R V Secretary’s Desk - Hinge and Stay Questions

[Guy Deyton]

I am a beginning woodworker, having just retired.

I am planning a 'secretary's desk' for my RV that utilizes both a up-lifting door and a drop down door due to limited space. The desk will be placed on a wall immediately behind the driver's seat, which can be rotated 180 degrees when docked. Both doors are frameless. I have attached a drawing for your reference. Each door is 11.75" (h) and 17.75" (w) and has an estimated weight of 3.5 lbs. Note on the drawing that the upper door has a 2.75" x 17.75" x 3/4" header above it (that doubles as a coat rack when the desk is closed). The up-lift door will need to clear that header upon opening. My questions relate to the hinge and stay selection and placement.

Lower (Drop-down) Door:
My plan for the lower door is to use: # SDH001-NI Sugatsune Drop Lid Hinge and Sugatsune NSDX-10RK Soft Down Lid Stay-Right Hand.
Questions:

• Given my inexperience, is there better hardware you might recommend?
• Will one stay be adequate to support eating and using a laptop on the drop-down desk surface or will I need to place a right and left stay for adequate stability?

Upper (Up-Lift) Door: My plan is to go with a 170 degree full overlay hinges to clear the 3/4" header above the upper door and use a stay to limit the range to 90 degrees and control the closing motion. Something like: Blum Full Overlay 170° Snap Close Clip Top Frameless Hinges and Sugatsune NSDX-35RK Soft-Down Lid Stay.
Questions:

• Is there better or alternative hardware solutions?
• Will I need to adjust the manufacturer recommended positioning of the chosen lid stay to account for the approximately 3/4" anterior positioning of the upper door at 90 degrees opening necessary to clear the header?

General Questions:

• Can I use a 'close-assist' mechanism hinge to help keep the door closed during transit or do I need to use a free swing hinge to avoid the close-assist function from fighting with the soft-close lid stay?
• If I can't use a close assist function hinge, how might I keep the cabinet doors from opening while driving?

Thanks in advance for your considered advice.

[Tom Bender]

Huy Guy
Welcome to the forum.

No idea on the hardware you suggest but a few other points to consider;

This is a project I'd mock up with cardboard and tape just to fine tune the dimensions

Stuff in an RV can get bumped and leaned on, indoor hardware might not hold up

The lid stay on the lower door will have to be small to fit in the 3.5" dimension. Chains might work out better though they will be fussy on closing. A strip magnet inside the case might solve that by grabbing the chain.

Mount the power strip on the side so the plugs and wires will not be crushed by the door

Store your phone on the dashboard

Hold the doors closed with velcro

Can you hold the upper door up by a loop of cord and a hook in the ceiling?

[Guy Deyton]

Thanks Tom for the tips! Much appreciated! I did the mock-up this morning and you were right: the coach sides slope inwardly from about 30" off the floor to the ceiling and from the mounting wall to the driver's door frame. I had 'eyeballed it with a carpenter's square, and as luck would have it the doors just clear the coach walls at their outer swing radius. It's good to confirm that with the mock-up. You're also dead on about the depth limitation limiting the hardware. I went through a dozen or so spec sheets to find the hardware I proposed. Since I'm not an experienced wood-worker, I don't know how they will hold up under the conditions they will be exposed to in an RV. My current thinking is that I'll have to go with a free swing hinge and a soft close stay and maybe put an internal 'pinch-clip' on the internal face of the doors that closes into the female receptor mounted on the inside frame to keep the doors closed during transit. I'm open to anyone's suggestions, since I'm pretty much making this up with zero experience. PS: the coach ceiling vinyl has an unknown backing. It could be cardboard. It could be 1/8" plywood. It could be foam backed vinyl glued to plywood strips fastened to the ceiling struts with nothing in-between. I hesitate to use the ceiling as fixation for the upper door support until/if I can find out more about the construction.