Resetting Springs

[Bitsa]

If you're ever tempted to get your springs reset, make sure whoever is doing it knows what they're doing. I just had mine done and what I wanted I didn't get. Boooooooo.

The people doing it were more or less incompetent if the end result of mine is anything to go by. They did however refund my money so naming them is not on, but, as I say, make sure they know what they're doing.

I got the idea from AutoSpeed online magazine, so to borrow a paragraph, resetting springs is : "....as the name implies, it’s a process that involves heating the springs until they’re red-hot and resetting their free length to your specification. The process is then finished by quenching, tempering, shot-peening and powder coating. It’s essentially a remanufactured spring."

Sounded like a good idea to me. I could make them as low as I wanted.

I asked for them to be lowered 40mm. When I picked them up the bloke that did them told me he lowered them 25mm. Not what I asked for. Apparently, the bloke behind the counter wrote 25mm on the order not 40mm. Maybe he was thinking of something else at the time.

Anyway, from the time I got them home they looked to be different heights, and they were. One was almost 10mm lower than the other. I took them back today and when I pointed this out to the bloke behind the counter he said they could redo them to either of the heights. When I explained all I wanted for them was to be 40mm lower than standard he told me he didn't know what the standard height was. Quite funny really. Those springs had been in the car for 24 years and the reason I'd replaced them in the first place was because they'd sagged somewhat, one lower than the other as well. Apparently, the bloke doing the resetting just reset them from the 24 year old differing sagging heights they already were. A round of applause for the (expletive deleted) ing (expletive deleted) wit.

Essentially I was asked to pick a spring, any spring, not knowing how much lower than standard either of them was, then they'd redo them the same height. Could have been 50 60 70 100mm lower for all I or he knew.

Moral to that story is, whoever is resetting your springs be it higher or lower than standard, make sure they know what the standard height is. Basic stuff yes, but, the people doing mine didn't know. Bazaar bazaar bazaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar.

[oldcorollas]

coil springs?
resetting is dodgy. as you have found out.
brand new springs wound to your specs would probably have been similar price?

for leaves, sometimes there is little other choice, but for coils there is no reason to try to make your springs non-springs


edit: you got springs that already lost their springiness.. de-springed further?

[dangdang]

He means leaf springs. Pulling the pack apart, heating, recambering, quenching and tempering when done by a reputable spring works will reset the spring to a lower or higher height all while maintaining the "spring" nicely.
You can sometime also either swap the packs around or remove/add a leaf to get a different
height, but this will change the spring rate.
When I was working for a suspension place I would drop springs off to the local spring works and watch some of their work, its an art indeed!! and the forearm strength needed to lift and flip spring packs all day is commendable!

[oldcorollas]

Moral to that story is, whoever is resetting your springs be it higher or lower than standard, make sure they know what the standard height is. Basic stuff yes, but, the people doing mine didn't know. Bazaar bazaar bazaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar.

so, did you know what the standard height was? do you know now? how much had your springs sagged from standard?

the poor spring dude out the back has probably made them exactly 40mm lower as per your (and his bosses) request, assuming you would have given him good springs to start with heh heh

[Bitsa]

Coil springs and I had and still have no idea what the standard height of the springs is supposed to be. I'm a painter not a spring man. I would have thought a spring man would know or at least know who to ring to find out. I got a feeling I could find out in 5 minutes if need be, and I ain't a spring man

[dude]

many leaf springs are higher on one side- to compensate for torque(or large drivers!). The taller one goes on the right hand side.

[HAVABEER]

how much did they charge bitsa?

[Bitsa]

It costs $150-00 a pair where I got mine done.

[dangdang]

Coils, really?? For the cost of new ones I wouldn't have thought it worth it.

[Bitsa]

Coils, really?? For the cost of new ones I wouldn't have thought it worth it.

True to a degree. The only reason I did it was because the lowest new one's I could buy for a 86 Corona are 25mm lower than standard. I was after 40mm. From what I read on that AutoSpeed website and from what the spring man told me I was of the belief they'd be kinda like new anyway.

In hindsight I'd have been better off just putting the old springs back in. I replaced those with standard King springs 12 months ago and it raised the back end up way too high for my liking. If I were to get 25 mm lower new ones it wouldn't be low enough. Anyway, live and learn. Might get the angle grinder out.

[mullett]

Contact AJPS or anyone else who can supply custom springs, they'll wind you a set to the right height, and a suitable spring rate. If you're going that low, you want firmer springs anyway.

-RM

[Bitsa]

Contact AJPS or anyone else who can supply custom springs, they'll wind you a set to the right height, and a suitable spring rate. If you're going that low, you want firmer springs anyway.

-RM

Thanks for that.