On Fri, 1 Nov 2013 22:11:47 +0000 (UTC), "Danny D."
wrote:

On Tue, 29 Oct 2013 00:38:17 +0000, Danny D'Amico wrote:

Thanks to all your past advice and help - there just isn't anything
unknown about the DIY replacement of this particular garage door torsion
spring repair. (Or so I hope.)

LESSONS LEARNED:

The only really new lesson learned was to CHECK the direction of the
bearings before winding the springs!

I had to take my entire setup apart TWICE, simply because I took
all the bearings out (to photograph them), and FORGOT what direction
to put them back! (mea culpa)


LESSONS LEARNED:

Here is a shot of the old parts, and all the tools used:
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3705/1...51b2867e_b.jpg
1. 18" long 1/2 inch round soft steel winding bars (from DDM garage doors)
2. 7/16 open-end wrench (for all set screws)
3. Two 9/16" open-ended wrenches (for the center support bolts)
4. 10" vise grip (to lock the torsion bar when winding)
5. Safety glasses
6. Marker (to mark initial pulley position & spring extra quarter inch)
7. Tape measure (to measure old spring coil thickness)
8. Plastic pipe (to push out the old bearings from the end plates)
9. Mallet (to push new spring out 1/4 inch from initial stop point)
10. Oil can (to oil the new springs to minimize friction & binding)
11. Flashlight (to see whether the cable is coiling properly)
12. Spray paint (to paint a straight line when all is wound)

Note: I threw away the spray-paint can as it was out of paint,
so, unfortunately, it's not in the DIY tools list photo above.

Good stuff, Danny. I had a new steel door put up last year.
2 spring. Didn't cost much, and I didn't want to deal with getting
rid of the old wood door.
Anyway it works smooth as silk, and is dead quiet going up and down.
Thing is, when the opener is detached, it seems heavy to lift.
Maybe like lifting 40-50 lbs.
In the past I tightened my springs so the door could be lifted with
one finger. Less work for the motor.
Don't recall you mentioning the "correct" tension.
Any advice on that?