Sticks out a couple feet past the door taking up more space
Can only be used on doors up to 10ft tall
Jackshaft
Pros:
Can be used in zero headroom situations
Takes up less space as it is on the side of the door
Can be used on doors over 10ft tall
Cons:
More parts that can go bad
Requires outlet near unit so not a standard place for an outlet
Can only be used on torsion
* View a jackshaft operator application in a video walkthrough from Paladin Garage Door
Verdict
Jackshafts are niche. They were created to solve a problem and that is no headroom above a door. We generally don’t recommend them unless you have garage ceiling storage or limited headroom. We always recommend going with a ceiling mounted operator due to the efficiency and every company can install and fix them