Technical Classic 500L refitting the front spring

[Arancia]

Ok so I have reached the point of fitting a new front spring to Arancia.
I’ve seen clever people make the appropriate tool to put tension in it before fitting- the safest way judging by the energy locked up in the spring itself!
Does anyone have a way of fitting it without the special tool? It all looks rather dangerous if it’s not held in place properly !
Many thanks for your thoughts.
While I’m here a photo or two…. It’s all going at a suitably glacial pace!

 

[the hobbler]

Ok so I have reached the point of fitting a new front spring to Arancia.
I’ve seen clever people make the appropriate tool to put tension in it before fitting- the safest way judging by the energy locked up in the spring itself!
Does anyone have a way of fitting it without the special tool? It all looks rather dangerous if it’s not held in place properly !
Many thanks for your thoughts.
While I’m here a photo or two…. It’s all going at a suitably glacial pace!
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Glacial pace it may be, but you are doing a first-class job---well done. Try connecting the spring to the bottom of the king-pin carriers BEFORE you fit the dampers, and just concentrate on one side at a time. A tip---before you do fit the spring, check that the mounting/locating 'knobbles' on the top leaf are equi-distant from the ends of the spring---very few are! If you would like to contact me direct( [email protected]) I will send you a copy of the article that I wrote on how to check this, and rectify the problem (if it exists)

 

[Arancia]

Many thanks ‘Hobbler’.
I’ll drop you a note to benefit from your expertise.

 

[Arancia]

Hello again Hobbler
Alas your email address is ‘not recognised’ for some reason

 

[the hobbler]

Hello again Hobbler
Alas your email address is ‘not recognised’ for some reason

Whose a silly boy? Apologies, slip of the didget----try me on:-- "[email protected] "

 

[Arancia]

So, disaster needs to be averted!
Was fixing the front spring to Arancia (500L) and managed to strip the thread on one of the 4 mounting studs. The other three thankfully could be torqued to the correct torque.
Plan is to recut the thread, buy some new nuts and try again. Any other suggestions as to ways to avert disaster will be gratefully received!

 

[Arancia]

I meant to ask in my last post does anyone know the diameter and thread pitch for those spring mounting studs?
Many thanks

 

[the hobbler]

I meant to ask in my last post does anyone know the diameter and thread pitch for those spring mounting studs?
Many thanks

I will brave the cold and snow (North Wales!) and go out to the workshop later this morning and check the size for you. When I was fitting the cross-member for the 'coil-over' suspension (that I fitted last winter) I thought that I had stripped one of the mounting studs---a few NEW English words of discontent and frustration were uttered! However, it turned out that just the thread in the nut has stripped, so I ran a new nut up the thread before I fitted the eventual retaining nut---it has stayed tight over the last year with no problems--Phew! There is therefore a chance that in your case the nut has also taken the brunt of the stripping; if it has, run the appropriate die up the stud. See if you can get hold of a 'hexagonal' die as against the normal 'round' version---you can then use a socket/spanner to run the die up the thread. Normally there is enough 'surplus' thread on the spring-mount' studs that you can also use a 2nd 'locking' nut.

 

[Arancia]

Many thanks Hobbler.
In my case it is definitely the stud and not the nut. Excellent tip on the hex die.
I will try a new thread and also add a small collar up against the spring mount, add a new nut and or a locking nut.
I suspect your earlier note re the spring nobbly bits being out by 10mm had something to do with it. If you ever get the chance to send me your article on that I would be grateful. I think I dropped you a mail with my address.
Thanks again - there is hope! And if you do brave the Welsh winter I’d also be grateful for the stud data.

 

[the hobbler]

Many thanks Hobbler.
In my case it is definitely the stud and not the nut. Excellent tip on the hex die.
I will try a new thread and also add a small collar up against the spring mount, add a new nut and or a locking nut.
I suspect your earlier note re the spring nobbly bits being out by 10mm had something to do with it. If you ever get the chance to send me your article on that I would be grateful. I think I dropped you a mail with my address.
Thanks again - there is hope! And if you do brave the Welsh winter I’d also be grateful for the stud data.

Peter:--not only have i braved adverse weather conditions for you (ok, the snow has stopped and almost gone now---its just cold rain at the moment) but I have put a letter into the post to you with a copy of my article "sloightly on th' huh". With the postal service in its present 'meltdown' mode, gawd knows when you will get the letter,but it is on its way. The thread size for the front-spring mounting studs is 10mm x 1.25mm. NOTE--this is an unusualy fine thread-pitch for a 10mm bolt/stud (which is normally 1.5mm). It is the same thread size and pitch as the cylinder-head studs. Hope that this helps

 

[Arancia]

Brilliant - many thanks indeed. Looking forward to seeing what I should do