Will A Longer Cam Bar Help Reduce Gap/Play On Enclosed Trailer Door

Updated 01/16/2025 | Published 01/15/2025

Products Featured in This Question

45" Long Side-Door Bar Lock Assembly

(60)

$140.44

Side-Door Bar Lock Assembly - 55" Long

(216)

$74.47

Cam-Action Lockable Door Latch Kit for Large Enclosed Trailers - Zinc-Plated Steel

(898)

$119.50

Question:

Hello, I recently purchased a new enclosed trailer 8.5’ wide x 20’ long x 7’ interior height. Within a few weeks of use, I noticed the rear ramp door was no longer sealing tight against the trailer when the cam bars were latches against the ramp door, this issue got progressively worse over the next few weeks, and it seems that the weight of the rear ramp door pressing against the cam bars, during acceleration, or bumps has cause the cam bars to bend outward, away from the trailer door. I now have a 3/4-1” space between the top of the cam bars and the rear ramp door when the cam bar is latched closed. My cam bars are only 45” long, which seems short to me considering the door is basically 84” tall. I want to order replacement bars, but I am unsure if I should stick with the 45” size or get a longer set in hopes of preventing this issue from happening again. Any advise you have would be appreciated. Also, I am not sure if my existing cam bars are steel or aluminum, I just assumed they were steel, but now I am seeing that they are sold in both aluminum and steel variants. The two photos below show how much play I have in the rear door when the cam bars locks are latched in the closed position, the rear door is able to pull out almost a full inch before contacting the cam bar, due to the cam bar being bowed outward at the top.

asked by: Michael P

Enclosed Trailer Door Gap
(click to enlarge)

Expert Reply:

Hey Michael, thanks for reaching out. That sucks to hear you are having this problem with a new trailer. It sounds like the door might just be too heavy for the latch and is slowly bending open over time. Any idea how much that door weighs? I ask more out of curiosity but if the door is too heavy for the cam hardware I do think upgrading your latch and going with a longer bar will help the issue. Having the bar extend closer to the top of the door should help it seal better.

If you don't mind drilling a few holes in the trailer you could do a longer bar like the Side-Door Bar Lock Assembly # 3057-55 which has a 55" bar. Or you could do more of a custom latch like part # PLR258-002. Then find a nice, strong 3/4" steel bar to go with it. You could do really any length bar with this setup. I think the idea here would be to just get the door as tight as possible so vibrations from the road don't cause the same thing to happen.

expert reply by: Jesse M

Michael

1/16/2025

Hey Jesse, unfortunately I do not know how much the door weighs. The trailer is manufactured by celltech, and they have a patented panel materials that’s used for construction of the trailer walls. I know for certain there are no metal studs (or ribs) anywhere on the wide walls or nose, as the structural strength of their trailer comes from a honeycomb type structure sandwiched between two sheets of steel. but I am not sure if that holds true for the rear ramp door, I would imagine that it is most likely reinforced with some sort of internal structure, but I’m not positive. Either way the camber locks do aesthetically look too small to me. My previous trailer was 50% smaller than this one and utilized the same size cam bars.

Jesse M.

1/16/2025

@Michael Yep I think we are in agreement here. A larger bar and/or more heavy duty cam hardware will help. And honestly knowing the door weight really isn't necessary, I just thought it might be interesting to know.