Cockpit Overhead Cabinets
A few Rexhalls have been
built with overhead cabinets in the cab that cannot be retrofitted with a
"stay-up" hinge. I got this idea from a magazine and it works great. No more
banged knuckles.
At Home Depot, I found a spring that was the length I needed - 7/16"X 8-1/2" with loops on both ends. (Prime-line #SP-9633) Then, I screwed it to the inside of the cabinet framing and then put the second screw where the appropriate screw would mount on the inside of the door. Notice that I needed a small washer to keep the screw head from sliding through the loop of the spring. I was able to violate my preferences of not drilling new holes because my knuckles had experienced too much. The screws were not tightly inserted. (see photo) A bit of play makes it work much better. Remember to drill a small pilot hole first.
By keeping the spring at one end of the opening, I found that it did not get in the way. All that is needed is to open the door and it holds, then tap the spring and it closes. My knuckles are healing.
Darrell Fevergeon
When looking for our current Aerbus I also noticed what Darrell found- no stay up hinge on the cockpit cabinets. Since we ended up placing a special order, I made sure that the factory installed stay-up hinges. But his solution is very clever.
doug