500' Reel

• Category: Cables & Drums
  
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• 1/4-Inch 7×19 Galvanized Garage Door Aircraft Cable – 500-Foot Reel

  This heavy-duty galvanized aircraft cable is supplied on a continuous 500-foot reel for fabricating replacement lift cables and other compatible cable assemblies used on commercial and industrial overhead doors.

  The cable measures 1/4 inch in diameter and uses flexible 7×19 construction, consisting of seven strands with nineteen individual wires in each strand. This construction provides greater flexibility than stiffer cable designs, allowing the cable to bend and travel around compatible garage-door drums and pulleys.

  Its galvanized steel finish helps resist rust and corrosion during normal service. The bulk reel is intended for professional garage-door companies, maintenance departments, fabricators, and installers who make cables to the exact length required for each door.

  Product Features

  • 1/4-inch galvanized steel aircraft cable
  • Flexible 7×19 strand construction
  • Supplied on one continuous 500-foot reel
  • Suitable for fabricating compatible garage-door lift cables
  • Galvanized finish helps resist corrosion
  • Designed to bend around properly sized drums and pulleys
  • Suitable for heavy commercial and industrial applications
  • Can be cut to the required finished cable length
  • Intended for use with correctly sized cable stops, sleeves, loops, and fittings
  • Product number 297

  Specifications

  • Product type: Bulk galvanized aircraft cable
  • Cable diameter: 1/4 inch
  • Decimal diameter: 0.250 inch
  • Construction: 7×19
  • Material: Steel
  • Finish: Galvanized
  • Reel length: 500 feet
  • Minimum breaking strength: Approximately 7,000 lb
  • Product number: 297
  • Quantity: One reel

  Minimum breaking strength is not the same as working-load capacity. The allowable working load depends on the application, safety factor, cable condition, terminations, drums, fittings, and installation method.

  What 7×19 Construction Means

  A 7×19 cable is made from:

  • Seven primary strands
  • Nineteen individual wires within each strand

  The large number of smaller wires creates a comparatively flexible cable that can repeatedly bend around compatible sheaves, pulleys, and cable drums.

  This flexibility makes 7×19 construction appropriate for many moving cable applications where a more rigid construction may fatigue prematurely.

  Garage Door Applications

  This cable may be used to fabricate compatible cable assemblies for:

  • Commercial sectional overhead doors
  • Industrial garage doors
  • Heavy residential or custom doors
  • Vertical-lift door systems
  • High-lift door systems
  • Standard-lift commercial doors
  • Counterweight systems
  • Compatible rolling or specialty door assemblies
  • Maintenance and repair inventory

  The cable diameter and construction must match the requirements of the specific door system.

  Do not substitute this cable for a different diameter or construction without confirming the door manufacturer’s engineering requirements.

  How It Works

  Garage-door lift cables connect the bottom fixtures or lifting points of the door to the cable drums, counterbalance components, or other lifting hardware.

  As the torsion shaft and drums rotate, the cables wind onto or unwind from the drums. The cables transfer lifting force from the counterbalance system to the door.

  Both lift cables must be:

  • Properly sized
  • Cut to the correct length
  • Terminated securely
  • Routed through the correct drum grooves
  • Installed with equal tension
  • Free from kinks, crushing, broken wires, and corrosion

  Incorrect cable length or installation can cause the door to lift unevenly, jam in the tracks, or fall.

  Minimum Breaking Strength

  Typical 1/4-inch 7×19 galvanized aircraft cable has a minimum breaking strength of approximately 7,000 lb.

  This does not mean the cable should be routinely loaded to 7,000 lb.

  The actual safe working load must be substantially lower and should account for:

  • Required safety factor
  • Door weight
  • Dynamic and shock loading
  • Cable drum diameter
  • Bending fatigue
  • Cable termination efficiency
  • Wear and corrosion
  • Number of supporting cables
  • Applicable manufacturer requirements and codes

  Never design a cable system using minimum breaking strength as the normal operating load.

  Cable Termination Requirements

  Bulk cable must be professionally cut and fitted with compatible terminations before use.

  Depending on the door system, required hardware may include:

  • Cable stops
  • Aluminum or copper sleeves
  • Thimbles
  • Swaged loops
  • Puck ends
  • Clevis fittings
  • Bolted cable attachments
  • Manufacturer-specific cable fittings

  All fittings must be correctly sized for 1/4-inch cable.

  Improper crimping, undersized sleeves, damaged fittings, or poorly formed loops can greatly reduce the strength of the finished cable assembly.

  Compatibility

  Before ordering, verify:

  1. Required cable diameter is 1/4 inch.
  2. Required construction is 7×19.
  3. Cable drum grooves are sized for 1/4-inch cable.
  4. Pulleys and sheaves have the correct groove size and diameter.
  5. Bottom fixtures and cable attachments accept the selected termination.
  6. The cable strength is adequate for the engineered door system.
  7. Galvanized steel cable is suitable for the operating environment.
  8. The installer has the correct cutting and swaging equipment.

  This cable is supplied in bulk and is not a finished, ready-to-install garage-door cable assembly.

  Cutting and Handling

  Use a cable cutter designed for wire rope. Ordinary bolt cutters or abrasive cutting methods can crush or unravel the strands.

  Before cutting:

  1. Measure the required cable length carefully.
  2. Secure or tape both sides of the intended cut.
  3. Make a clean, square cut.
  4. Inspect the strands for separation or damage.
  5. Install the proper fitting or sleeve.
  6. Swage the termination using approved tools and specifications.
  7. Inspect and test the finished assembly before installation.

  Avoid creating sharp bends, knots, flattened sections, or permanent kinks.

  Inspection and Replacement

  Inspect installed cables regularly for:

  • Broken individual wires
  • Fraying
  • Rust or corrosion
  • Flattened or crushed areas
  • Kinks
  • Abrasion
  • Reduced cable diameter
  • Damaged terminations
  • Loose sleeves or fittings
  • Uneven cable tension

  Replace damaged cable immediately. Do not attempt to repair a frayed or partially broken cable.

  When replacing one lift cable, inspect the cable on the opposite side. In many applications, replacing both cables as a matched pair is recommended.

  Package Contents

  • One 500-foot reel of 1/4-inch 7×19 galvanized aircraft cable

  Cable stops, sleeves, thimbles, fittings, bottom brackets, cable drums, pulleys, cutters, swaging tools, and other hardware are not included unless specifically stated.

  Installation and Safety

  Garage-door lift cables operate under substantial tension and may be connected to torsion springs, extension springs, counterweights, cable drums, and other stored-energy components.

  A cable or fitting can release suddenly if cut, loosened, or installed incorrectly. A door with a disconnected or failed cable may fall or shift without warning.

  Cable fabrication and installation should be performed only by a trained garage-door technician with the correct measuring, cutting, swaging, and spring-service equipment.

  Never remove or loosen a lift cable while the garage-door spring system remains under uncontrolled tension.

  1/4-Inch 7×19 Galvanized Garage Door Aircraft Cable – 500-Foot Reel

  Flexible 1/4-inch galvanized 7×19 aircraft cable for fabricating commercial and industrial garage-door lift cables. Supplied on a continuous 500-foot reel with approximately 7,000 lb minimum breaking strength.