Please help me find original hardware for bifold door

Home Owner from Washington, DC

Dec 23, 2012 4:21 pm

Hello: I recently purchased a home with 10 of these bifold doors. All of them were jury-rigged in some way or another, so I have no idea what the original hardware is. I would like to replace the current hardware with the appropriate original hardware to maximize the functionality of the doors.

Each bifold set has 2 fixed pins (one top and one bottom) and two sliding pins (one top and one bottom). Are these all four different sets of parts? Any insight you could provide would be most appreciate. I am attaching a photo of some of the odd and end parts I have found, but i have no idea what to do with them.

1 user uploaded image

21 Replies

Paul from SWISCO

Dec 27, 2012 1:08 pm

Thanks for posting! It looks like you have the older style of Slimfold Doors. I've related a selection of Slimfold products that you may be interested in. Take a look at our 21-001, 21-007, 21-200, 21-277, and our 21-154 to start. Let me know what you think.

Home Owner from Washington, D.C.

Dec 28, 2012 6:41 pm

Thanks, Paul! The doors are from 1962 (they are 8 feet high!). Thank you for pointing out these parts. They look like they will work! I will order a few and see how it goes.

One last question: would you recommend 3 of the Spring loaded pivot rod 21-007 (for top pivot and top and bottom guides) and one of the 21-001 for bottom pivot for each door?

thank you.

Paul from SWISCO

Jan 2, 2013 8:48 am

Yes, very good! That is exactly what I would recommend.

Home Owner from Washington, D.C.

Jan 5, 2013 8:22 pm

Dear Paul: I have ordered enough for a few doors to start out, and if I can figure it out, I will order more for the rest of the doors :-). One question, does part 21-154 go on both the top and bottom pivot pins or just one of them? Thanks very much.

Tom from SWISCO

Jan 7, 2013 8:56 am

Thanks for getting back to us! I'm glad to hear that everything will work out. To answer your question, the 21-154 is meant to go with the 21-007.

Home Owner from Washington, D.C.

Jan 9, 2013 3:53 pm

hello: i purchased two replacement parts at your suggestion: 21-001 and 21-007. I can't figure either one out.

21-001: There are two silver-colored pieces of metal on the pin that prevent the pin from going through the hole provided for it. Do these pieces of metal come off? i have tried to take them off but cannot do it. But they cannot go through the hole meant for the pin with the metal pieces on the pin.

21-007: There is a white plastic sleeve for the pin that is clipped to the plastic cap and compresses the spring. It seems as though I should remove this when I install the pin. However, it cannot be re-attached to the pin once the pin is in the hole in the door, and the spring is uncompressed. Is it trash? Does it have any purpose? I can't figure it out.

I tried to phone but i could not get through. I cannot figure out how either of these parts works. Thank you.

Tom from SWISCO

Jan 18, 2013 3:47 pm

Thank you for your patience in this matter! Please see our new handy tutorial which details how to install this hardware.

Home Owner from Washington, D.C.

Jan 20, 2013 6:52 pm

Dear Mike: Great video! Thank you, it is very helpful. The spring-loaded rod is very easy to install. My doors look exactly like the one in the video. However, the threaded section of the threaded pins that I purchased do not easily fit inside the hole that is available like they do in the video. The hole is 1/4 inch across. I can force the pin in by rotating it with a wrench, but I am not sure if that is the best idea (and it's hard work, I had to get out the old hardware this same way). So I wanted to check with you first. Is there a threaded pin that is a bit narrower that would work for this door?

Also, the screw that comes with the pivot rod clamp doesn't seem to project beyond the inside hole of the clamp even when screwed all the way in -- so I am not sure how it works.

Thanks again for everything. I really appreciate it.

Tom from SWISCO

Jan 22, 2013 9:16 am

Thanks for getting back to us! I'm glad to hear that our video helped you, though I'm sorry to hear about the tight fit. I was afraid of this possibility. Some of these closet doors have smaller holes that cannot easily accommodate our screws; they're uncommon enough, but every so often we'll come across one.

