There are many types of different springs out there, and custom manufactured springs have a wide range of applications, from clothespins and batteries to springs for the aerospace, nuclear, and medical industries. While the materials and strength of these springs may change depending on their use, the basic premise is always the same: to help transmit and store force.
There are three main kinds of springs:
Compression springs
- are springs which work when compressed or pushed together – common examples include car suspension systems, mechanical pencils, batteries, and a jack-in-the-box.
- Extension springs are the opposite of a compression spring. These start out snug together and then are stretched out by a force. Examples of extension spring applications might include a dishwasher door, luggage scales, or a slinky. Industrial extension springs might be used in levers or heavy doors.
- Torsion springs store and release energy by twisting. Torsion springs are commonly found in clothespins, or in garage doors.
However, beyond the different types of springs, it is often the way they are formed and the gauge of the wire that gives custom industrial springs their different properties. Springs often require heat treatment, either before or after shaping, in order to give the form ‘memory’. At Arrow Manufacturing we have a wide range of machines to handle different gauges of wire, and can also manufacture flat or stamped metal forms using our four-slide equipment.
Custom spring forms include:
Helical or coil springs
- these are the typical springs many of us think of when imagining a spring. Made of coiled wire wound at a fixed diameter, coil springs can be produced with even spacing (constant rate spring) or with varying spacing ( a variable, or progressive, rate spring). At Arrow Manufacturing, we can handle a wide variety of wire diameter, from 0.004” to 0.115” to produce everything from custom micro springs to heavy duty automotive-OEM springs, depending on the intended application.
- Conical or tapered springs – these are springs with a declining diameter like you’ll often see in a battery terminal or medical device. Because when compressed the rings fit inside one another instead of on top of one another, they’re often used in industrial applications where space is at a premium. A variation on conical springs are hourglass springs, which are one form, but look like two conical springs stacked on one another to form an hourglass shape. Hourglass springs are ideal for heavy loads and industrial applications.
- Flat springs – made with stamped metal, often using a four-slide machine, flat springs are made up of a series of flat pieces of metal, as in a leaf spring for a car suspension system. Cantilever springs and other types of custom springs for the automotive-OEM industry are common examples of custom flat springs. At Arrow Manufacturing, our four-slide machine allows us to produce custom components with metal up to 2” wide, .062” thick, and up to 17” in length.
- Disc springs are coiled flat springs as found in clocks, as well as volute springs. Disc springs are a form of torsion spring meant to stretch out naturally and then quickly regain their shape. They’re especially useful in applications where a large amount of force will be applied in a relatively small space.
Custom manufactured springs for all industrial applications
Our Connecticut workshop has been producing a wide variety of springs for customers in the aerospace, medical, automotive-OEM, and many other industries for decades. If you have a new design you’re working on and would like some help, or a quote for custom spring prototypes, please get in touch today.
