Is there a substitute for the gas shocks on upper cabinet doors besides shocks or a good place to purchase shocks, I need probably need 40.
Foretravel of Texas usually has the best prices.
Yup, FT usually has the best price but they can get you on shipping sometimes. If you know someone in NAC who can pick them up and send then USPS or UPS ground the shipping might be less. MOT usually has these too, Good to compare prices. Motorcade discount applied at both places last time we were in NAC.
I need them for my recently purchased 1999 U270 also. found them online for about $13 apiece. Thought that was high so went to local NAPA store and they quoted me $22 each. I am going to find the site on line and check for a bulk order discount. Sorry I dont remember the name but just google the brand name on the struts and it will come up.
Foretravel around $9.50
Forum search is your friend ;)
They're Suspa struts/springlifts. FOT almost always has the best price.
Beware of imitation brands. A few years ago we encountered some that were about the same price, but clearly out of spec for lift strength. They pulled one of the mounting points right out of a cabinet (and tweaked hinge alignment on another which only had a strut on one side). They were also noticeably less smooth to operate (and they're long gone).
I have bought 2 sets for my coach since 2008 and I can tell the second ones are already getting weak. Hard to understand why they fail when I have not had to replace any of the gas spring lifts on the lower compartment doors. I saw a very similar lift on a Winnebago that had a steel spring in the tube. I have bought from Moore Industrial Hardware in the past, they may give a discount if you order several. Door Checks On Moore Industrial Hardware (http://catalog.mooreindhardware.com/category/door-checks?plpver=1002) They have mechanical spring struts, but not sure if the open and closed length is the same as the gas spring lifts.
Be aware that sometimes (often) new Suspa struts come with a small paper psi tag stuck over the factory printed psi part number. The real psi is on the paper tag and if and when it falls off, the underlying psi rating will be incorrect. We never found a seller with prices less than Foretravel, even when buying 100 pieces on the Internet.
Last year we bought two Suspa bed lifts from Moore Industrial Hardware copying the info on the original struts. I questioned why with the new ones in place, we could not lift the bed and learned the printed psi part number on the original was MUCH lower than what was in the original strut. Moore was easy to deal with and took back struts and we later purchased new correct struts from Foretravel with the paper tag which we covered with packing tape to keep the tag in place.
I just bought two of the struts yesterday at FOT.
At about $10.00 apiece with failure a certainty
maybe we should all be looking at something like spring loaded hinges that can be retrofitted.
Try these. I've had good luck with them. Call Steve directly for better pricing. Shipping for 30 was only 10 bucks
Steve Shelton
253-370-5901
Columbia Struts: a distributor of standard and special gas springs (http://www.columbiastruts.com)
My dad on his 1980 Prevost had, looks like a pull spring about the length of shock, spring was thin and you just pushed it with one finger and it folded in half and door closed to open just open door and spring unfolded and held door open, Nothing to wear out and last forever, Dad and bus are both gone so I can't ask or see. Anyone seen such a thing.
I was wondering on the struts myself as the new coach I bought 1997 U320 cabinets don't stay open and flap when rocking side to side on a rough road. I am contemplating latches but would like to keep original if new struts would keep doors closed. Will the struts keep doors closed too?
As for the small struts on the overhead doors it sounds like your trying to reinvent the wheel,we replaced ours after 20 years
with the ones from foretravel for the $10 a piece.The gas struts do hold the door tight so it does not rattle.We are not full timers
so what I do is leave the doors open so the strut has less pressure ,maybe that will help them last longer time will tell.
Yes they will keep the doors closed
Here's a good tip on installing gas struts (All) . Install shaft down in store position so seal gets lubed and they last longer.I did not know that!
Yes, I have seen that for hatches on boats. West Marine has a couple of sizes in stainless. T H MARINE Lid Support Spring | West Marine (http://www.westmarine.com/buy/t-h-marine--lid-support-spring--P024_720_003_514) Doubt if it would hold the door closed, but I could be wrong. Also IMHO would project into the cabinet and bump whatever is in the cabinet. And at another company. Moonlite Marine Hatch Holders - Small - Hatch Hardware & Parts - Hatches &... (http://www.downwindmarine.com/Moonlite-Marine-Hatch-Holders-Small-p-90891553.html)
Yet another possibility:
Hatchlift - Hydraulic Lift Kits (10% Discount for RVgeeks Viewers) - TheRVgeeks (http://thervgeeks.com/our-favorite-gear/hatchlift-basement-door-and-bed-hydraulic-lift-kits/)
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What is your build number? My 96 U320 (B 4943) has tamboured cabinet doors, sounds like yours has upper hinged cabinet doors.
I thought upper hinged cabinet doors started in the 97 model!