4081 Dutch Star wet bay door hinge issues

[MarkMaxPayne]

Unfortunately, quite a common problem with our Newmars. Many posts on the forums about this, including one where someone 3D printed a hinge pin insert to help prevent.

I had the same problem with one of my new 2023 Newmar New Aire baggage doors. The diameter of the holes in the hinge are so large that they barely rest on top of the spring loaded retaining rings. Put enough down pressure on the door or hit a pothole just the right way and the retaining rings flex enough for the holes in the hinges to push down around and past them, dropping the door several inches. The rings don't even pop off or out of place, almost like a magic trick.

I ended up disassembling the hinges on that door and inserting washers with smaller diameter holes between the hinge bottom of the hole in the hing and the top of retaining rings. This creates a shelf of sorts for the hing to sit on as the washer sits on the ring. So far so good...

Best,
-Mark

 

[JRS]

I used a soft wire instead of waiting for a clip for our wet bay door. Like it so much, I'll continue using wire. It's in use for like a year now.

 

[Dave H]

A video would have been amusing, except you would have to delete the sound track

 

[Dave H]

Unfortunately, quite a common problem with our Newmars. Many posts on the forums about this, including one where someone 3D printed a hinge pin insert to help prevent.

I had the same problem with one of my new 2023 Newmar New Aire baggage doors. The diameter of the holes in the hinge are so large that they barely rest on top of the spring loaded retaining rings. Put enough down pressure on the door or hit a pothole just the right way and the retaining rings flex enough for the holes in the hinges to push down around and past them, dropping the door several inches. The rings don't even pop off or out of place, almost like a magic trick.

I ended up disassembling the hinges on that door and inserting washers with smaller diameter holes between the hinge bottom of the hole in the hing and the top of retaining rings. This creates a shelf of sorts for the hing to sit on as the washer sits on the ring. So far so good...

Best,
-Mark

What a great idea. Do you remember what size the washers are? Thanks for the information.

 

[Dave H]

I used a soft wire instead of waiting for a clip for our wet bay door. Like it so much, I'll continue using wire. It's in use for like a year now.

Brilliant!!!!

 

[MarkMaxPayne]

What a great idea. Do you remember what size the washers are? Thanks for the information.

Unfortunately, I don't as I hit the workshop and picked through a jar of "leftovers". It was a common size though as I recall. The washers that worked best had a hole slightly larger than the hinge pin grommet that the retaining ring (or twisted wire others have suggested) slots into. This way the diameter of the washer hole is too small for the ring to flex and squeeze through the hole. The overall diameter of the washer just needing to be larger than the hole in the door hinge as that then sits on top of the washer vs directly on the ring.

Best,
-Mark

 

[Dave H]

Unfortunately, I don't as I hit the workshop and picked through a jar of "leftovers". It was a common size though as I recall. The washers that worked best had a hole slightly larger than the hinge pin grommet that the retaining ring (or twisted wire others have suggested) slots into. This way the diameter of the washer hole is too small for the ring to flex and squeeze through the hole. The overall diameter of the washer just needing to be larger than the hole in the door hinge as that then sits on top of the washer vs directly on the ring.

Best,
-Mark

That makes sense. I’ll do the same. Appreciate the tip. Seems like a long lasting fix as well.

 

[MarkMaxPayne]

I used a soft wire instead of waiting for a clip for our wet bay door. Like it so much, I'll continue using wire. It's in use for like a year now.

Curious about the picture you included. I noticed that the hinge is sitting below the retaining ring (or in your case twisted wire) vs. resting up above/on it. Typically, the hinges rest on top of the ring (hence the issue with them dropping on their own as the ring pops out or the ring deforming just enough to pass through the hold in the hinge like a magic trick). The multiple slots in in the hinge pin grommet allows for incremental height adjustments to the hinge resting height. That said, on your rig, maybe being dropped all the way down is the best bay door alignment for you. On mine, most of my door hinges rest on top of the retaining rings.

Best,
-Mark

 

[JRS]

Curious about the picture you included. I noticed that the hinge is sitting below the retaining ring (or in your case twisted wire) vs. resting up above/on it. Typically, the hinges rest on top of the ring (hence the issue with them dropping on their own as the ring pops out or the ring deforming just enough to pass through the hold in the hinge like a magic trick). The multiple slots in in the hinge pin grommet allows for incremental height adjustments to the hinge resting height. That said, on your rig, maybe being dropped all the way down is the best bay door alignment for you. On mine, most of my door hinges rest on top of the retaining rings.

Best,
-Mark

All 3 of our wider bay doors on the full wall slide side (drivers side) are designed to drop down so it doesn't hit the slide out. The shorter doors open like normal. "Guides" on the wider doors actually makes for a smooth operation when opening or closing. Our full wall slide actually drops down when fully extended out and then lifts up when bringing it in.