Sliding door works like new

I have three 9 foot Acorn doors installed 45 years ago and the one from the walkout basement gets a lot of use because we heat with wood.

I purchased 81-030 rollers and 80-102 track covers for repair.

The track or rail in that door new stands .310 inches high and the rail in the lumpy area was worn down to about .260 to .280 high and the width had increased from .218 new to .235 in the lumpy areas.

I looked at on line videos of the repair and was considering power tools but decided to use a Vixen file with the two holes for a file holder. A Vixen is aggressive in aluminum and does not load up.

Instead of a file holder, I used one 3/4 diameter dowel of wood about 3 inches long on the pull end for the cutting direction and attached with a screw in the center-line of the dowel.

Use light gloves to protect your hands.

By pulling on the handle and applying pressure with your other hand, you can smooth and round the crown of the rail until you see all fresh metal indicating all the lumps are gone and and then you can work the width down to the original width by manipulating the file in various positions.

It took me about one hour or a bit less to file to perfection.

Installing the rail cover with a block of wood and hammer is a bit tedious because the cover wants to tip to one side or the other instead of going straight down on the rail.

The 45 year old door now closes like new. Your new roller assembly by the way has sealed roller bearings instead of the original open design roller bearings.

I am very very pleased with the result, better than new.