Fortunately, the solution is easy! You were wise not to try to force it, that may have only damaged the pin itself. The best method is to take a simple rat-tail file to widen the hole. I've done it myself and you should only need to take a sliver off. It took me maybe about a minute of filing and testing the pin before I got it to a comfortable size.

As for the 21-154 Pivot Rod Clamp, never fear! The screw is not meant to go all the way through. It is simply there to secure the clamp to the pin. Once you are able to get the pin in, you should see why.

Home Owner from Washington, D.C.

Jan 27, 2013 3:16 pm

Thanks, Mike! I bought a round file and it worked great. A little elbow grease and the pin fit. Now I am still having a hard time getting these 8 ft doors installed, They are not running smoothly but I think I have to adjust the height of the fixed pin and maybe which hole to use, etc, but I am sure i will figure it out in time.

Thanks again for everything.

Tom from SWISCO

Jan 28, 2013 8:51 am

No problem at all! I was happy to help. I agree that you should try adjusting the doors--play around with them a little and see if you can get it to slide comfortably. Let me know how it goes!

Home Owner from Washington, DC

Nov 22, 2019 3:04 pm

Hello, I am the original poster here. My closet doors are doing well but I was wondering if you have tracks for these? A floor refinishing contractor through out the original tracks and now I need to find the best replacement. Thanks!

Paul from SWISCO

Nov 27, 2019 9:12 am

Hello and welcome back to SWISCO. We do offer tracks for Slimfold pins. Please see our 21-401, 21-402, 21-403, and 21-404. This is the same track available in different lengths depending on the length you need. Look them over and see what you think.

Home Owner from Washington, DC

Feb 7, 2020 4:39 pm

Hi, I purchased this part based on your recommendation. I was hoping it would be more like the original track (which I have on multiple other closet doors), but it is nothing like the original track. The original track is less than 1/2" in height.

I hoped the one I ordered from you would be low enough so that the closet door would not scrape it, but it is too high and I can't figure out how to get the closet door to hang any higher.

Paul from SWISCO

Feb 10, 2020 10:13 am

It sounds like you may not be adjusting the 21-001 threaded pin. Adjusting these pins raises the door so that they don't scrape the track.

If you did adjust it, then can you tell the height of the metal doors and the height of the closet door opening, both with and without the top and bottom tracks? Do you happen to know if the original installer added a shim at the top to lower the top track at all?

Home Owner from Washington, DC

Feb 10, 2020 5:10 pm

Hi Paul,

When I look at the closet door, there is clearly a gap at the top (see photos), but I can't figure out how to raise it any more. I tried to adjust the bottom pin, as instructed in the video, with a screwdriver, but can't turn it any more than I already have. I guess I can see if someone else has more brute strength than I do . Or is there a way to adjust the top pin? There is no shim or anything like that.
Thank you!

2 user uploaded images

Tom from SWISCO

Feb 14, 2020 9:08 am

That is a significant gap. It's possible that the doors are simply too small for the opening. You mentioned in your first post that these were all kind of rigged, so it wouldn't be shocking.

One possible solution would be to pack out the bottom track by putting a piece of wood under it. I've done this myself in a pinch and find that it works well. You could do the same for the top track, instead, if you have the room.

Home Owner from Washington, DC

Feb 14, 2020 1:04 pm

Hi Tom, thanks for the advice. The original track has much lower sides but it was discarded by a contractor by mistake.

Can you explain what you mean by "pack out"?

Thank you.

Home Owner from Washington, D.C.

Feb 16, 2020 3:20 pm

I asked before, but is there a reason why the LOW PROFILE TRACK ASSEMBLY won't work here? Thanks

Paul from SWISCO

Feb 17, 2020 8:59 am

The track marked low profile, 21-455, will not work for the Slimfold door parts mentioned. This is designed for a Stanley bi-fold doors. They are not interchangeable. For a 60" opening, you need Slimfold track 21-402.

In your first image above, you show quite a large gap between the door and top track, so you will have room for the 21-402. This has a height of 5/8". If you need the low profile for the bottom, you can use the top track and install the new track at the top.