Replacing a door handle/ latch on a Vulcan ET4

Self cleaning programs break things 80% of the time. You should never ever use that cycle. 650'F is too brutal to elements, fans, latches and circuit boards that are above the oven. I have never known one with a manual latch.

You need a new stove or a GE Technician service call.

Even parts seem hard to come by if that model number is correct.

https://www.google.com/search?q=ge+jb550gj+parts+schematic&rlz=1C1QJDB_enCA643CA644&sxsrf=AOaemvLbXx0eQ-CuQGcz6uUgtsCr-28esg:1630469374085&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=-Ou_AjR7rSbftM%252C0lADJSiz3YMlRM%252C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kQCddHYo4RSLP9URAtYY3KRG-VIyw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiUt-_e89zyAhWRTd8KHclHDwQQ9QF6BAgREAE

My GE stove is 46 years old :>) The only part that doesn't work is the clock

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I HAD THAT HAPPEN TO ME ON MY OVEN & IT WAS A REAL PAIN TO GET IT BACK ON. I HAD TO USE A LONG SCREW DRIVER TO HOLD THE LATCH WHILE I LINED UP THE DOOR TO PUT BACK ON. LOOKS LIKE FROM THE PICTURE THAT THERE IS A BOLT THAT YOU CAN TAKE OFF THE LATCH, THEN PUT THE OVEN DOOR INTO PLACE THEN PUT THE BOLT BACK ON. IT MAY TAKE 2 PEOPLE TO DO THIS.

Hi

There could be couple things. First, try pushing the door closed as you turn the handle. The latch may have dropped into the strike hole completely, binding the latch. Or you may try lifting the door as you try and open it. Friction is the one thing that most often happens causing a latch not to retract.
Another possibility is that the latch may have become detached from the knob set. If this is the case, you will have to remove the lock from the door, and from there you can open the door with a flat blade screwdriver. I recommend replacing the latch as well. If you remove the lock from the inside of the door, using a flat blade screwdriver you can pull the little 'T' that sticks out from the latch on the inside of the hole. This pulls the latch back away from the strike, allowing you to open the door.

There are different configurations of latches, and they activate like way. You could run into a long latch the lock runs through. You can use a large flat blade to activate that. If you have the type with the half moon, use the outside of the lock body, stick it into the half moon, and turn the whole thing to retract the latch.

Please get back to us if you have further query or else please accept the solution.

Thanks for contacting fixya.com

http://appliantology.org/topic/33472-thermador-cm302us-upper-door-latch-instructions/page__gopid__207323

Extend your door hinges and remove entirely over to a table or other flat surface where you can do a step-by-step dis-assembly. Unfortunately, to get at the interior of the handle unit, it's the final stage of the taking apart. Begin by removing the bolts at the bottom of the door, then the main panel and side flanges can be removed. (You can give your glass a good cleaning at this point also.) There are 2 bolts to remove to free up the handle unit, and now you can easily tighten (or replace as needed) the 2 pairs of handle bolts. Reverse your order to re-assemble, and put your door back on the oven. It's not as bad an exercise as it would appear. Just take your time and watch what you're doing. I used the hinges as a shim, and had it laid out on a pool table for easy, elevated examination.

The latches on this model oven have a very high failure rate. Once the latch fails it is permanent. To open the door you have to access the control panel to reach the door look. To do this first turn the power to the oven off at the service panel by turning the breaker off.

Step 1 Remove the three screws from the control panel. The control panel is on the outside of the oven, above the door handle. Pull the bottom of the control panel toward you, then lift it up. This action will release the control panel cover's tabs.

Step 2 The mechanism that operates the door latch during the self-cleaning cycle will be behind a smooth, square plate held in place with two screws. White, black and red wires, as well as a grounding wire, will be protruding from the face of the plate. These wires will be twisted together with other control panel wiring and covered with electrical wire caps.

Step 3 Remove the failed part by removing the caps and untwisting the wires. Using an appropriate wrench, extract any screws holding the plate in place. The cylindrical-shaped mechanism will be attached to and behind this plate.

Step 4 Visit a store or contact GE at (800) 626-2224 to acquire a replacement part. To reassemble, slide the new mechanism into where the old one was and reattach the plate with the screws. Reconnect the wires by twisting them together and replacing the electrical wire caps.

Step 5 Replace the control panel by slipping the top of the panel into its groove and angling the panel downward, dropping the tabs back into the slots. Replace the three screws.

I'm not mechanically-inclined, but the frustration of an oven handle hanging by one side prompted me to try to become mechanical. Remove the entire door from the oven by working the hinges. Then put it on a flat surface (I used a pool table) and let the hinges act as a shim. Remove the bolts from the bottom edge and lift out the main panel and the end flanges. Carefully set the glass aside and it's an opportune time to clean it. You'll see two bolts which hold the door handle assembly in-place. Upon removing those, you'll finally be able to get at those interior door handle bolts. One of mine was missing a lock washer. I found adequate replacement parts and then reversed the process to re-assemble the door and place it back on the oven. This seems to be a common defect with this model, and it's unfortunate that the handle's bolts can't be assessed more easily, but when you go at it systematically, it wasn't as difficult as I had feared.

Hello,(1)Open the door and remove the two screws in the door lock latch plate on the edge of the door by backing them out with a Phillips screwdriver in a counter clockwise direction.
(2)Remove the two screws (located on the interior lock face plate)holding both halves of the lock assembly to the door by backing them out with a Phillips screwdriver in a counter clockwise direction,pull each side of the lock assembly from the door,using a flat blade screwdriver to pry them off if needed. (3)Pry the latch bolt out of the door by inserting the edge of a flat blade screwdriver under the latch plate on the edge of the door.slide the latch assembly out and set aside.(4)Insert the new latch assembly into the hole left by the old latch bolt.Trim the recessed opening with a sharp chisel if the new lock latch plate is larger than the old latch plate.Secure the latch to the door with the two screws provided by turning them in a clockwise direction with a Phillips screwdriver.(5)Hold both side of the new lock assembly to the holes in the faceof the door.Line up the shaft from the lock cylinder into the slotted hole in the latch assembly.Make sure the lock face plate with the screw holes is facing the inside.Attach the lock assembly to the door by turning in the screws with a Phillips screwdriver in clockwise direction.(6)Remove the old striker plate from the door jamb by backing out the two screws with a Phillips screwdriver in a counter clockwise direction.Install the striker plate that came with lock kit with the screws provided using a Phillips screwdriver in clockwise direction.
(7)Close the door and test the operation of the lock from the inside and outside using the turn lever and the key.Make adjustment to the striker plate if needed by removing the holding screws.Reposition the striker plate and replace the screws

Thanks

Have exactly the same situation. All the solutions I have seen talk about replacing the hinges or seal. But people report the same thing happens a month later. Looking hard at the door what it needs is something to pull it right at the top. So I installed a rare earth magnet from www.kjmagnetics.com I used part number BX884DCS which costs $4. It mounts with a couple of screws and I put it on the door a couple of inches down from the top.
Its possible that heat from the oven will kill the magnet over time but for $4 I can replace it for a lot less than hinges and it works great. The door closes more securely than it ever did when the oven was new.
Hope this helps.

door latch wont open