wanted: hangar door tips

Our EAA chapter had a 40' hangar door that split in the middle and
folded sideways (each half). The ends were hinged and the center had
a single roller that ran in a track above. The bottom was not
attached in any way and just hung. It was held closed and open with
large steel pins that dropped into holes in the concrete/asphalt.

The door worked OK but sometimes the bottom would scrape (seasonal)
and be hard to close and the door also "racked" if you pushed it wrong
(it would "rock" back and forth and cause it to open sort of "jumpy").

The trick is that this door was about as inexpensive a design as them
come so I want to use a similar design on a hangar I'm building.

What I'm needing are ideas for making this style of door operate
smoother (not rack) and prevent catching along the bottom with changes
in weather.

Any tips from those of you that have built or used this style of door?

Thanks folks.

J oa

I saw the subject line, and was immediately struck by the thought that
LoPresti probably have a line of hangar door tips, and they claim to speed
up your hangar door by 2-3 knots.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
"Power corrupts. Powerpoint corrupts absolutely." - Vint Cerf

Actually not a bad idea- bifold tips. Accordian them up to create a
winglet and extend them for increased span. Plus your plane would fit
through a smaller hangar door

Joa

(Paul Tomblin) wrote in message ...
I saw the subject line, and was immediately struck by the thought that
LoPresti probably have a line of hangar door tips, and they claim to speed
up your hangar door by 2-3 knots.

Any link?

J.P.
"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
I saw the subject line, and was immediately struck by the thought that
LoPresti probably have a line of hangar door tips, and they claim to speed
up your hangar door by 2-3 knots.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
"Power corrupts. Powerpoint corrupts absolutely." - Vint Cerf

I would use sliding Barn door track and instead of a single roller, use a
double. I would pickup the bottom end closure at least 3 to 4 inches with a
set of levers with an over center locking device. Might even rig up linked
hinge pins so that the top and the bottom close at the same time. Might not
be necessary if the bottom is clear and the top track is clean. If your
bottom closure come into the hangar you might have to have the hinge pins
offset into the hangar for clearance. Just remember anything that sticks
out will be run into in the dark.



"Joa" wrote in message
om...
Our EAA chapter had a 40' hangar door that split in the middle and
folded sideways (each half). The ends were hinged and the center had
a single roller that ran in a track above. The bottom was not
attached in any way and just hung. It was held closed and open with
large steel pins that dropped into holes in the concrete/asphalt.

The door worked OK but sometimes the bottom would scrape (seasonal)
and be hard to close and the door also "racked" if you pushed it wrong
(it would "rock" back and forth and cause it to open sort of "jumpy").

The trick is that this door was about as inexpensive a design as them
come so I want to use a similar design on a hangar I'm building.

What I'm needing are ideas for making this style of door operate
smoother (not rack) and prevent catching along the bottom with changes
in weather.

Any tips from those of you that have built or used this style of door?

Thanks folks.

J oa

Cy Galley wrote:

I would use sliding Barn door track and instead of a single roller, use a
double.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
"Joa" wrote in message
om...
Our EAA chapter had a 40' hangar door that split in the middle and
folded sideways (each half). The ends were hinged and the center had
a single roller that ran in a track above. The bottom was not
attached in any way and just hung. It was held closed and open with
large steel pins that dropped into holes in the concrete/asphalt.

The door worked OK but sometimes the bottom would scrape (seasonal)
and be hard to close and the door also "racked" if you pushed it wrong
(it would "rock" back and forth and cause it to open sort of "jumpy").

The trick is that this door was about as inexpensive a design as them
come so I want to use a similar design on a hangar I'm building.

What I'm needing are ideas for making this style of door operate
smoother (not rack) and prevent catching along the bottom with changes
in weather.

Any tips from those of you that have built or used this style of door?

Thanks folks.

