BarCol Doors - DDM Garage Doors Blog

Posted September 1st, 2017 at 6:34 pm by Dan Musick

Those of us who have been in the business for a while remember the old BarCol doors. This name is short for Barber Coleman.

BarCol stationary cone and spring anchor bracket for 1 1/16 inch shaft.

The greatest difficulty we remember is accommodating the incompatibility of torsion hardware. While all the other door companies used 1″ shafts, the early shafts on BarCol doors had a 1 1/16″ outside diameter. This spring anchor bracket above identifies the larger shaft, and trying for many hours to get parts to fit on the shaft was part of our initiation into the door business. We filed, we beat, we yelled – all to no avail. We learned to carry 1″ shafts or a 1 1/16″ drill bit to get the standard winding cone to fit.

An image of a BarCol cone and cable drum.

Unique Springs and Drums

The old BarCol door system also used unique 1 13/16″ inside diameter springs that hooked on the ends. The cones would slide into the cones and hook either the bracket or the raised edges on the cones. The cable drums were also bigger. Many service technicians never noticed the difference. They left behind a trail of heavy doors because of the drums’ higher moment arm.

The newer BarCol door system with brackets on 1-inch shaft.

The newer BarCol doors used brackets with 1″ bearings for 1″ shafts. Many of these used the hooked cones. However, the new 1 3/4″ standard screw-in stationary cones would secure to these compatible brackets.

BarCol door rollers and hinge straps.

Special Rollers and Straps

In the early years, BarCol doors also had special rollers that tied together with hinge straps. As the door closed, a plate welded to the curve of the track would catch the top roller and raise the hinge straps.

An image of installed top hinge straps.

These straps would, in turn, pull the straps and rollers along the full height of the door. This forced the ends of the door against the jambs and header.

An image of installed bottom hinge straps.

This method of pushing the door against the jambs was designed because Overhead Door Corporation owned the patent to the wedge design that incorporates graduated hinges and pitched vertical tracks.

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8 Responses to “BarCol Doors”

  1. Sarah Jean Says:

    Can you date a garage door for me please.

  2. Dan Musick Says:

    Sarah,
    It’s probably 40-80 years old. Do you have any pictures?
    Dan

  3. Chello Perez Says:

    Hi,
    I am looking for 2 Barcol spring tension locks. Are there parts out there to be had??

    Thank you

  4. Caleb Penney Says:

    Hello Chello, thank you for your question on our blog. Since Barcol springs have been obsolete for so long, we are not longer able to provide any hardware, aside from the springs themselves.
    You may be able to convert over to the modern standard torsion springs, if you are interested in this option.

  5. Dan Musick Says:

    Chello, many hardware stores carry long springs for screen doors. In the past I’ve cut these down to repair the door lock.

  6. Daniel Calens Says:

    Hello. We had a bottom corner bracket broke yesterday. Can’t find the piece. Is anyway you can guide us? The door is solid wood, 60 years old

  7. Dan Musick Says:

    Thank you for contacting us, Dan. BarCol had several types of bottom brackets that are now obsolete. However, with minor cable modifications the new style of bottom fixtures at https://ddmgaragedoors.com/parts/bottom_fixtures.html can be used. Would you be able to forward a picture to mail@ddmgaragedoors.com.

  8. Robert Norris Says:

    Hello, I am happy I found your site. I’m Bob Norris in Fond du Lac, Wi. Phone 920 517 5995 , Please call only no text or messages lease, I’m too old.
    I have a farm out building 40 ft. by 100 ft. bout 90 yrs. old that has two 14 ft. original (old ) Bar Col doors that operated great till a farm hand drove a hay wagon with hay stacked 15 feet high into west end door and damaged the bottom board which all the cables attach to.
    I have repaired the damaged 2” x 6″ Board and reattached all the hardware. I did that by clamping the spring system so we could reattach the cable on the south side of the door
    Do you have anyone in the Fond du Lac, Wi area who has experiences with the rewinding? If so please advise. Call Bob Norris 920 517 5995
    Thank you for all we have already learned from your site. Still need info for the cable tension adjustment, or, a you tube video link that shows detail of winding the tension of the steel cable with the two iron bars which I have seen done long ago. Thank you in advance if you can help us, Bob Norris 920 517 5995

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