Nearly everyone with a trailer or 5th wheel are familiar with these storage compartment locks.
It has been our experience that these locks wear out quite easily. Before long the key can be inserted in either direction. This is a little tough on the keys. Unless you’ re careful the keys can get bent or even stuck. Break one off and you’re in big trouble.
We found a solution. We spotted some locks at Camping World that look like vending machine door locks. Their description is an ACE key cam lock.
Unfortunately, Camping World only carries two lengths of lock, 5/8″ and 7/8″. The short one is fine for the utility access doors, but we needed 1-1/8″ for the thicker doors. (Click on size for specifics)
The manufacturer of these locks is Prime Products. I contacted Prime and ordered directly from them. I ordered six locks in two different lengths and had them keyed alike.
The sturdy keys work great and are certainly easy to spot on the key ring.
There is only one drawback to these locks. The key can only be removed when in the locked position. But if you can live with that restriction, this is a nice alternative to the standard locks.