Gillig Phantom Front Door Rehab

[TXDRP]

This looks like what we want to accomplish, but - the amtran door pivots opposite from yours..

Thinking we can just reverse the front hinges to pivot out instead of in?

Your thoughts?

[TXDRP]

We are working om 1992 amtran - want the door to swing out.

Have removed bottom & top hardware.

Door still slightly too tall..

Also looks like we may have to reverse the hinge..

Any insights / advice ?

[TXDRP]

Great thread - looks similar to the problems that we are facing on our 1992 ward/amtran -

did you need to reverse the front hinge to get it to open wide enough?

[ComfortEagle]

Originally Posted by TXDRP

Great thread - looks similar to the problems that we are facing on our 1992 ward/amtran - did you need to reverse the front hinge to get it to open wide enough?

I am so sorry for missing this post. You likely found your answer by now, but FWIW, if I understand you correctly, the front section of our door opened inward also. Removing the hardware from the top of the door pivot/hinge allowed the door to swing outward without interference. Hope this helps. Again sorry for missing this question.

[jsweet89]

Originally Posted by ComfortEagle

I snapped this pic this morning as I was headed out the door; I will get some pics from underneath tonight after work.


I used a 2.5" wide piece of aluminum on top with a 2" piece of steel angle iron on the bottom for strength. I used 3/8" elevator bolts to tie the pieces together. I will be installing a piece of aluminum angle over the elevator bolts to tidy things up, close the bottom gap, and hide the elevator bolts. Behind the aluminum trim I will be building up that bottom step and creating a bottom door jam for the door to seal against.

Thanks for posting about this work, ComfortEagle. I follow your Gilligan Phantom account, and I really admire the work you've done!

I posted recently about the challenge I'm facing with the bottom of the doorframe. Since I don't weld, I like what you did here.

However, it looks like the bottom stair floor on your bus did not need to be extended, that it was already extending out far enough to support a doorframe, had you built a traditional doorframe for a residential door.

Would you recommend against using angle iron and aluminum to create that floor extension for a doorframe? (See the screenshots in my post for illustration)