This is the best answer, also fit Mal McLure's center latch which stops the
bolts engaging unless=0Athe door is fully closed. It stops the door bowing
out along the bottom rail in flight with the =0Aventilators fully open. It
's very neat and very simple.=0ABest to persuade Kingsley to describe it. H
e has the original installed.=0AGraham=0A=0A=0A=0A=0A______________________
__________=0A From: William McClellan <wilwood@earthlink.net>=0ATo: europa-
list@matronics.com =0ASent: Tuesday, 1 July 2014, 18:20=0ASubject: Re: Euro
pa-List: Re: DOOR detached during flight=0A =0A=0ATed Gladstone developed a
door strut mod that works very well.- See picture.- Kingsley Hurst mod
ified it and did a write up on the mod.- I modified it further and instal
led it on my plane and it works very well.- It takes virtually all stress
off the door corner.- Further info is on forum some time back.- I have
Kingsley's write up but he probably still has the info.- Obviously the b
ottom line solution, as has been stated, always check for complete door clo
sure before flight.=0ABill McClellan=0A=0A-----Original Message-----=0A>Fro
m: JonSmith <jonsmitheuropa@tiscali.co.uk>=0A>Sent: Jul 1, 2014 9:33 AM=0A>
uropa@tiscali.co.uk>=0A>=0A>Hi, just to clarify and expand on my previous c
omments and noting the very valid comments by John Wighton and others, the
doors, even when closed can be semi permanently deformed by the continuous
action of the gas strut (mine certainly has). This is generally limited to
the flattish flange of the inboard rear top corner of the door which over t
ime becomes curled up a little causing rather an unsightly gap at that corn
er.- This deformation can be "reset" given time with ingenious use of wei
ghts/ straps/ pressure etc plus careful warming of the corner.- (The gas
strut repositioning mod addresses this problem and helps prevent it happeni
ng though I've not fitted it to mine). =0A>=0A>I don't think this is the ca
use of people failing to lock the door correctly though.- The "twisting"
I referred to is simply caused by the (quite flexible) door being twisted w
hen it is open by the fact that it only has one gas strut fitted to one edg
e of the door.- If it had two gas struts, one at the front and one at the
rear it wouldn't twist - but think of the extra weight....!- On mine, if
I disconnect the gas strut the door lowers down completely straight and fi
ts perfectly into the frame with no extra fiddling required. When I reconne
ct the gas strut then due to the induced twist, after I have lowered it I n
eed to give the bottom of the door my previously mentioned gentle nudge for
ward to pop it fully into position (ie. to allow the rear edge of the door
to move fully inwards and fully home).- It's a bit like on my old estate
car - one of the gas struts failed on the boot (trunk!) lid and the boot wa
s a pig to shut because the one remaining
(strong) gas strut twisted =0A!=0A> the thin boot lid so much it needed a
huge sideways force to make it fit!=0A>Like John, I am completely convinced
that the door design is very good and completely sound but that this is ju
st one of those things that we all "need to know" and that we all religious
ly check that the front and especially the (harder to see!) rear of the doo
r is correctly shut and in the correct position with the shoot bolts engage
d.- Someone mentioned about warning devices - it's a very personal thing
but I prefer not to rely on bells and whistles which might let me down one
day but rely on myself to visually check each time. I just pray that I don'
t let myself down one day!=0A>I guess an issue is, and this will always be
a risk, where someone less familiar with the day to day operating of the pl
ane flies it - classic example being the engineer as the original poster me
ntioned.- As owners I suppose this will need to be one of many briefing p
oints covered.=0A>=0A>--------=0A>G-TERN=0A>Classic Mono=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A
>Read this topic online here:=0A>=0A>http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.
php?p=425855#425855=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>=0A>
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