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My 1929 garage has several side-hung carriage doors that are held open by a neat stay system where a metal bar slides through a bracket and then a notch in the bar rests on the bracket. Pulling the chain lifts the bar slightly to release the notch and allow the door to close. This hardware is great for holding the doors open at 90° even if the wind is blowing hard and they are easy to operate.

Door holder/stay

My shed also has a big heavy door and I'd like to add similar hardware to it, but much searching hasn't turned up a source for this type of hardware in the USA.

I was able to find a similar piece of hardware (operated by a cord and toggle instead of a chain) in the UK, but international shipping is crazy expensive. enter image description here

Is there an American term for this type of hardware that might turn up more results? Or are these even available anywhere in the US?

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  • I searched Carriage Door Stop. While several images were available, all were slightly different than yours .
    – mikes
    Sep 26, 2019 at 20:35
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    Being that old it may have been home made , so modern ones may look different.
    – Ed Beal
    Sep 26, 2019 at 23:05
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    I’m voting to close this question because it's been abandoned.
    – FreeMan
    Dec 15, 2020 at 13:09
  • I don't think this is homemade - the house I grew up in of similar age had very similar hardware, down to the style of chain.
    – tilde
    Dec 15, 2020 at 15:41

2 Answers 2

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If you can't find a pre-made set, I'd imagine you could build one.

  • Use a heavy duty wheel mount (i.e. get rid of the wheel) for the portion on the door.

  • Find a piece of "C" channel for the piece on the door header. Cut a slot in it with a grinding wheel.

  • Pick another, smaller piece of "C" channel for the slider between them. Cut a notch for the catch.

  • Attach a piece of chain.

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    Alternatively to the heavy duty wheel mount, a right angle bracket (possibly cut to shape) could be used.
    – tilde
    Dec 15, 2020 at 14:24
  • Good point, @tilde. I went with the wheel mount because, in my head, it matched the shape. Any piece of suitably sized angle iron could be cut/ground to shape with appropriate holes drilled in it (especially since all the rest of the metal work involves cutting, grinding, etc).
    – FreeMan
    Dec 15, 2020 at 14:25
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There was similar hardware on the garage doors of a similar age house I grew up in, but I don't see anything similar online. This modern replacement is called an "Overhead Door Stop":

Overhead Door Stop

Looks like there are several sizes available, this image is from Buy Door Hardware Now. Rather than pulling a chain to close the door, you push the door open a bit farther and then it will close.

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