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Enhanced rear springs buttons


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There was a lot of conversation on here re this subject in February under  “Rear Leaf Spring Refurbishment” 

I didn't know Superflex did them …otherwise I might not have struggled to make some! 

If do you want to make your own, probably the  best material for this is UHMWPE- “ultra high molecular weight polyethylene”

Cheap. available in bar form

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It will last longer than Teflon  and polyurethane, rubber etc.Very tough, “ slippy - self-lubricating” 

It is very  frustrating to turn on a lathe - I made quite a pile of failures to get a few accetable ones.

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It seems to be a material that shrugs off pretty much anything ( except high temperatures) 

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10 minutes ago, Colin Lindsay said:

When they stopped using these in Northern Ireland we lost a great source of material for everything from bonnet cones to bushes. Used to pick them up off the roadside and turn them in a lathe. Excellent quality material, so sadly missed. :)

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As the song lyrics go 'you don't know  what you got 'til it's gone'

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For DIY spring buttons, the important material properties are friction coefficient and compression strength.  It looked like most of my originals failed in compression.  After consulting some material spec charts, I chose an acetal plastic (Delrin).  It is nearly as slippery as Teflon, but much stronger in compression. 

Some pics here:

http://bullfire.net/GT6/GT6-8/GT6-8.html

Ed

 

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I have used acetal, polyoxymethylene, POM, for anther purpose.

On the lathe, it proved to be a pleasant surprise, turning very nicely in contrast to my experiences with UHMWPE.

Apparently acetal can deteriorate in UV light, so available in black for outside use ( though can’t think much daylight gets between the leaves of a spring under a car)

There are so many polymers around -it looks like we will be seeing more of PEEK - poly ether ether ketone  everywhere from orthopaedic implants and fracture plates  to light weight car components.

 

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8 hours ago, DVD3500 said:

I would have thought a lighter color would be better but what do I know I have a degree in French and German so I must be qualified to talk about everything... 😄

 

So, what is an Earshplittinmountinboomertube?

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On 19/10/2022 at 08:09, Colin Lindsay said:

When they stopped using these in Northern Ireland we lost a great source of material for everything from bonnet cones to bushes. Used to pick them up off the roadside and turn them in a lathe. Excellent quality material, so sadly missed. :)

s242183906125556764_p1329_i6_w2388.jpg.7fc7300fce8dff0b40509b21440a1028.jpg

Either everyone else knows what these are or are just to scared to ask but I will.
What are they?

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