Doors.... a four letter word.
 

I was doing so well on my doors, in fact, getting a bit cocky. I have been reading all the old posts, taking advantage of others learning curve. Thinking to myself?.those poor RV10 Pilgrims , the issues and tribulations they suffered, I am so lucky to have all the wisdom of previous posts??..

Not sure how I did it, but seems I drilled the forward hole in the 1042 Bulkhead Side Channel for the door pin about 3/32? outboard of where it should be and now the forward edge of the door sits proud once the pin is engaged argh? ?&^%&%^!\!!?. ? now I am one of the poor unfortunate souls in Door purgatory.

I think my options are

1) Build up the fuselage skin with epoxy micro just ahead of the proud door? I seriously doubt my skills in this endeavor??

2) Rivet some type steel doubler over the existing hole and re-drill

3) Other

Your wisdom is appreciated

I'm a bit away from this step but have been worried about doing exactly the same thing. :)

My initial thoughts...

File the hole inwards until the door sits flush.

Make a new C1010 part - it's only a chunk of UHMW stock - with the latch pin hole moved over 3/32 inch

Make a backing plate behind the F1042-L held on by the C-1010 mounting screws that has an "adjusted" hole in the correct place.

Can any folks who have passed this stage comment?

Finesse the hole
 

My suggestion:

1. Use a suitable round burr to eat away the inboard side of the hole, making the hole oval, until the door sits flush. Take your time, only expand the hole in one direction by the minimum amount required.

2. Make up a doubler, from 0.0625 Alclad, that sits inside the F-1042 bulkhead side channel.

3. Carefully mark where the pin hole needs to be in the doubler, and drill the hole, as accurately as possible.

4. Close the door, position the doubler, and check for fit. Remember to allow room for the bolts that hold the pin blocks (don't drill these yet). If the doubler doesn't fit, or the hole is in the wrong place, throw away the doubler and go back to (2).

5. Once you're happy with the doubler, hold it in position with the door closed, then get someone to open the door. Apply clamps to the doubler - without moving it. Now drill rivet holes through the F-1042 and doubler plate, again taking into account where bolts need to go for the pin block and cabin top. Cleco as you drill.

6. Deburr the holes, then cleco the doubler (from the doubler side), and double check the door closure/pin fit.

7. Countersink the aft face of the F-1042 bulkhead side channel for the doubler rivets.

8. Rivet the doubler in place.

Once the cabin top is epoxied in, erase this episode from your memory, the oval hole is hidden behind the fiberglass door channel, and the doubler is hidden behind the side trim.

Cheers,

A.

Adrian is spot on as long as Van's blesses the idea. I think that's your only option. You don't want to try and replace the bulkhead, it'd mess up more than you're fixing.

Fitting doors has been a challenge for sure. Keep plugging along, it's worth it when you get a nice fit and everything is smooth! My left door is done. Maybe I'll just glue the right one shut and call it a day! (kidding, please don't start telling me I'm crazy)

Hahaha!

I haven't yet entered "Door Land" myself, but soon, it will happen. To prepare, I've been attending anger management classes, practicing controlled breathing techniques and visiting Indian sweat lodges, to get to know my inner spirit animal.

Thats not really that bad an idea. Mooneys and Pipers have gotten by with one door for years!

other have posted some good ideas. I would also suggest one of the aluminum pin receptacle plates from sean instead of the uhmw piece. This, with two steel screws into the aluminum frame should be strong enough to not need a doubler for the now oval hole (would be at least as strong as 4 rivets holding the doubler on). You'd be surprised how much two #8 screws hold in shear. Also, the aluminum is still there to hold the door on. Worst case, it moves 3/32 of an inch to the edge of the oval.

Larry

I have a similar problem with my right door. I'm not sure if it is mechanical interference or if I botched the process of drilling for the latch pin.

If I was going to relocate the latch pin hole, I'd:

- File your existing latch hole to position it correctly.

- Remove the screws that hold the cabin top to the bulkhead.

- Make a doubler the same thickness as the bulkhead.

- Drill through the existing (now empty) screw holes to mount the doubler.

- Mark and drill the latch hole in the doubler in the correct position.

- Fabricate a new mounting block. Mount it using the existing mount holes, but drill the block for the new pin location.

Just two screws does not carry bending moment into the plate, bypassing the bulkhead with the oval hole. Use four machine screws with locknuts.

But yes, steel screws can carry a lot more in shear than you might think. Usually it is the bearing stress in thin parts that limits the strength, not the bolts that hold them together.

Steve,

Before you go overboard, check the vertical position of your doors. There is a comment in the plans which (after you drill the hinges) says something like "If the door position is too low, use shims between the hinges and the door to lift the door" or words to that effect.

I was having surprising fit issues (kind of like yours) after I thought I was done with the doors. Some 0.063 shims lifted the doors and really helped. Turns out, there is a fair amount of slop in the hinges and that can cause mis-fit issues. The actual interference was along the bottom of the door, where the door hits the sill. With the door a bit too low, that contact point moved the bottom of the door outward.