jgrewe

iTrader: (1)

Just thought of another trick Jim taught me.

Shrink a spring!

This gets kind of scary but follow along. Take your spring and put it between a couple 1/2" thick plates with some threaded rod between them.(through holes in the middle of the circles) Compress the spring to coil bind and put it in your oven at 500F for about an hour. Let it cool, loosen the plates, and viola! your spring is about 3/4 to 1" shorter.

We had to do this to make springs for our FIAT X1/9's.

MmSadda

iTrader: (2)

cutting is for emo kids.

seriously, it is doable, but not reccomended.

jgrewe

iTrader: (1)

Can I still be an "emo kid" at 40? lol

ibrakestuff

i have some experience with cutting springs. actually helped my friend do it when i was 15, only because i didnt know any better. but i have had to fix a few that broke at the shop i used to work in. i lived out in the sticks so kids did it quite a bit.
actually helped my friend do it when i was 15, only because i didnt know any better.
if a teenager askes me if you can cut springs i say NO. only because the chances of people only cutting springs in moderation is pritty slim. so no is the answer i give. how would you feel if this person went and cut out half the spring and ended in a ditch some where.
safety then speed.

scathcart

Give it a rest. Its pretty obvious you don't know what you're talking about. The analytical aspects of altering stock springs has already been discussed at length in this thread, with mathematical equations to back it up. If you missed it, reread the above posts. If you still didn't get it, read it again. If you really want your "engineering equations" to cutting springs, pick up "Chassis engineering" by Herb Adams. Its an entry-level suspension tech book (at best), but he describes in depth how to cut springs, and why he recommends cutting springs over simply replacing them with higher rate "lowering" springs.
If you still don't get it after all that, give up, because you never will.

scathcart

That's a pretty pointless equation, and in no way allows actual spring rate to be determined. It relies on the spring being completely uniform in coil separation, and no automotive spring is built as such. It completely ignores dead coils, and is absolutely useless for determining the spring rate of conular springs, such as exist on the front.

Attached is a picture of aftermarket lowering springs where your equation is completely useless.

MaczPayne

iTrader: (5)

If you understood how springs are manufactured, you'd realize that even the manufactures cut their springs.

You only need to look at a-drift's car to see how cut springs work on it.

rx7racerca

iTrader: (1)

As far as suggestions of coilovers go, besides the fact the OP probably isn't looking to spend the money if he's considering cutting springs instead of new or used Eibach or RB lowering springs, coilovers are really only a benefit over lowering springs if you plan to cornerweight the car (which ensures the car has similar response and handling turning both left and right), or if the car is used for rally or some other purpose where variable ride height is needed.

Another reason for going for something like the RB or Eibachs for the FC is that over-lowering the car will mess badly with the front roll and steering geometry - much more than 1.25" at the front, and bumpsteer, for example, will be an issue. Handling will deteriorate, rather than improve. The commercially available springs take this into account, whereas I've not seen any posts yet actually telling how and where the FC's conical front springs could be cut, and reliably seat and predict the amount of drop. Big drops may look cool, but are unlikely to handle better - and that's why we drive 7's, right?

NZConvertible

Like I said at the beginning, conical springs shouldn't be cut because they won't seat properly if you do. It's just not really an option for FC front springs.

Big drops never make the car handle better, whether from cut springs or coilovers. And personally I hate that look on sports cars, because I know it's killed the handling, which is supposed to be the whole point of a sports car. Do it to a car that already handles like **** instead.

pengarufoo

Cutting springs is perfectly OK.

If you can save a couple hundred dollars by cutting your springs you can take that money and put it towards the shocks your car probably needs, which the higher spring rate of cut springs will exacerbate.

Also consider using the rubber block trick instead of cutting if its a street car... insert a stiff rubber block between coils to produce 'dead coils' which effectively increases the spring rate without changing ride height. At least this is completely reversible without removing the shocks/struts.

rx7racerca

iTrader: (1)

I know you didn't But a number of people have continued to talk generically about cutting springs being okay, while ignoring this crucial point.

Quite agreed! I was going to suggest Honduhs, but they actually handle pretty well - Fox-body Mustangs on the other hand...

NCross

iTrader: (18)

To get a little drop you can also cut the thick rubber insulator piece from the top of the struts instead of cutting.

NZConvertible

I'm probably guilty of that, but that's mainly because I was responding to very generic criticism like "It'll make your car bounce!" That's a bit like saying "A big exhaust will blow your engine!" Under the right circumstances this is true, but just as often it's completely wrong.