Big problem with little hinges..help

[Thimble Hall]

Hi, I need help. I am in a real pickle now and don't know what to do.

The very tiny hinges on my caravan have caused me no end of problems, They have come off a dozen times and each time they take of the finish etc,  which makes a real mess. I can fix the mess but am giving up on the hinges. They now seem to be a little bent and are stiff and virtually useless. I could order more but I don't want to go through that again especially as when they are on they look far too big for the door anyway so I don't like them.

I have never done it but I think there is a way of making a door opener without a hinge, I think it is using a tape strip,,fabric maybe? Could someone advise me on this please.

 Thank you in advance

[KathieB]

The tape method sandwiches the tape between the wall and the door frame and between the door and its trim. Carefully round the vertical door edge so it will not bind. Twill tape works, as will thin chamois or any other sturdy, flexible material. The tyvek from postal service envelopes is another option.

[CreatureCrafter]

I hate those mini hinges so watching with interest on this one 

[havanaholly]

I find the chamois detail "cloths" from the automotive store work best for me, although I have also use twill tape; the latter doesn't squish down quite as thin between the wood pieces as the chamois.  Lately I've taken to pin-hinging my doors.  I despise those little brass hinges, because the heads of the little brass brads are not flat, therefore causing hinges mounted correctly to bind and not work.

[Elsbeth]

I always wondered why the hinges can't be glued somehow. Why can't they be glued?

 

I too avoid them like the plague, but am curious.

[WyckedWood]

I never use real hinges, because it invites people to see if they work and push things back and forth until they break. I always just glue things in place, open or closed.

[havanaholly]

Just now, Elsbeth said:

I always wondered why the hinges can't be glued somehow. Why can't they be glued?

I would expect that they could, if the surface they're glued to isn't painted and you used something like E6000.  I tried glue alone and that wasn't wonderful for me, either.

[shannonc60]

There is stuff called hinge tape that model aircraft makers use. It is clear and sticks really well. It is actually a 3M brand tape but really useful, especially in smaller scales.

[Sable]

I’m for the Tyvek or a non stretch tape. If you use a fabric you want to make sure to use the non stretching pull direction. Sorry, I don’t know the fabric terms for pull direction. Anyway if you use the stretchy direction the door may sag. 

[havanaholly]

13 minutes ago, Sable said:

...the fabric terms for pull direction. Anyway if you use the stretchy direction the door may sag. 

Bias.

[Elsbeth]

I did tape once - non-stretchy tape. And in the tiny part that is exposed to the outside world (sticky part of tape) I just painted it. And  it worked fine. But it was a small scale house with hinged side, not 1:12.

[WestPaces]

For my Beacon Hill I tried this method using duct tape https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrboXEe1Zog I made my own doors so I sandwiched the tape under the trim on the door, also, I used white duct tape. Works fine for me  :)

[Dalesq]

I’ve used very narrow ribbon as hinge material, and for very small items, a heavy cotton paper. I really like pin hinges...they are easy and invisible.

When I do use metal hinges, (teeny tiny for 1:24) lots of “magic words” are involved and I use E6000 to glue the plates in place after carefully carving the spot to set the plate into the wood so it will be flush. But it’s not a good solution for something that will be opened a lot. Just sayin'.

[Mid-life madness]

They are a real pain

• I puncture the pin holes slightly with a push pin,
• then I fill the hole with a drop of Super glue or that e600 stuff. Just enough of a drop from a toothpick, never from the bottle. In fact a squirt out a small quarter size amount on a paper plate.
• I use tweezers to place the pin in the super glue hole (it kind of leans to one side) This is after the actual hinge is in place
• then push it in with a thimble on my thumb. I can usually get the pin upright with the thimble...that is if I haven't had too much coffee.

It is still only 75% effective.

[Thimble Hall]

Wow, what a great heap of replies.. a few questions if you folks don't mind.

Re the tape, is it just glued on the bits that touch the door frame or is the tape made a little stiff someway. I have a house here that is destined to be re done someday and it has fabric hinges but the fabric looks like it may have been impregnated with something as it is not recognizable, it may have just been painted ??

I did see the Youtube clip with the duct tape but wondered if the sticky bit that was almost hidden but showing as a crack would attract dirt and eventually look messy

Carrie, the way you describe is exactly what I have done but they don't seem to hold. The pins are not going into wood, it is rock hard  like MDF but it is actually a UK stuff called hardboard and there is no way I could push a push pin through it. I drilled tiny holes with a very mini drill and I did after a million tries do it but it didn't hold.  The super glue held but the surface of the hardboard gave and I ended up with a door with little lumps missing.

It is a split door so I am not sure if I could use  the pin hinging method.

The caravan is 1/12th scale but however it is very small and the door is very thin.

Unless chamois cloth is different from what I know it to be  I think it would be too thick/ Maybe the Tyveck would work as it is very strong but very thin.

I will look into the hinge tape that was mentioned.

I have cleaned up the mess, I had to strip the door down to bare wood AGAIN so am very frustrated with this bit of the kit.

Karin, I see  exactly what you mean about opening them too often, this is exactly what has happened, the hinge gets stiff , maybe a little glue gets in and if I push it, the door part just breaks..

The hinges are ugly and I think spoil the whole wall so I am going to try a few of your tips on scrap wood and see how I go. I think the surface of the hardboard is compromised now and is too absorbent which is why it is breaking away, I may have to make a whole new door. I have looked though my stash and although it is 1/12 the 1/24 doors  seem closer to the size but they don't look right so I think a scratch door may be due.

