Winding a spring

Hi,

I need to wind a torsion spring and very much want to do it myself. Does anyone out there know of a spring winder/coiler that can handle .080 wire. I am looking for plans to build my own winder.

Thanks,

ErnieD

The Porter, Di-Acro and large size Hjorth spring winders can handle .080. I have a Porter, two Di-Acros and two or three Hjorth winders. Decades ago, I saw the Porter at my employer's shop and built my own, based upon the Porter but with refinements. I still only use the one I made, so I can't comment on how well they work. I have never seen plans to build one.

The Hjorth is the simplest winder, because it just tensions and spaces (for compression springs) the wire while you use a lathe to hold the rotating mandrel. It would be simple to make a similar device which would just tension the wire and make coils with no space between them. The Di-Acro is the heaviest and most complex, so it is also expensive when found. The Porter is the only one still available new, as far as I know.

Porter description: http://www.advancecarmover.com/psw.htm
Prices: http://www.advancecarmover.com/listing.php?line=Spring_Winders

Larry

Ernie,

i've used this winder for making some thin wire, large diameter compression springs & it will also do torsion springs. its not a precise way to do it, but it is repeatable, so you can work toward the particular spring you want. it also came with a few sizes of spring wire which was helpful.

http://www.advancecarmover.com/psw.htm

good luck
Mike

Spring

I have used a simple split brass guide in a tool holder to apply pressure to the wire being used and wrap the material over a straight mandrel while running the lathe at a low speed. I was using 3/32 Inconel. There are several good spring winding sites on the web that allow you to determine the mandrel size that provides the size for the final spring.
I have a friend who builds a special stand to wind 2 inch diameter spring material -cold. It has a 50 hp drive motor.

JRW

Try here,

http://home.earthlink.net/~bazillion/intro.html

Phil