT. I can't see how to install a gas strut to the inside of the door as the screen is right at the edge of the door opening... Someone mentioned that they put the gas strut on on the outside, but there is not a lot of structure on the trailer to attach it to...

My advice for someone that wants to do this is to first, use a center punch to mark the center of the pin... then drill a pilot hole in the pin using a 1/16" drill bit to make sure you hit the center. Then follow this with a larger bit that is just a little larger than the pin... As you move the door you will be able to see if there are any burrs on the center pin that need to be removed (see pic).

I got the door catch installed... I looked everywhere for something solid to attach it to but failed to find anything... it's glued and screwed but a good gust will more than likely rip it loose... I don't keep the door open when there is wind anyway...

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[Rockivy]

I hate the friction hinges on our Laredo, in the wind the door still get blown open or closed! Solution looking for a condition that did not exist. It is a double wammie with the Lippert fold in steps.

100% agreed, we have a new 33RLI Cougar and the Friction Door is a GIANT Pain in the A.. I don't kno how many times with one full hand you open the door and it opens 3 inches and you drop what your carrying, or when you go to closwe the door you have to slam the thing to get it to close, my brother has an Imagine with no friction hinge and my God is that way better, like you said solution in search of a problem, if its eindy hold the door!!!

So from what I see here you have to take the top and bottom hinges bascially apart and remove the friction pin from the hinge and reassemble, will have to take a look at my door its an LCI so should be the same as everyone elses.

[ChrisB]

For my door we drilled out all three hinges. We had to glue the panels back together because my door was coming apart due to the stress the hinges were putting on the door. We used contact cement and it has been flawless since. The door closes so easily now. Good luck hope the plan we presented gives you the results you want. We don't have small kids going in and out so the door does not get left open in the wind without being tied. So it doesn't slam shut or open. Good luck

[GMH]

[QUOTE=mike95776;463255]
I got the door catch installed...


Thankfully I don’t have friction hinges(first photo)on my old 2010 Cougar! For anyone else installing these door holders, they should be installed 90 degrees to the second photo. The rod should hang down when not in use, then lifted up and dropped down into the receptacle on the door. That way a breeze can’t cause it to come unlatched. Good luck with your doors folks!

[ChrisB]

Looks good. Hard to find good anchor points. We were considering the pneumatic shock and figured it needed to be at the top of the door so as not to interfere with the new fold in steps we want. But we have been swinging free since I posted this original thread, and it has not been an issue.

[RVRoadramblers]

I see that this thread is from a while back, which besides providing a lot of good information also tells me that this issue with the friction hinges that I have also recently discovered on my 2016 Montana 3710FL has been around for longer than I had thought. And also has me wondering if anyone has discovered any other solutions for this other than what has been suggested previously? And is it possible to just disable a couple of the friction points to just decrease the friction to a point that still provides a small amount of tension without compromising the integrity of the door? I have to admit that I am (as it seems) one of very few who actually likes having the friction hinges for it's intended purpose but have unfortunately become subject to it's undesirable side-effects.

[ChrisB]

Good luck, I too enjoyed my friction hinges until they started to destroy my door. We stopped using the main door until we started having similar effects on the secondary door. Then it had to be addressed before we had to repair the other door as well. The repair has held up well and we are very pleased with the result still. Had to fix new problems since then. We used the original center pin in the hinge but not the door lines up great and closes very easily as it should. Thanks to the help of my brother in law.

[RVRoadramblers]

Good luck, I too enjoyed my friction hinges until they started to destroy my door. We stopped using the main door until we started having similar effects on the secondary door. Then it had to be addressed before we had to repair the other door as well. The repair has held up well and we are very pleased with the result still. Had to fix new problems since then. We used the original center pin in the hinge but not the door lines up great and closes very easily as it should. Thanks to the help of my brother in law.

It's a shame that they have yet to figure out a way to construct these things better. I'll more than likely end up following your solution to resolve but was just checking to see if there were any alternatives that might meet me halfway before I dive into it. Part of my procrastinating process you see! Lol
One thing on your last post you stated "We used the original center pin in the hinge but not the door", I'm not following you on that, could you clarify for me?
Thanks

[ChrisB]

Not should have been "NOW" typing on my chicklet phone keyboard that likes to auto correct things in an incorrect way.

[RVRoadramblers]

Ahhh, gotcha!! (thumbs-up emoji) Gotta love the magic of auto-correct (face-palm emoji) Perhaps that will be a sort-of virus for the future AI Bots! Lol
Thanks again!

[CedarCreekWoody]

I like our hinge but I do lube it with silicon spray every month or two.

[skids]

I like our hinge but I do lube it with silicon spray every month or two.

Pull off the cap on the top of the hinge. I drip 3-in-one oil in there and replace the caps.