The instructions say to put the door in place before assembly but I didn't so I have probably made it more difficult than it had to be. I couldn't see wallpapering round them or wallpapering over them..and there doesn't seem to be enough thickness of hardboard to cut a well out for them to fit in so I am very much struggling.

If I do manage to get a strip in place to hang the door, can I then glue a trim on top of the tape?

I am looking at my partially made Fairfield as I am writing and the door spaces are about the same as the caravan but the doors I have  for 1/24 look overpowering. This is a very basic door. The hinges are more like a Tudor hinge with a long brass piece going across the wall inside.Does that make sense

Thank you all so much for your wonderful help, you are a great bunch!!

[havanaholly]

Jeannine, I pin-hinged all the doors and windows I made on my Washington 2.0 farmhouse and that includes the Dutch door I hung for the kitchen:

Blegh!  I just noticed all the paint splops and wood glue blobs I didn't see before.

[WestPaces]

2 minutes ago, havanaholly said:

 

 

Blegh!  I just noticed all the paint splops and wood glue blobs I didn't see before.

1

The camera picks up every little detail that isn't clearly visible to the naked eye

[Thimble Hall]

Holly, as this is not wood and is very thin  and  also very hard, I don't think it would pin. It was my first thought actually but having looked at it I think it would split the door. There is actually only half a door the other half is just a window frame. I haven't given up on this idea yet though, I am going to try it with scarp wood that is the same. I would have to pin the half door to the window frame though and it may not be stable.

 I have found some surgical tape that is almost like a very sticky grosgrain and I also have a length of black real grosgrain, a roll of adhesive linen tape and lastly an old roll of medical tape that is heavy sticky  fabric, this was before they invented the tapes they use now so tomorrow I shall start to play.. oh and I have  found some left over Tyveck from when my window was put in last year. Good start I think. It will show on the door and window frame but I think I can sandwich it by adding a layer of very thin wood over the whole of the door inside.,ditto to the window frame,I added bead and board to the outside of the caravan and this extra layer would make the opening the same as the rest of it  so if I can pull it off it may end up better.

 

The camera has better eyes than I have. I have noticed this last week that the standard of my hand painting has  deteriated . It is a drag and a disappointment but I should have

expected it  Thank you again

[KathieB]

7 hours ago, havanaholly said:

Blegh!  I just noticed all the paint splops and wood glue blobs I didn't see before.

 

7 hours ago, WestPaces said:

The camera picks up every little detail that isn't clearly visible to the naked eye

The eye colludes with the brain to edit whatever is in our field of vision, so we see what we expect to see. All the more reason to take a lot of photographs.  

[WestPaces]

21 minutes ago, KathieB said:

 

The eye colludes with the brain to edit whatever is in our field of vision, so we see what we expect to see. All the more reason to take a lot of photographs.  

Cognitive psychology too Kathie?! You are a dark horse (a very knowledgeable dark horse  )

[KathieB]

49 minutes ago, WestPaces said:

Cognitive psychology too Kathie?! You are a dark horse (a very knowledgeable dark horse  )

I'm a believer in reincarnation. Sometimes I come up with stuff that I must have learned in a previous lifetime.  

[WestPaces]

3 minutes ago, KathieB said:

I'm a believer in reincarnation. Sometimes I come up with stuff that I must have learned in a previous lifetime.  

You too?  

[Shareb]

On ‎1‎/‎05‎/‎2018‎ ‎2‎:‎35‎:‎27‎, Thimble Hall said:

The hinges are ugly and I think spoil the whole wall so I am going to try a few of your tips on scrap wood and see how I go. 

The instructions say to put the door in place before assembly but I didn't so I have probably made it more difficult than it had to be. I couldn't see wallpapering round them or wallpapering over them..and there doesn't seem to be enough thickness of hardboard to cut a well out for them to fit in so I am very much struggling.

While I don't necessarily think the hinges are ugly, they are tricky to cover because of how far onto the wall they go.  If you use a tape method at least you'll be able to use normal trim and it'll look better.  I did the door before assembling and yes, I can imagine how difficult it would have been if I hadn't.  I didn't pre-drill a hole, just made an indentation before banging in the nails and that is possibly why it hasn't sagged - because the nails had a tighter fit.  When I came to wallpaper however I realised that I'd have to take the door off and this was after the wagon was assembled.  Thankfully it was amazingly easy to replace the door after wallpapering - I think probably because most of the nails went straight back into the same holes.  I did notice that they were sloppier however - obviously because the holes had become larger with me pulling them out and putting them back in again.  I just used a bit of superglue to hold the hinge in place and the nail in the hole.

I must say I am worried about the door being opened too much as I can see that it could end up pulling out completely.  Hopefully it won't be touched too often!  For my little cupboard that I scratch built for underneath, I couldn't figure the hinges so I just pin-hinged them which works so well!

[Thimble Hall]

Thank you, I do have a question for you though. I think I saw a horse in one of youe pictures. I was wondering which one you chose as the scales are all so different. I shall make mine look like  Tinker/Vanner by repainting etc and adding horse tail and mane so the colour doesn't matter but am unsure which horse to buy. for type and similar size

[havanaholly]

6 hours ago, Thimble Hall said:

...mine look like  Tinker/Vanner by repainting etc and adding horse tail and mane...

Will you also add the feathering to the feet?