Modifying door

Maggie01 · 06-13-2020, 11:07 PM

Can someone show me how to modify my front door, so that it opens like a regular door? Currently it is hinged on the outsides and has two panels of rubber that overlap in the middle. Both sides open outward. It has a little handle on the outside left side panel that you use to open it manually and when running it has a switch over by the driver's window that you use. I want to keep the bus door. I like the look of all the glass, I just want to be able to lock it. I also need some ideas for securing the back door where I plan to build a garage/storage area.

Maggie01 · 06-13-2020, 11:10 PM

Another picture

ol trunt · 06-14-2020, 10:43 AM

Like you, I wanted to keep the original doors. I welded the pair together in the center and then trimmed out the edges with 1/8' plate to fit against the body for a good seal. While my door is mounted on a pneumatic operator there is no reason it couldn't have been left attached to one of the original hinges.
Jack

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Maggie01 · 06-14-2020, 06:22 PM

I've got a bunch of rubber that overlaps in the middle. How do you connect the two door haves in the middle with all that rubber in the way?

ol trunt · 06-14-2020, 07:07 PM

I removed the rubber, lined the doors up as they were originally, welded them together with bits of scrap metal on the inside. Then I welded in solid 1/8" strap over the hole to make the door a single piece.
Jack

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Maggie01 · 06-14-2020, 08:44 PM

Oh, OK. Thanks so much for the info. How do you lock it? By the way, I adore your bus. What is it?

ol trunt · 06-14-2020, 11:44 PM

Thanks, the bus is a 1935 Chevy with a Superior body. The pneumatic door motor has a detent that holds and locks the door closed. The mechanism is controlled by a key on the outside and a "bat" switch on the inside.
Jack

JackE · 06-15-2020, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ol trunt

The mechanism is controlled by a key on the outside and a "bat" switch on the inside.
Jack

Does the Bat switch also open the door to the Bat Cave?

I did something similar and kept it hooked to the pneumatic opener. After using it that way for a while, I don't like it. I will eventually build a frame and a RV style door with a regular latch.

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