Doorway is not square

If the framing is actually "good" behind the door, you should be able to add the stud. If you remove the J and awning rail, you can usually tell new edge wood is needed if the screws are very rusty or spinning in place.

I always suggest removing all of the skins and roof. There IS rot there; might as well address it all now. The main rot will probably be in the edge wood (curbing) and ends of the rafters.

Be careful trying to square the door at this stage. The non fitting pieces may be due to rot above and sagging. I've built more than one non-square door to accommodate odd doorways...

Also measure the size of the walls. One side may be higher than the other. These vintage trailers are full of all sorts of surprises.

Hi Dave and Welcome!

The pictures will significantly help.

Follow this link for a How-to. vintagetrailertalk.freeforums.net/thread/7276/add-photos-hosted-flickr-tutoria

It takes a little work to get everything set up, but once you get it all set up, it will help with every challenge you experience in your restoration journey.

Cheers,

Rod

If the door fits properly at the sides and top, you should be able to adjust the sill to allow the door to swing freely. A multitool may come in handy, or belt sander. The door can be adjusted by removing the bottom metal (if possible) and cutting to fit.

I would try to use the original holes to re-attach the door. If the wood is original, gluing toothpicks in the old holes will insure a tight grip. I usually use 2 half picks per hole and gently tap in. The ends are easily trimmed flush with the multitool after the glue dries.

Depending on the fit of the door, I use different putties. Judging by the pattern of your metal, I think RV putty (a butyl mix) might work best; 1/8 x 3/4 or 1". (add extra in each pattern dip) I'm thinking 1/16 just isn't thick enough to seat and ooze correctly. Because you are there you will see what works the best.

IMG_20230504_133901239_HDR by David Porzio, on Flickr

I did pull the skin today from the door to rear and need to replace that sill too. I am going on work on that this Sunday.

Where should I post some pics of the roof to get input on that part of the project??

Hi Friends,

I would like to add to the discussion the possibility that a mulitple planed slope and jacking could be part of the problem with both Dan's and Tom's trailers.

I went to David’s gallery and found these two pictures below. The curbside wheel is raised on boards pretty heavily. Is the streetside of the trailer stacked up the same? If it’s not, does that mean the driveway is slanted on multiple planes? If so, that might be part of the problem. I see the wedged plywood under the rear bumper on the curbside of the trailer which could also be part of the problem. Could the wedged stacks of the plywood be creating a twisting in the frame? The trailer frame loses a lot of its rigidity when it’s opened on one end and or gutted.

I am not finding fault with David on this. He’s got a trailer and he’s trying to work with what he has which is a short driveway on a slope that might even be on multiple planes. Dare I say, after all this work to level the trailer, that the trailer is lowered and (hopefully) a level patch of ground can be found somewhere nearby to see if that changes things. Towing would have to be really slow. At the very least pull out the plywood stack under the rear of the trailer.

I am curious to hear what other’s comments are on this.



The jackstand below near the front is tilted.  Maybe place some wedges under the base to make it more vertical so it's 90 degrees to the trailer frame.  Maybe there are multiple forces at work the way the trailer is currently stabilized? Also, that stack of plywood under the tire might need to be wedged to make the stack itself horizontal at 180 degrees not slanted as it is now.  Maybe that will help offset the door issue.


As seen below, Tom's driveway is also sloped. Dare I say there might be a similar issue created.  The incline isn’t as much as in Tom's case.



I also wonder if the placement of this jackstand is causing any issues in the image below? I think a screw jack would be better than the jackstand as the jack stand can’t be incrementally adjusted. Might the notches on a jackstand knock the side of the trailer out of level? - if that makes sense. Are there other jackstands like this one below currently being used on the other side?


I could be way off on my assertions. Let me know.

Thoughts everyone?

Rod

Rod,

I think you may have the simple solution. Unfortunately, the city I am in is not having trailers on the street for extended periods of time.

I could cautiously and carefully lower the whole thing and pull it onto the street and try re-leveling there. What are anyone's thoughts on the fact the rear and front have no framing. Will it be okay to move?

I could try and do this first thing in AM tomorrow. The trailer is level side to side and back to front where is stands now. The jack stands were not used to level it, just support once I found level.

You are right about the driveway. It is not level in multiple planes.

Maybe this is a simple solution for a simple problem.

Thanks in advance