Cheap(er) Pre-made teardrop doors

[Gunguy05]

I posted over on my build thread a while back about these doors that I had ordered. I haven't installed them yet, but I was able to make a short video on them, and here are some related pics. The nice thin about them is the price... less than 500 bucks for 2 of them, shipped. This is the cheapest that I have found for premade doors with windows in them, so I thought it was worth noting here.

http://Challengerdoor.com The series 805. Based on a label I saw at a recent TJ gathering, they make doors for a very large teardrop manufacturer.

It's a little rough, I had to go outside yesterday in between rainstorms and laying tile in the bathroom. BUT. This video should give a pretty good idea of what they look like.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skjo4HMzhLM
A few notes:

1. They are screw in from the outside, straight into the frame, with some sealant / putty tape underneath.
2. They have slide up hehr windows. They have screens in them and are either up or down. My others have 2 different levels of "up".
3. The have an inside trim ring that looks like it is made so that you drill your own holes and mount it from the inside with screws.
4. On the outside there is a separate drip edge trim piece that mounts to the top.
5. These are 26x32 (actual 25.5 x 31.5) with a 4.50 radius (4.75 cutout) on each of the doors. I wouldn't think that the 36 inch doors would be that much more... but I know that part of it is a bit apples and oranges as far as price.

The total cost of each door was $205. The packing and shipping was $70 total to GA. $480 Total

IMG_20160605_183101 by gunguy05, on Flickr

Challenger doors by gunguy05, on Flickr

Challenger doors by gunguy05, on Flickr

IMG_20160605_183205 by gunguy05, on Flickr

I'm not saying these are any better or any worse than those that are sold by other TD trailer manufacturers, but they do seem a bit cheaper. My initial impressions of them are good, as good or better than my other doors that cost a good bit more. Again, not "knocking" any of the other folks that sell them, just posting what I have found for others to refer to.

[Alan_H]

Where did you get them? Let the rest of us in on the goodness!!

[Gunguy05]

Where did you get them? Let the rest of us in on the goodness!!

OOPS! I edited my post above.

THey are not straight off the shelf, you have to call/email and order them. Just tell them your size and what you are using them for. They DO produce these for a very LARGE teardrop manufacturer though, I saw their label on one of said TD at a gathering a while back. It's the "little" one....

[Alan_H]

Where did you get them? Let the rest of us in on the goodness!!

OOPS! I edited my post above.

THey are not straight off the shelf, you have to call/email and order them. Just tell them your size and what you are using them for. They DO produce these for a very LARGE teardrop manufacturer though, I saw their label on one of said TD at a gathering a while back. It's the "little" one....

Thanks! I have doors, but might need some smaller hatches for storage compartments.

[Homebrewer25]

I just looked at the Challenger Door site, series 805. They don't look anything like your pictures:

http://challengerdoor.com/?page_id=351

I've looked at most of what they have and don't see anything like these. Are you sure you got the right supplier?

Steve

[Gunguy05]

I just looked at the Challenger Door site, series 805. They don't look anything like your pictures:

http://challengerdoor.com/?page_id=351

I've looked at most of what they have and don't see anything like these. Are you sure you got the right supplier?

Steve

Yes. The website is a little difficult to navigate, but they normally supply to LARGE purchasers i.e. teardrop manufacturers, not much retail to folks like up. So, I think the website is meant to show a wide range of what they offer, but each door is made to order. The series number had to do with the door thickness, the raidus (or not) corners, the window type etc. That was a little confusing to me too. I just called/ emailed them and told them what I was using the door for, and they sent me couple photos of them actually installed in teardrops and I told them "yeah, that's what I'm looking for". They were very helpful, especially considering I wanted 2 doors not 200.

[Homebrewer25]

Thanks for clearing that up.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

[rruff]

The website is a little difficult to navigate, but they normally supply to LARGE purchasers i.e. teardrop manufacturers, not much retail to folks like up. So, I think the website is meant to show a wide range of what they offer, but each door is made to order. The series number had to do with the door thickness, the raidus (or not) corners, the window type etc. That was a little confusing to me too. I just called/ emailed them and told them what I was using the door for, and they sent me couple photos of them actually installed in teardrops and I told them "yeah, that's what I'm looking for". They were very helpful, especially considering I wanted 2 doors not 200.

I thought it was too good to be true! And for me it was.I just got a quote for 2 doors for a camper. Simple rectangular doors, nothing fancy.

Entrance door, 64x24 no window. $431.
Rear hatch, 30x48 with a window and struts. $626.
Packaging. $45
Shipping. $320.
Tax. $77 (why tax to another state?)
Total. $1500.

I was expecting it to be a little more than you paid, but not 3x the price! Did you get something off the shelf? I specified that originally since my camper isn't built yet, but they said they only did custom.

[Jados]

I got my 26"x32" 805 series doors from challenger doors and was really impressed with the quality and price compared to the other manufacturers I've looked into. Although it did take some time to get the doors since as gunguy stated they are made to order. I don't believe the do "off the shelf" orders.

[Gunguy05]

Glad to see that they worked out for you!

[earl84]

I bought these doors a while ago, and am very close to mounting them. I can't for the life of me figure out what the two straight pieces of aluminum channel are for. The inside frame I understand, the outside drip edge I understand, but what are the two 18"ish straight pieces of aluminum channel used for?

BTW, I have watched your videos on YouTube several times, and they have been invaluable. Thank you so much for doing them.

[Gunguy05]

I bought these doors a while ago, and am very close to mounting them. I can't for the life of me figure out what the two straight pieces of aluminum channel are for. The inside frame I understand, the outside drip edge I understand, but what are the two 18"ish straight pieces of aluminum channel used for?

BTW, I have watched your videos on YouTube several times, and they have been invaluable. Thank you so much for doing them.

Hum... I actually just mounted our's today. We didn't have aluminum channel? Can you take a photo an upload it, or send me a link? We have the drip edge and the inside trim, but nothing else. Maybe it was shipping material?

Thanks for watching my videos. I enjoy the documentation, and hope it helps others out as well.

[earl84]

IMG_2536.JPG (157.03 KiB) Viewed 16758 times

Hers a poor closeup of the aluminum channel. There's two of these pieces for each door. Each pice is 30-1/4" long, and 1-1/4" wide.
I really need some help on resizing and posting photos. I got so frustrated with what a pain it is that I stopped adding stuff to my build journal.

[Wildfire]

I just got a door from them (thanks to you for posting the information)

Mine didn't come with the straight channel. Maybe you got some extra bits for some reason?

[earl84]

That's what I'm thinking. Extra pieces not required for anything.