DIY Spring Extender - Rev 1 - Half-a-Puck, PICS
This post is a follow-up to my earlier post asking for ideas about how to make something like the commercial Stable Loads - what I'll call spring extenders (Chevy 1 Ton, SRW). After fiddling with various ideas, I'm trying the puck approach... a half-a-puck that is. This is kind of a quick a dirty R&D effort to see how these spring extenders work. First, I'm using 1/2" HDPE plastic, left over from a cutting board project. Before I describe what I've done, its worth noting that unloaded there is about 15/16" clearance between my main spring set and the overload spring. So, I'm taking up only about 1/2 of the "unloaded gap". Steps in this project:
1. Cut 3" circles out of 1/2" material.
2. Drilled 1/2" holes in rough center.
3. Mounted disk on 1/2 bolt and machined outer edge smooth
4. Counter sunk 1/4" in disk with an end mill sized to fit the flat on a 1/2" hex head nut. Tightened the bolt to drive the hex head into the plastic.
5. Re-mounted the disk and bolt, and turned a taper in outer edge of disk at about 7 to 8 degrees to match the angle between the main springs and the overloads, and machined the bolt head flat with the plastic. I figured the taper simply by eye balling the gap, seems to be pretty close.
6. Cut off extra bolt thread to allow the disk and bolt to fit into the gap between the springs.
Once machined, I simply inserted the disks into the lower overload spring hole and released air in the air bags so the upper spring packs just slightly touch the disks mounted on the overload spring.
These disks are not held in place mechanically, they just rest on the overload spring. I don't think they will come out, but I'll travel with them a while and find out. My only other concern is the possibility that the HDPE will not hold up under the load. I'm headed out on a trip tomorrow and will test the design.
Essentially, these disks are just a larger version of the thin little plastic insert that GM puts in the overload springs.
Bob
1. Cut 3" circles out of 1/2" material.
2. Drilled 1/2" holes in rough center.
3. Mounted disk on 1/2 bolt and machined outer edge smooth
4. Counter sunk 1/4" in disk with an end mill sized to fit the flat on a 1/2" hex head nut. Tightened the bolt to drive the hex head into the plastic.
5. Re-mounted the disk and bolt, and turned a taper in outer edge of disk at about 7 to 8 degrees to match the angle between the main springs and the overloads, and machined the bolt head flat with the plastic. I figured the taper simply by eye balling the gap, seems to be pretty close.
6. Cut off extra bolt thread to allow the disk and bolt to fit into the gap between the springs.
Once machined, I simply inserted the disks into the lower overload spring hole and released air in the air bags so the upper spring packs just slightly touch the disks mounted on the overload spring.
These disks are not held in place mechanically, they just rest on the overload spring. I don't think they will come out, but I'll travel with them a while and find out. My only other concern is the possibility that the HDPE will not hold up under the load. I'm headed out on a trip tomorrow and will test the design.
Essentially, these disks are just a larger version of the thin little plastic insert that GM puts in the overload springs.
Bob
