337G Upper Cabin Door Assist

[chrisktx]

How exactly is the upper cabin door assist supposed to act?

Upon unlatching the door, should the door spring open and remain open with very little assistance or use of the friction lock to keep it open? (Like the hatchback on a car?)

or does the system simply dampen the closing motion when you unscrew the friction lock, preventing the door from slamming?

Also:
Service manual mentioned 2-3 pounds of force to bring the door down to the closed position...is that the force required to start the door closing to overcome the friction lock...or is that the force you should feel pushing back during the full range of motion to close and latch the door shut?

Hopefully I'm clear as mud. -ChrisK

[hharney]

Chris
I am going by memory, the gas strut is charged with nitrogen and at a pressure something like hundreds of PSI. Don't quote me on that but it is a lot higher than you would think. Once the correct pressure is applied, the strut operates as expected.

From the service manual:
NOTE
When charging accumulator, pressurize only until door is held open and a 2 to 3 pound force measured with a pull scale is required to start door toward closed.

The way I interpret the above note is; with the friction nut loose, pressurize the door strut to the point that it requires 2 - 3 pounds of force to start the downward motion of the door. Once the door starts to move it should continue down with somewhat less pulling force or on its own. Then adjust the nut as needed to hold the door in the full open position when the door is left open. I would assume most of the doors out there have lost some of the pressure and I know from experience that addition of the correct pressure makes a head scratcher system go away. Check the service manual to be sure of the correct PSI

[chrisktx]

Here's what I found in the Service Manual:
No specific PSI mentioned. Will up the pressure and see what happens

"When charging accumulator, pressurize
only until door is held open and a 2 to 3
pound force measured with a pull scale
is required to start door toward closed."

[JamesC]

Perhaps easier said than done but I would charge it/adjust the friction lock enough so that it never slams, is easy enough to close while reaching across from the left seat, and if applicable doesn't sag down when open in cold weather (-20 deg F where I live this am).