just thought i would pass this on i remember someone posting problems with a model a rear spring http://www.geocities.com/jim_mason_49913/spreader.html
Neat tools. The rear spring spreader is well thought out. Here's a pic of a simple spring spreader I made. This one for stock front or rear springs with the eye on the bottom. It's simple, piece of 1" square tubing, 3/4" all thread, couple of 3/16" flat ends sharpened to a dull chisel form on the ends along with coupling (longer than normal) nuts for ease of use. Takes about a half hour to make it. Drill a hole in one of the ends so you can hang it up. You'll need a standard nut on the end to hold it all together when stored.
Reversed eye springs? Here's a well thought out and more than classy spreader a friend of mine knocked out. Some of his stuff verges on the edge of being art - heck, it is art if you appreciate tools, good welding and well machined stuff. Anyhoo - note the vertical bolts coming into the bottom. These set the spreader up for the height required. Note as well the 'L' shaped pieces at the ends of the spreaders main . . . bars . . . these are constructed from round tubing and flat plate with a dull chisel shape ground into the ends. Important part about these pieces is that they swivel so as to catch the inner part of the reversed spring eye. Width, angle and spreading is taken care of by cranking on the big nuts in the middle of the cross bars. It works well and was constructed to handle putting a chrome plated, reversed eye spring in the car shown. And yeah . . . it's heavy, but it sure does work good. A small fwiw here - I've found that reversed eye front springs are easy to deal with by simply disassembling them. Sometimes the eyes don't quite make it to the spring shackle bolt, but the trick there is to bolt the main leaf (by itself) to a shackle on one side, then put a block of wood between the other spring eye and axle. Another block in the front crossmember, a jack - padded if necessary - under the axle and raise it till spring eye and shackle can be bolted together. Reassembly of the spring can be accomplished by using a #2 Phillips screwdriver to center things. Stack the remaining leaves on and tighten down with two C-Clamps (G-Clamps in Oz). Most times - if you're careful - that will allow easy removal of the Phillips screwdriver and the spring center bolt can be inserted without damaging the threads.
I never used a spring spreader. I always put two c clamps around the spring, take out the bolt and put in a piece of all thread with washers and nuts on either side. tighten those down and start backing them off then the c clamps, back and forth. Works to put the spring back together too, just bolt the bottom leaf on to the shackles before you put the spring together, that's managable, works for me.
I'm not trying to take over the post here, just tossing in some alternatives. The second GeoCities site listed above has a slew of interesting tools and it's worth a look. Getting back to the front spring bit, most times you can spread the main leaf by hand. Disassemble the spring using C-Clamps - 4" ones are big enough most times. Clamp the spring on either side of the center bolt, loosen the center bolt nut and back off - equally - the C-Clamps. It will go easy and there will be no 'exploding' springs if you're careful. The flatter leafs are not really compressed that much, but if you're stupid and careless you can get hurt. Have a new center bolt on hand cuz most times the old ones aren't reusable. Set the axle up on a bench - or floor if that's more convenient - using stands* as shown. One end of the springs main leaf can be bolted to the spring shackle and the other can be pressed down by hand. Use a wood block to protect the axles finish as well as get it up to where you can insert the spring shackle bolt. * The stand shown - you'll have to look close cuz the 4-part pic doesn't show it well - is 1" square tubing with angled 1" square base. The upper sq tubing is drilled at the top for the 1/2" Batwing bolt. This locates and retains the Batwing/axle combo. A Batwing bolt is installed in the lower hole of the Batwing, retained with a hand tightened nut and the axle weight lies up against the lower Batwing bolt. Another tool for axle pre-assembly - although no pic for it - (but I can get one if you like) is 1" square tubing weded into a T shape. The base is 1" sq tubing laid horizontally. The vertical piece is 1" sq tubing with a headless bolt inserted into the sq tubing and brazed or welded in. The bolt size is selected so as to fit the axle perch hole. A flat washer slips over the threaded part and down onto the sq tubing. The T is slid into the axle spring perch hole and the axle/T stand set upright. The other end of the axle is dropped over the upright of the T supporting the axle in the proper position for work. One real danger with either axle support setup - besides knocking it over and you'll have to be real stupid to do that - is when installing the spindle/brake combination. The spindle will swing in due to the kingpins transverse inclination and will smash your fingers a good one. To prevent that, use either the actual tie rod installed loosely into the steering arms or make a temporary tie rod out of 1/2 x 1" rectangular tubing and a couple of bolts. That will keep the spindle/brake drum or disc from swinging inward on you and you can still 'steer' the spindles.
[ QUOTE ] C9,Exellent idea! But will it work on a "spring on top"rear? [/ QUOTE ] I don't see why not. Should work on stock eye springs as well as reversed eye springs. Even so, there's a whole lot of work - machine and otherwise - to make a spreader like my friend did. The rear spring spreader with 'hump' to clear the diff sure would be a lot easier to make. That said, part of the exercise for my friend - when he made the spreader shown above - is thinking up the project and following through. He has a big (private) machine shop that is to die for. Among other things, a 5 x 9' (that's right, feet) pink granite surface plate, 8' or more tall radial drill press, and a series of lathes (three of them Monarchs) running from 12" swing x 24" between centers to 36" swing x 96" between centers. He builds hot rods, good ones, trad and all, but I think he has more fun in his shop building shop stuff and tools than he does building hot rods. Here's a pic of his latest two coupes and a small part of his shop. The red car is 50's oriented and runs an early SBC. The gray car in back runs an A four banger with OHV conversion and was a killer at his high school back in the day - circa Class of 47 I believe. It belonged to a friend of his and was stored away 50 years ago and brought into the sunlight last year when my friend bought it. It runs, but a few things will be done to bring it up to date - rebuilt hydraulics, the engine gone through etc.
back again. Oh,I was thinking of the first one,c9. If it clears the banjo.Im not so close to a garage right now,so im just guessing here... If not some slightly bent,longer flat-irons on the end would probably fix that. Your buddys stuff really rocks! Tools like that is a work of art,and shows a passion for using the possibilities of a well equipped shop. To solve problems once'n for all. Kool!
Here's the site for a place that sells a couple of kinds of fabricated A spreaders and a variety of other early Ford tools: http://www.partsformodelafords.com/store/
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