Why bear claw latches?

[mr48chev]

Unless it has to be a spot on 100% perfect as original restoration I would not run the stock latches on any of my rigs nor will I sell one to someone else that I built with stock latches.

My wife actually fell out of the truck when she was leaning against the door and we turned the corner at low speed. Before that time she had a bad habit of sitting in the seat sideways and leaning back against the door when you went down the road in a vehicle. She still has some scars on her cheek and knee 32 years later.
It isn't fun to see the one you love going out the door backwards tailfeathers over tea kettle.

Just after I got my truck I did the same stunt in the same manner that Mylow53 did. If I hadn't had the window open and my arm ut the window I would have been on the ground that time. I replaced the strikers the same day but they tend to wear pretty quickly if the doors aren't all adjusted perfectly.

I have Kenworth truck latches in the 48. They used to be under ten bucks each new but do take some doing to mount. I'll probably use something different this time to get some that are easier to mount and hook linkage to though.