Plastic slider door. Removal and replacement?

[crieders]

My plastic slider door finally broke where the handle is. How the heck does one remove it and any ideas for replacement with something nicer?

[Phil Spicer]

   The top track is a little deeper than the bottom track. The plastic can be lifted up about 1/4" or so and you can pull the bottom of the plastic out of the track. You may need to push up on the center of the upper shelf a little. Some have a little sag because of age....no one would ever overload the shelf...
   As for replacement, your choice. A lot of plastic companies on the net. Plywood with formica, plywood frame with cane. Any thing you can think of. I think the Wiki has ideas and pictures. Try a search.

[Stu Jackson]

Cliff,

The wiki main page shows the old archived FAQ page.  There is a mention of the doors there.

There are also a handful of tech notes on the subject:  Nov. 2003, Nov. 2004, Aug. 1993 and May 2009.

[crieders]

thats helpful .  I will look

[Ron Hill]

Clif : The reason your slider broke where the handle is - is because the other slider hit the handle.

Easy fix on a new slider (so it will not happen again!~) is a thin piece of metal on the back side held in place with the 2 screws that hold the slider handle.

A thought

[britinusa]

Good one Ron!

I replaced our Galley sliders due to that issue, your solution would prevent it.

Paul

[Set2sea]

I replaced my black plexi with back to back white Formica as others have done.
A few notes I would add:
I think my original doors broke at handles from pulling too hard or at off angles.
I tried to remove and replace to doors by lifting up into upper groove and I couldn't get them out that way. I had to remove screws thru bulkheads and into shelves which wasn't too difficult, just a little time.
Also, when I had made up the Formica doors from the thickest Formica I could buy and glued them back to back, they wouldn't have been much stronger supporting handle loads as the black plexi so I backed up the handle with a .090" thick, 4"X 6" aluminum sheet, drilled thru for handle screws and epoxied to inside of door. That stiffened it right up.
The white doors look awesome, brightens the cabin nicely.

[Ron Hill]

Guys : if you cover the black sliders as some of us have done with something lighter, it makes the cabin look much brighter and larger.  I used the Ash batten strips some use white acrylic or Formica, it also is the strengthening of the handle area.

A number of articles in the Mainsheet tech notes and Wiki.


A few thoughts

[patrice]

Hi,
Same problem with mine.
To remove, slide in the middle and while someone lift on the top shelf you should be able to lift the sliding door and pull the bottom toward you.

Since the door overlap each other, I replace the brocken door in the back track and the brocken section in the middle, so the front door hide it.

I also light sanded one side of the acrylic door and painted.  Make a huge difference make the inside brighter.

[Roland Gendreau]

As mine also broke due to the handles, I eliminated handles on the replacement plexiglass doors and just put finger holes in each end.

[britinusa]

As mine also broke due to the handles, I eliminated handles on the replacement plexiglass doors and just put finger holes in each end.

Brilliant! Just don't catch your finger in that guillotine.