J oa


I have doors similar to those described ,,,,,,,,

My opening is roughed in at 42 wide, minus a bit for the 6 by6 posts at
each side,,,,,,

I broke the opening into 6 pieces,,,,

the end pieces are hinged on the face of the 6 by 6's, the next piece in
both sides, is hinged to that one, with a double roller at the inner end
of the pabnel,

the rest of the openeing, is broken into two even pieces hinged to the
second pieces,,,,,,

to open, fold the middle two pieces outward and hook to their respective
second pieces,

then bifold the remaining door assemblies, the middle two pieces riding
along,,,,,,,

some advantages are that the projection from the hangar is reduced a
bucnch with six panels than four,,,,

and the track need only extend to the end of the second panel rather
than all the way across the building,,,,,,

I made the panels from 2 by 4's, with drywall nails and truss plates for
corner assemblies,,,,,

over the years, abit of sagging has occurred, and if redone, i would use
1 1/2 square steel tubing,,,,,even though drilled holes might be
required to attach the steel facing,,,,,,,,,,

The hinges I used have moved a bit with age, allowing the doors to sag a
bit, making what were nice even gaps more at the top od bottom as the
supports vary across the building face,,,,,,,

i use drop pins at the middle of the bifolds on the outside of the
building, at the end of the bifold sections on the inside, and one at
the middle of the span and a latch at the top, the middle of the bifolds
also have an upper latch pin,

they work great, takes less than a minute to open them,

only major problem was one new years 'gota fly'day,one of the drop pins
was frozen into the piece of axle scrap used for a socket,,,,,,,,,,,,

--


Mark Smith
Tri-State Kite Sales http://www.trikite.com
1121 N Locust St
Mt Vernon, IN 47620

(Joa) wrote in message news:
What I'm needing are ideas for making this style of door operate
smoother (not rack) and prevent catching along the bottom with changes
in weather.



Look at the caster installation on a rolling stand.....they retract
when you step on the stand. You will need a larger caster and heavier
springs. You want enough spring pressure to keep the end of the door
off the ground, but not so much as to bind the door as it moves.

I have a 40' opening. I used 4 10' doors as sliders. I have a 6x6 post on
each side of the building. The doors slide open and stick out 10' on each
side. I don't however open them on windy days.
Jerry
"Joa" wrote in message
om...
Our EAA chapter had a 40' hangar door that split in the middle and
folded sideways (each half). The ends were hinged and the center had
a single roller that ran in a track above. The bottom was not
attached in any way and just hung. It was held closed and open with
large steel pins that dropped into holes in the concrete/asphalt.

The door worked OK but sometimes the bottom would scrape (seasonal)
and be hard to close and the door also "racked" if you pushed it wrong
(it would "rock" back and forth and cause it to open sort of "jumpy").

The trick is that this door was about as inexpensive a design as them
come so I want to use a similar design on a hangar I'm building.

What I'm needing are ideas for making this style of door operate
smoother (not rack) and prevent catching along the bottom with changes
in weather.

Any tips from those of you that have built or used this style of door?

Thanks folks.

J oa

"Joa" wrote in message
om...

The door worked OK but sometimes the bottom would scrape (seasonal)
and be hard to close and the door also "racked" if you pushed it wrong
(it would "rock" back and forth and cause it to open sort of "jumpy").


Any tips from those of you that have built or used this style of door?

Thanks folks.

J oa

Depending in what part of the country you are located, you may be
experiencing frost heave that causes the surface that the bottom roller
contacts to actually raise in the winter and settle back in the spring. We
had a hangar with rolling bypass doors and they were a real pain in the
winter.

If possible, you may want to see if there is a creative way to make the
height of the bottom rollers easily adjustable to compensate for paving
movement. If you live in Florida, nevermind.

Good luck.

Any tips from those of you that have built or used this style of door?

Not exactly the same, but the main hangar at Andover NJ has a concrete
floor with steel tracks in it. The doors (which are extensive) consist
of at least six pieces say 10-12-foot wide. There were barn-door
rollers above and (I think) below. Sliding them open was a breeze, and
you could expose a limited amount of the hangar if you chose. I'm not
sure what would happen in a severe winter--would the bottom track get
frozen up?

all the best -- Dan Ford
email: (put Cubdriver in subject line)

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