Fasteners for Door Hinges

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Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Capebuild » Sat May 21, 2022 4:31 pm

I'm in the process of installing the doors and using these heavy duty freezer hinges. I'm using stainless machine screws which mate with T nuts on the interior. After installing the first door it dawned on me, if someone wanted to "get into" my trailer (when the doors were locked).... as in "break in" ....all they'd have to do is unscrew the hinge Phillips head screws holding the hinges to the body.
Any thoughts on this? When you (members) install hinges do you take precautions like using one way screws, carriage bolts of some variety, or just not worry about it, not think it's an issue?

thanks

John
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby halfdome, Danny » Sat May 21, 2022 5:30 pm

John, I see you're using Phillip's head which are very common.
Using #2 Robertson or anything unusual might be a deterrent as long as the thief didn't have his battery powered sazall with him.
Smooth head bolts might be a good choice too, but may come in chrome.
I have stainless piano hinges which has no security issues.
The typical teardrop door handle can be unscrewed when locked, and used to open the door.
They could also break a window to gain entry.
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Wrecit » Sat May 21, 2022 6:24 pm

Honestly if you are really worried about it I would get a countersink bit and ream the heads out. You can get a nice appearance if you take your time when you do it.

It will be a bit of a pain if/when you need to do a repair but a Dremel with a cut off blade and a flathead screwdriver will enable you to take them out.
You hide your conversion and call it stealth. I put mine out in the open and give it a beer.

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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Tom&Shelly » Sat May 21, 2022 6:55 pm

Seems to me you now have a good way to get in without damage in the event you lose the key. :thinking:

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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Capebuild » Sat May 21, 2022 7:45 pm

Thank you for the thoughts.

halfdome, Danny wrote:The typical teardrop door handle can be unscrewed when locked, and used to open the door.

I did catch that and drilled a small hole at the end of the shaft and put a cotter pin in the hole, so even if the 2 screws were removed, it would be difficult to remove the handle. That'll show em'.

I think what I might do is just remove 2 screws on each hinge half and replace them with stainless carriage bolts, swap out the corresponding T nuts for hex nuts. That'll also show em'.

I don't know that I like the idea of 1 ways screws, in case I need to remove the hinges at some point.

I suppose if someone really wanted to "get in", they're gonna do what they're gonna do.

The supplier sent 4 keys. I would hope between my wife and myself we don't loose a key. I think all these camper handles are keyed alike anyway. I can just borrow the camper's key in the next site.

thanks again.
John
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby tony.latham » Sat May 21, 2022 9:29 pm

Any thoughts on this?


If someone thinks you've got something inside worth stealing--and you lock it––they are probably going take a big f**cking screwdriver, jamb into the door and force it open. That's what burglars do.

We never lock the doors and we frequently leave our teardrop in remote places while we go off and explore. If someone wants to steal the two Kindles --then so be it. I won't have to rebuild a door.

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I can reinforce my philosophy by telling this story; Jerry Wright, from Missouri, built a teardrop using my book. (It's a beauty.) After months of building it was stolen from a storage facility. The good news? It was recovered by the cops. The bad news is he'd locked the doors and they'd jimmy'd the crap out of one of his commercial doors.

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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby pchast » Sat May 21, 2022 9:51 pm

1 0r 2 security screws in each hinge leaf could make a difference...
https://www.mcmaster.com/screws/
:D
But I agree, I don't lock mine other than to hold the doors closed in
transport.
:)
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Capebuild » Sun May 22, 2022 3:34 am

tony.latham wrote:If someone wants to steal the two Kindles --then so be it. I won't have to rebuild a door.

pchast wrote:But I agree, I don't lock mine other than to hold the doors closed in
transport.


Good points. Anything of value (like our laptops) we can throw in the car when we go away from the trailer.

Thanks again for the thoughts on this.

John
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby JasenC » Sun May 22, 2022 9:54 pm

John, there's a number of different styles of security/tamperproof screws, check McMaster, Fastenal or Amazon.
I'll be done when I'm finished, if that's not fast enough, take a number.

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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby bdosborn » Mon May 23, 2022 8:21 am

Capebuild wrote: I think all these camper handles are keyed alike anyway. I can just borrow the camper's key in the next site.


All baggage/compartment doors are keyed the same, door handles are usually all different. Check the number on the key, if it's CH 741 then it's the same as everyone else's.

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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby swoody126 » Mon May 23, 2022 8:42 am

"we are the people our parents warned us about" jb
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby working on it » Mon May 23, 2022 9:19 am

JasenC wrote:John, there's a number of different styles of security/tamperproof screws, check McMaster, Fastenal or Amazon.


* I initially designed and built my 4x8 squareback trailer for my wife to have a secure place to store her stuff and sleep in, while "solo" camping with her girlfriends. I built it of strong materials, bolted and glued together, and used heavy-duty hinges, hasps, latches, and locks to assure security. I used two latches where one should do, and three hinges instead of two...the same principle was followed for bolts, nuts, and added padlocks (for added security).

* She never used it, so I do. But the extra measures I took keep the trailer super-tight and solid, after 9 years of use. I used mostly carriage bolts for construction, with the round-head facing outwards on door hinges and latches (except where the head width made me put a narrower acorn nut facing outward), so nobody could detach a door once locked, without power tools. The same was done for the two windows, but with "Tamper-pruf" one-way security screws instead of bolts.
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby KCStudly » Tue May 24, 2022 3:31 pm

Another method, using the hardware you already have, would be to peen the threaded end of the bolt where it comes thru the t-nut after assembly. That way the outside looks nice and and you can still dremel off the peen and turn the bolt out if need be.
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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Staryder61 » Tue May 24, 2022 6:46 pm

Capebuild wrote:I'm in the process of installing the doors and using these heavy duty freezer hinges. I'm using stainless machine screws which mate with T nuts on the interior. After installing the first door it dawned on me, if someone wanted to "get into" my trailer (when the doors were locked).... as in "break in" ....all they'd have to do is unscrew the hinge Phillips head screws holding the hinges to the body.
Any thoughts on this? When you (members) install hinges do you take precautions like using one way screws, carriage bolts of some variety, or just not worry about it, not think it's an issue?

thanks

John


John, reading this. My thoughts went here. Instead of using a phillips head screw driver and take the time to unscrew 6 screws.
Wouldn't it be easier and faster, to take a flat tip screw driver, pop one window open, and reach in and unlock the door? (IMHO)
Just thinking :thinking: :frightened:

Nothing is secure if they want in.. My Grandfather, that was a cop told me years ago "Locks are only to keep good people honest." ;)
Stay safe, David



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Re: Fasteners for Door Hinges

Postby Capebuild » Wed May 25, 2022 4:52 am

Thanks a lot, everyone..... for your thoughts on this. I think I'm just going to leave things as they are, using the Phillips head screws.... and see how it goes. If someone wants to get in bad enough
they're going to get in. We won't have anything of any "real" value in our trailer so If someone wanted to enter I'd rather they not destroy the trailer itself wanting in. We've tent camped for many years and never had anything stolen or tampered with. One day we'll get a Partner stove, so my thoughts may change........
:thinking:

Thanks again.

John
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