Hinge Issue - Wood worker advice needed

[fulltilt]

Hi Gordon
I had the same thing happen to us travelling. I purchased some real nice 3/16" stainless steel carriage bolts [ marine store], bolted thru to a galvanized electrical box cover on the inside, then fastened the strut knuckle to that with regular metal screws, never failed again, the plate inside takes the strain off the particle board door.

[Martin Brown]

Had the same issue. Get a piece of 1/4” plywood and cut out a piece about 5”x5”. Glue it on the spot where the arm attaches to the door. I used Gorilla glue and it worked really well. You can then let it set for a couple of hours and then reattach the arm plate. Worked great for me. I had to do both sides of both doors.

[dfb]

So far this has worked for me.. Toothpicks and elmers wood glue. Use same holes and stuff as many picks and glue them in..

[Tomg52]

Use thru bolts with flat washers and lock washers.

[CaptDarryl]

I had the same thing happen but it was 6 screws and it took a chunk out of the door. I removed the door and put gorilla glue in the hole it left then put a pressure clamp on the chunk it pulled out till it dried. Replaced screws with 1/4” longer wood screws.

[oeeman]

Dowel idea worked fine for me. However I use gorilla glue the type that foams. Put glue in hole and wet dowel then drive in with a hammer and break off. The bonding of the foaming gorilla glue is fantastic. I glued some boards together then took them apart. The wood failed before the glue joint did.

[prndl]

Originally Posted by rohrmann

This is what I did on both sides quite a few years ago, and haven't had anything come loose since. I used 1/8" X 2" aluminum, #10 X 1/4" round head screws threaded into tapped holes in the aluminum, and then #10 sheet metal screws to hold the aluminum plate to the doors. I used no glue or adhesive. The problem with the short brackets is, when the door is closed, the gas strut is pushing the bracket in one direction, and when the door is opened, the gas strut is pushing the bracket in the opposite direction, and the screws they used to attach the bracket to the door were a size too small which allowed the bracket to move back and forth.

This is also what I did with the same problem. No issues since. Use self tapping screws into the Al if you don't have a tap.

[TELECOOL]

JB weld can’t go wrong

[Buckfisher]

With the door fully open, move the bracket over far enough to get a fresh place, close to the original location, and screw it in place there. Carefully drill pilot holes the proper size for your screws. The other end has a ball and socket fitting and all should still function good as new. The torn out holes are on the inside of the door and can't be seen when the door is closed anyway. Flatten the damaged area and use wood putty to patch the holes. Maybe use a similar color touch up paint on the wood putty if you want to hide it a little better or maybe put tape over the area. This is what I would do if it happened to me.

[laverdur]

This happened to one hinge on each of my pass-thru doors. I removed the gas pressure dampers, drilled 4 new holes for each hinge plate, enlarged the original holes in the hinge plates and filled the holes for the original screws in the doors with wood filler. After giving the wood filler several days to dry well I drilled holes for larger screws in the doors and installed larger diameter, coarse thread screws coated with epoxy. That was several years ago and so far so good.

[Byron B]

Originally Posted by mlh

This is exactly what I would do. I would leave it aluminum color. I would counter sink the holes on the outside and run the bolts either 8 32 or 10 32 into the inside. You would need a 41 degree counter sink.
Lynwood

Agree. Best solution imho.

[sohclover]

Fill all the holes with glue covered toothpicks, let dry overnight and reuse the same holes. Good luck

[Tlove]

Originally Posted by rohrmann

This is what I did on both sides quite a few years ago, and haven't had anything come loose since. I used 1/8" X 2" aluminum, #10 X 1/4" round head screws threaded into tapped holes in the aluminum, and then #10 sheet metal screws to hold the aluminum plate to the doors. I used no glue or adhesive. The problem with the short brackets is, when the door is closed, the gas strut is pushing the bracket in one direction, and when the door is opened, the gas strut is pushing the bracket in the opposite direction, and the screws they used to attach the bracket to the door were a size too small which allowed the bracket to move back and forth.

This is the best way!!!

[Leftie Canuk]

Originally Posted by dieselguy

Over the years, some owners have found they have the wrong struts installed as in too much force. Others have fabbed a much larger plate out of say aluminum to allow for more crews to be installed overall for more holding power. The door core is cheap particleboard no matter what brand of RV.

I have just finished making a 4" x 6" x 1/8" aluminum plate, with a corner arc to match the inside of the cargo door, to address the exact same thing. So far, seems to work fine.
I think part of the key to success is to drill clearance holes for # 10 sheet metal screws about 1" apart, all around the outer edge of the plate, and then a pattern of holes about 1/2" outside the bracket of the strut. Then drill pilot holes in the particle board to suit the screws used (like # 10 screws). Be careful to not drill through the fiberglass skin of the cargo door !
I initially thought I would also bond the plate onto the inside skin with sealant, but eventually just put sealant into each screw hole to help avoid water following the screws into the particle board.
Sorry, no pictures. The work was performed in the remote storage area, and I forgot the camera. It's straightforward work, just annoying because of the cheap-and-nasty approach used to build these doors.
Eric on the Left Coast

[Robin2398]

Ours looks just like this. Both struts pulled away. Door wood seemed wet. Leaking seal at top. 2022 3121 legacy. It’s got the expensive paint job so we can’t drill thru All the way?😫probably need new door?