Stronger interior door handles?

[InsanePyro]

So when I first got my Bronco it didn't have a drivers side interior door handle. Got home and ordered a cheapo one off ebay. It felt flimsy and bent alot when I'd open the door but whatever I had it might as well use. Would probably be more to ship it back anyhow. So it lasted for a month or so before snapping the other day. Didn't bug me because as I said it was a cheapo off ebay and I kind of expected. But then I went and got a Doorman from Advance and that snapped on the second day! What the hell? Is there some better one that I can get somewhere?

[Clarke]

what are you doing with your door handles is what i want to know
the graveyard has em for cheaper then 10 bucks their fine as far as i know

[sr71mopar]

The earlier metal handles are a diect fit and they help up better for me.

[JBfab]

I always bought replacements strait from ford parts counter. Figure they lasted 15 years before breaking.

[Steve83]

FIRST: try fixing the problem. Obviously, the latch is binding, causing extra force to be necessary on the handle. Align the door. Clean & lube the latch. Repair the inside handle's mounting point on the door skin. Adjust the linkage.

THEN replace the handle.

I hate chrome, so I had some old metal ones powdercoated black to look like the newer plastic ones.

[InsanePyro]

What year Broncos had the metal ones? 70s and early 80s?

And Steve the door opens and closes fine. No resistance, not sagging

[sackman9975]

Originally Posted by Steve83

FIRST: try fixing the problem. Repair the inside handle's mounting point on the door skin. Adjust the linkage.

THEN replace the handle.

Originally Posted by InsanePyro

And Steve the door opens and closes fine. No resistance, not sagging

It may open and close fine, but the skin is where the trouble starts. I repaired mine. I posted my fix for this problem in this thread.

[miesk5]

yo

Door Handle, Inside Left 1980-96
Item #34370 - New
1980-96 Ford Bronco
1980-97 Ford F100, F150, F250, F350
Drivers Side Chrome

Chrome metal,will also fit 1987-96

Our Price: $8.00
http://broncograveyard.com/bronco/i-...t-1980-96.html

Inside Door Handle, Right 1980-96
Item #34368 - New
1980-96 Ford Bronco
1980-97 Ford F100, F150, F250, F350
Passenger Side Chrome

Chrome metal,will also fit 1987-96

Our Price: $8.00
http://broncograveyard.com/bronco/i-...t-1980-96.html

[Alvin in AZ]

A few weeks ago a I noticed a slight "catch" to the driver's inside door
handle. If it were to be allowed to get worse I could see where the handle
could get broken. ??

Anyway, it was just the "sliding link" part of the inside door handle
mechanism, it was as if it was past-center and trying to bind up.

But since I was already in process of stiffing-up the floppy inner door skin
I figured out a fix for the new problem at the same time. The easy way is
to just move the whole mechanism toward the front/hinges, there's room
in the holes.

----------------------------------------------

Sackman, I started a thread on FTE -asking- about bracing the inner door
skin but it went no where. :/ So I figured out how to do it myself and
posted the results and got no comments. LOL :) It shot down all the ideas
posted, none of which showed an understanding of what I was complaining
about to start with.

Anyway, here it is copy and pasted...

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Popped riveted (like I meant business;) a piece of 1/2" square pipe inside
the door shell...


Lined it up with the extra screws I'd put in to hold up the flimsy pocket so
now they actually have some "real metal" to screw into...

Check out those two extra screws in the carpet they made a big difference
in how sloppy the pocket is and have another screw in the front-end too.

Also added a couple more braces...


Those felt like they added strength to the door skin but wasn't so sure until
after I worked on the passenger door and installed those first! LOL :)

---------------------------------------

And fixed the squirrelly feeling door handles too, while I was at it...



It now sounds nice and solid like my '75 150's doors.
And the door handles feel like they're actually screwed down to something.

{Sackman, the nut under the "9.8 bolt" there has got a large diameter
Belleville washer on it, so acts-like the steel plate you added to yours}
{but it wasn't enough to suit me :/ the added little bolt with the head
filed down was what really made it stop wiggling on the sheet metal}

{the braces made the whole sheet of metal feel more solid so it's a
double whammy LOL xD }

{the little bolt with the head filed down is a 3/8" headed, grade-8,
1/4"-28 self tapping bolt I just happen to have two of, but i drilled
1/4"+ holes for them to slide into in both the mechanism and the
door skin ;} {a tapered-reamer makes the holes nice and round}

{the little machine screw at the rear is a 10-32 and the tab at the
rear of the mechanism is tapped 10-32 and also added a nut behind,
I'm figuring on replacing those with grade-8, button-head Allen
screws someday ??}

----------------------

Now onto the flimsily-held-on plastic door panels! :)

Thinking about jack-nuts and screws along with filling their empty "hook
pockets" in the door panels' Christmas tree sockets so the jack-nuts'
machine screws won't smash the crap out of 'em. ;)

The door panels are glue-able plastic so there's lots of ways to go there. :)

Alvin in AZ
ps- Jack nuts are like "moly-bolts" for sheet-rock but're for sheet metal...


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"It now sounds nice and solid like my '75 150's doors." -Alvin
Believe it? LOL :)

[EODRay]

My drivers side door handle has been feeling weird lately and somtimes it takes 2 pulls to get the door open. The first seems to 1/2 unlatch it and the second time gets it open. I kept meaning to get in there and see what was causing that.....then it broke. Now I have to get a new handle and figure it out. Alvin's post gave me some good ideas while I'm in there. Thanks

[InsanePyro]

Originally Posted by miesk5

Chrome metal,will also fit 1987-96

AWESOME

Thanks