Progress Hybrid -- bypass door sometimes difficult to open (seems to jam)

[junkyard_sal]

Hello,

After over a decade with a Jotul 550 insert I changed it for a Woodstock Soapstone Progress Hybrid in 2020. This stove is a difference maker for our home. We love it.

Recently, I have experienced that the bypass door can be hard to open and you have to kind of open it until you feel resistance, back off and twist it open again. I took it all apart, and cleaned everything. (noticed I have a gasket that could be in better shape but is still working on the bypass door). Nothing seems wrong or misaligned just suddenly seems to jam. It does not appear warped and it seems to seal properly even with the gasket a bit lacking on edges.

Anyone else experienced this?

The good: Great heat, long burns, looks good, and silent (no blower fans!).

 

[Rearscreen]

Could you recreate this when the stove is cold and the top open so you can see where the sticking point is? Or, is this heat related only sticking when hot.

 

[fire_man]

It sounds to me like the curve at the end of the shaft used to lift the door is not bent to the proper angle. I would do like Rearscreen suggested and watch the bypass door operation to see if you can confirm its either not bent enough or bent too sharp. I seem to remember a bevel shape at the tip of the shaft that may play a part in smooth operation lifting the door.

It can be adjusted by removing the plate that covers it and place a long pipe at the tip of the shaft to very slightly bend it towards or away from you. I watched my stove being rebuilt and that's how it was adjusted. When its adjusted properly it will apply slight downward pressure into the door pressing it closed against the gasket.

 

[Rearscreen]

is not bent to the proper angle

Yup, that is exactly what I was thinking this morning in my whirly mind.

 

[fire_man]

An interesting trivia tidbit is that the original prototype Progress had a bypass door lever that was push/pull instead of twist. They found it was binding when the stove heated up and switched to the current twist lever.