With working from home, I was getting tired of constantly hearing the door to the garage slam and the house shake. I had looked for a number of different options to prevent slamming, but in the end the traditional door closer was the best solution.
Hardware wise this door closer is well made and comes with everything you need for several different installation options. The instruction manual on the other hand seemed like it was written for a different model. As this was my first time installing a door closer I wanted to take my time, follow the instructions, and make sure I installed it right the first time. What threw me off is the instructions show a different forearm (one with a lock nut instead of a screw,) a different arm screw, and a pinion cap (which is not included, but the optional plastic cover is.) Additionally the number of full 360 turns required to make adjustments on the sprint power setting were different than what was in the manual. I installed the closer on a 30" wide door so I needed to use size 1. The spring power screw stopped just before 9 full turns, not the 10 and printed in the instructions.
As far as mounting, included are three templates for the three different install options (regular, top jamb, and parallel) and each template is double sided for either left or right hand installation. The templates were spot on. I drilled my pilot holes through the template and all the screws lined up perfectly. The included self drilling screws worked perfectly and easily. Additional hardware is included for mounting into a metal door as well.
When I first installed it the sweep and latch adjustments were completed closed, so the door didn't close at all. Opening them up too much the door slammed shut. It took some minor adjustments to tune it just right. While it's no longer possible to slam the door and no longer possible to leave the door open, the downside is will small children the door now requires a lot more force to open which is not so easy for my kids.
