In need of a newer door for my Scamp - Fiberglass RV
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Old 01-26-2015, 04:45 PM   #1
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Name: Lee
Trailer: Scamp
Georgia
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In need of a newer door for my Scamp

Hi we have finally finished the inside what we are going to do and now time to see if any one has a door for our 13 ft 1984 Scamp. I have tried every thing and can not line up the door even with new hinges. Now I think maybe I should just replace the door but don't want to spend $300 for a new one. Can any one help me find a used but nice door. Thank Lee
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Old 01-26-2015, 06:01 PM   #2
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Name: RogerDat
Trailer: 2010 Scamp 16
Michigan
Posts: 3,744
If your door won't line up square you should probably check the floor to shell attachment, especially right at the bottom of the door.

Water from a leak at the front can cause the fiberglass "tabbing" that attaches the shell to the wood floor to pull loose. It does not take enough water to have a rotted floor for this to happen, just enough to cause the top layer of plywood to come loose and the wall can shift.

Bottom of door spreads due to not being anchored. More work to fix but cheaper than a door. Now my front floor was really rotted so my job may well have been more than you would be looking at. Pictures are just to show you where and what to look for, along with how it was fixed.

Mine the problem was at the front under the couch, symptom was the door was wider at the bottom (hinges pointed down so to speak). I suppose the closet side could also become detached and cause the same effect. I had to pull the bottom front of the door back to square and re-fiberglass it to the floor.

Top picture in this set notice the new piece of plywood, that was rotted and loose allowing the bottom of the door to move. You can also see the same piece of plywood in the bottom picture (lower right corner) Frame does NOT reach the bottom edge of door, only that piece of plywood.



Below is how I rigged things up to only pull the bottom front of door frame back until it ran straight up and down.

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Old 01-28-2015, 06:47 AM   #3
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Trailer: 1988 16 ft Scamp Deluxe
Posts: 25,697
After the Scamp manufacturing fire in 2006, the 13' trailers are now taller by several inches. It probably also means the door grew in height. Doubtful you can get a new door from Scamp to fit a 1984 trailer, but you'd have to ask them. That leaves trying to find a recently totalled pre-2006 Scamp. Once totalled, they don't last long before being crushed. Have you checked the Document Center for door solutions? There's several nicely written documents on how to reform an air-craft door.

Best of luck!
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Old 01-28-2015, 03:11 PM   #4
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Name: RogerDat
Trailer: 2010 Scamp 16
Michigan
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Scamp doors generally don't line up just a few ways. In general order of difficulty to repair.

Hinge wears out or wears out the bolt holes so the hinge allows door to hang crooked. Holes for hinge bolts will be sloppy and out of round or hinges themselves will have uneven or lots of wear at the pins.

The square steel tube along the hinge side has the wall pulling away from it allowing the wall to bulge out a bit. Rivets that hold it are under door seal but they can start to pull through. Wall curve does not match door curve. You can check this visually by looking at rivets or for gap between bar and wall.

The shell itself pulls loose from the floor so the door opening is no longer straight up and down. Door won't line up with opening. Visible gap around edges because opening is crooked. Can measure door opening is it wider at bottom than at top, does a carpenters square on the floor show a 90 degree angle up the side of the door opening on both the hinge and latch sides.

These next two are not as common and a bit tougher to diagnose and fix. They involve the wall or door becoming flatter. Both can allow door to line up with the opening but prevent door from sealing.

The wall itself bulges out from gravity. Squished marshmallow syndrome. Typically not bad enough to really mess up a door but can contribute. Only way I know of to test for this is to cut cardboard or board to match profile of sides near the ends, then compare that to near middle.

The door flattens out from getting water inside them which damages the internal wood that helps it hold its shape. These generally have a gap top and bottom when closed where the door pushes against the seal. In effect you have a flat door and a curved wall with the door opening. Water inside can also make the door bottom heavy which over time will pull the door down. People have fixed this by using the wall curve as a template and reinforcing the door back to the original shape. Not rocket science but not trivial either. If one has good reason to think this is the case drilling a small hole up from the bottom of the door into the hollow portion will have water drain from it if there is water collecting in the door.

The door opening is not as strong as the solid parts of the wall, the closet and cabinets (and the metal brace) provide more structural strength to the parts of the wall they support. The hinge side of the door only has that square tube to brace up that side and takes more stress from the door opening and closing. If something is going to shift that is a likely place.

Same area also tends to have more places for water to enter. Front window and door being right there plus belly band seam ends there. More chance for water to damage the floor to wall connection if at some point there was a leak.

New door without knowing the door opening is square and solid would be a waste of money.
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