caution on sliding door!!!

Post by **aitch** » Sat May 12, 2007 8:18 pm

my sliding door was a little "sticky" when closing so I sprayed the hinges and runners with WD40. The next time my daughter shut the door it closed very quickly and she nearly trapped her fingers in it!!!
I list this as a caution for all fellow Bongoers as I dont want anybody to get hurt.

p.s. the WD40 worked really well!!!!!!

moonshine · Post by **moonshine** » Sat May 12, 2007 10:35 pm

My sliding door doesn't actually stick, but sometimes it slides very easily and sometimes it feels like I am opening it against a hydraulic damper. That's the best way I can describe it, as it seems to resist fast movement. Anyone any ideas?

dandywarhol · Post by **dandywarhol** » Sun May 13, 2007 12:19 am

The hinge pivot which allows it to slide round the corner often gets tight moonshine.

bigdaddycain · Post by **bigdaddycain** » Sun May 13, 2007 2:12 am

Thanks for the warning aitch... I'm glad she moved her hand in time

Am i right in thinking that white grease (lithium?) is the right stuff to use? as with the roof mechanism?

The drawback with WD40 is it attracts a lot of dirt over time, but is great for a quick fix when nothing more suitable is at hand...

moonshine · Post by **moonshine** » Sun May 13, 2007 2:55 pm

Thanks Dandy, it's worth a check.

The strange thing is though that sometimes when I open the door it slides back easily and smoothly with just one finger pulling it, but other times it opens easily part way, then requires a hefty shove to go the rest of the way. Just as if it were coming up against a hydraulic damper.

harpo42 · Post by **harpo42** » Sun May 13, 2007 4:51 pm

When the door is stiff to open have you tried just moving it forward for about 1 or 2 inches and then opening again.
Iv'e noticed that when the weather is wet the door opens easily. The other thing is I too lubricated the door some while ago and now the runners are clogged with dirt which is very difficult to clear out.

Timnz · Post by **Timnz** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 1:18 am

I noticed this too, actually depending where you park, the van chassis can twist ever so slightly making the sliding door bind a little.

dandywarhol · Post by **dandywarhol** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 11:29 am

Hmmm....can't agree with that one - I'd say there was more than enough "play" on the hinges and mechanism to allow for any chassis movement - if fact the van would need to be on so rough ground that a wheel was off the deck to "twist" the chassis..........

brorabongo · Post by **brorabongo** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:48 pm

moonshine wrote:My sliding door doesn't actually stick, but sometimes it slides very easily and sometimes it feels like I am opening it against a hydraulic damper. That's the best way I can describe it, as it seems to resist fast movement. Anyone any ideas?

I have noticed the same

seems totally random.

dandywarhol · Post by **dandywarhol** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 5:39 pm

Squirt some penetrating oil on the hinged part which pivots at the middle (external) runner - it's the pivot pin which usually causes the random tightness.