56 Chevy Door latch issues

[craig32]

Greetings all, I'm having issues with the door latches on my 56. Most notably, that the driver's door comes open when I make some right turns that go uphill. I mentioned this to a guy at work and he asked if the door is still latched when it comes open - it is. When I first got the truck a year ago, one of the first things I did was get new latches, but they wouldn't work. If you look at one of the latches on ebay where the pivot is for the latch, it is about a half inch or better from the top of the housing. On my truck, the pivot pin is much closer to the top. After I put the new latch in, the housing hit the strike plate as if it were for a different model. Also on my latch, there is a pretty good groove in the moving part, maybe that's the problem?
So, apparently an aftermarket latch won't work - does anybody know where to find a good used original?
Thanks!
Craig

[JAM51]

I looked in my catalog and found new latches for 56 chevy truck. go to www.classicchevroletparts.com (part# P5255-16330) RDL each 39.95 Good Luck

[JAM51]

should be Part# P5255-16330-RDL

[tmoble]

can you post pics of your door and the latch that doesn't work? I don't know of any variations from 55-59 on the latches or the strikers. Is it possible you have a passenger car part or something like that?

[Russell Ashley]

I think I would check the integrity of my cab mounts and hinge mounts, both in the door and pillars. It appears to me that something is flexing and allowing the door to shift enough to unlatch.

[craig32]

Originally Posted by tmoble

can you post pics of your door and the latch that doesn't work? I don't know of any variations from 55-59 on the latches or the strikers. Is it possible you have a passenger car part or something like that?

Tom, I returned the latches that didn't work, here's the link to one on ebay -
http://www.ebay.com/itm/55-56-57-58-...item53ea5fc275

I'm sure it wasn't a car part as I have one of them too, and LMC doesn't sell them. I never have luck posting pics, but if you look at the one in the link, where the pivot is, mine pretty much goes straight across instead of up and over like that one does.

[OrrieG]

Sometimes new door seals will not allow the latch to completely catch. Same problem when doors get out of adjustment and they do not latch. When my kids got in I always checked the passenger because they were not strong enough to get it to latch. I've got a new set but haven't installed them yet.

[OKGMC4]

I have all new latches and strikers from LMC and they latch OK but you do have to shut the doors pretty hard. And also i've seen on several of these trucks where the latch just barely scrapes the door jamb when you shut it. Nothing on these things fits right. I adjusted mine all the way out and now my door gaps are barely acceptable. Should have done bear claws but it's a little late now. At least they latch...the originals were wore down to the bone.

[Maximus]

maybe the striker needs to be adjusted to a tighter tolerance???