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hard sliding cabin door, 2005 270
rasbury
Member Posts: 8,238 ✭✭✭✭✭
I have tried to tackle this a couple of times...my list of stuff to fix since purchased is getting much smaller, this door, the TV and a battery issue still plague me but I will start separate threads. I did get my boat on the water yesterday-bad coupler from July was fixed a few weeks back and finally had time-went great!
So, lets talk about this door.... Again, my boat is a 270- I see this same basic design on smaller and larger boats. The track is not a real great design. If the boat deck were completely flat I'm sure it would work great- and perhaps since I have a 270 that slight curve may be more pronounced. This boat had 100 hours on it when purchased so it's not worn out. I wish I could take it out and start over but you'd have to remove the window and the helm so that ain't happening...
Here is what I have done. I also have a good mooring cover and a new full enclosure so I can leave the door apart for a bit if need be so I'm ready to fix it, I have never had to use the latch you flip over to keep it open- I'd like to!
First attempts were pretty weak. I went through where I can get at track screws and tightening them up. Seem to make it worse- I had opened up the helm inspection plate and even behind the gauges. Next stab at it, I was able to remove the bottom track, the "truck" the door rides on. On the top, it has best I can recall, a rectangular piece that has two screws to secure it to the top edge of the door. There is nothing obviously wrong with anything. I could not remove the door itself as you just can't work it out but unless there is something miss formed with the door not an issue in fixing it. I actually went back and backed off the screws and it worked a little better for a while.
So I think I will get my enclosure up so I can tear into it again. The one thing I did do I won't do again is grease it- just created a trough to collect all sorts of manner.
I want to get the enclosure up today and get it back apart. I have three I guess pretty obvious areas I want to look at. It is REALLY hard to slide, there is a noise, hard to describe, but like a screw scratching/digging into something some where but I can't find it. It may be something stuck underneath the "truck" that rides on the bottom track but have had it all apart. The door stays flat and seems to stay in the right position- something is binding or catching.
I think at least the bottom track should be shimmed to keep it parallel with the top track as best as possible. It looks like the way it works, that lower "truck" is held in place by the weight of the door so it seems pretty forgiving. I think somehow the track position and that little piece that holds the top corner of the door together is where the bind is. That might solve the entire problem.
Next, @Michael T had described something similar and he found, the "truck" needed a little rework as I understood him. The "truck" as I can recall pretty simple- a chassis that holds to door on the one side and then there were two (maybe three) balls that it rode on that goes back and forth on the track. On his, that chassis was dragging on the track so he cut down some of that material so it moved smoothly so want to look at that.
I also want to look at the top track sliding piece. It seems there would have to be one at each end of the door but maybe that little "truck" is supposed to really do the work and the top is only a "guide" piece or pieces.
Will take a few days to try a couple of things but sounds like a fairly common issue. I have not seen any real solutions on here. I will be anxious to see if others have fixed this before!
So, lets talk about this door.... Again, my boat is a 270- I see this same basic design on smaller and larger boats. The track is not a real great design. If the boat deck were completely flat I'm sure it would work great- and perhaps since I have a 270 that slight curve may be more pronounced. This boat had 100 hours on it when purchased so it's not worn out. I wish I could take it out and start over but you'd have to remove the window and the helm so that ain't happening...
Here is what I have done. I also have a good mooring cover and a new full enclosure so I can leave the door apart for a bit if need be so I'm ready to fix it, I have never had to use the latch you flip over to keep it open- I'd like to!
First attempts were pretty weak. I went through where I can get at track screws and tightening them up. Seem to make it worse- I had opened up the helm inspection plate and even behind the gauges. Next stab at it, I was able to remove the bottom track, the "truck" the door rides on. On the top, it has best I can recall, a rectangular piece that has two screws to secure it to the top edge of the door. There is nothing obviously wrong with anything. I could not remove the door itself as you just can't work it out but unless there is something miss formed with the door not an issue in fixing it. I actually went back and backed off the screws and it worked a little better for a while.
So I think I will get my enclosure up so I can tear into it again. The one thing I did do I won't do again is grease it- just created a trough to collect all sorts of manner.
I want to get the enclosure up today and get it back apart. I have three I guess pretty obvious areas I want to look at. It is REALLY hard to slide, there is a noise, hard to describe, but like a screw scratching/digging into something some where but I can't find it. It may be something stuck underneath the "truck" that rides on the bottom track but have had it all apart. The door stays flat and seems to stay in the right position- something is binding or catching.
I think at least the bottom track should be shimmed to keep it parallel with the top track as best as possible. It looks like the way it works, that lower "truck" is held in place by the weight of the door so it seems pretty forgiving. I think somehow the track position and that little piece that holds the top corner of the door together is where the bind is. That might solve the entire problem.
Next, @Michael T had described something similar and he found, the "truck" needed a little rework as I understood him. The "truck" as I can recall pretty simple- a chassis that holds to door on the one side and then there were two (maybe three) balls that it rode on that goes back and forth on the track. On his, that chassis was dragging on the track so he cut down some of that material so it moved smoothly so want to look at that.
I also want to look at the top track sliding piece. It seems there would have to be one at each end of the door but maybe that little "truck" is supposed to really do the work and the top is only a "guide" piece or pieces.
Will take a few days to try a couple of things but sounds like a fairly common issue. I have not seen any real solutions on here. I will be anxious to see if others have fixed this before!
Comments
Ras, I have seen screens added to a lot of boats. There are probably reasonable ways to attach Velcro in hidden areas inside the door frame and have the matching velcro sewed onto a piece of fiberglass screen. Another way might be to glue some metal strips inside the frame and use fiberglass screen with a magnetic strip around it?
With all the work you have done that should be a piece of cake!
BTW I like your solution regarding the track itself. I couldn't reach far enough into mine so I had to modify the front truck - the one on the starboard side. Like you said, it was a big job.....and I was told to replace the door the port side of the helm has to come off. That would be nasty.