so i took a look at these pictures and while i haven't been in this
situation i can offer these words.  the unlocked position of the thumb
switch is up and the locked position is down.  your exterior sliding door
handle is clearly broken.  most likely the casting is cracked.  the
interior door handle seems to have been worked on before since to my
knowledge the factory screw holding it on was a phillips and you have a
flat head.

my advice is to remove the interior handle, then remove the interior
panel.  this will give you access to the phillips screw that holds the
exterior handle on.  inspect both handles for damage i.e. cracking.  if
they are cracked it was because your door and look need maintenance service
which didn't happen.  the continued use of the door and subsequent heavy
loads on the handles caused them to crack.

jonathan

On Wed, 11 Feb 2004, Joel Thornton wrote:

> Hi David,
>
> I made a few pictures in case this helps to explain what is going on here:
> http://www.bumpus.org/my/stuck/stuck.html
>
> When I let go of the lock switch it does return to its initial position,
> which in my case is UP (the switch is vertical). I mention this
> specifically because you said "does it drop back"; yes it does return to
> its original position and it feels like the spring is working, but I
> wouldn't say 'drop back' because the default position isn't DOWN.
>
> I tried holding the switch in the "as unlocked as possible" position
> (which is still very much in the locked position based on its past
> behavior) and tried the handles, but no love. (first picture in above
> URL shows this position)
>
> Thanks for any help or advice you can give!
>
> Joel
>
>
> David Brodbeck wrote:
>
> >>Until today.  The inside lock switch is now in the 'locked' position
> >>and doesn't want to budge from that position.
> >>
> >>
> >
> >Does it not move at all, or does it drop back when you let go?  On the
> >early lock mechanisms, it's common for a spring to break so that the lock
> >handle won't stay in the unlocked position.  If you hold it in the
> >unlocked position while you turn the handle, you can still open the door.
> >
> >
>