my metal oil door

[prkaye]

Inspired by others on this forum, I decided to fabricate my own metal oil door. I used .064 aluminum, a hidden hinge, and a suprlus Hartwell latch I got from Spruce for $25. For somethign that is going to be operated thousands of times, I wanted somethign a little more ruged than Vans' fiberglass oil door and camlocks. I went through two fiberglass oil doors before I decided this. I had troubles getting the fiberglass door to really stay down flush, particularly at the corners. I also beefed up the lip under the door with extra layers of fiberglass, particularly where the latch grabs it. The metal door can be shaped perfectly. I also like how rugged it feels, particularly with the beefy Hartwell latch.
Photos below in case anyone wants to do something similar.

[Lars]

Very nice, thanks for posting the pics. Saved to my hard drive for reference when I get to that point.

[DarylT]

Very nice. Give ya $100 bucks for it right now!

[bsacks05]

Nice job. Mine looks just like yours - a single Hartwell right in the middle. I used the f/g door however, and epoxied in some stiffeners on the underside. The whole setup has been solid for 378 hours now.