Painting front leaf spring

[Rip VW]

I have a posi super slider front spring on the TCoupe. I am curious as how to paint my front spring? Do you have to take the spring leaves apart and paint each leaf separately? Also what about paint where the slide pucks contact the spring? and what is the safe way to disassemble a front spring?

 

[Spanky]

I just painted mine assembled. It's no show car, but it's held up OK for 7 years!

 

[old round fart]

Posey spring has Teflon pucks between leaves (under the bumps at end of leaves) so leaves don’t touch. I would take it apart and paint it.

 

[Rip VW]

what would be the procedure for disassembly? I have never torn down a fully assembled spring.

 

[Indycars]

Usually the bolt is long enough to relieve all the spring tension.

 

[old round fart]

Clamp the spring stack together then remove the bolt. To reassemble put bolt through the leaves and squeeze the stack together and put on the nut. If bolt not long enough when stacking put screwdriver that fits hole good in to clamp.

 

[Randy Steel]

Same...I used a pair of welding vise-grips and clamped the spring together. Remove the bolt and slowly release the vise grips. I ended up painting them separately, and then added spring liners (1-3/4") from Speedway. They act as a dry lubricant. Not sure how well they work, but I'm sure it'll provide several years of use.

 

[Rip VW]

Good information to know about leaf springs. I feel a little more confident now knowing the spring pack can be controlled with clamps. I think a couple of 4-inch clamps should do the job. I had heard people say that it would fly apart if you loosened the bolt without having something to ease the tension off the springs. I wonder how them pucks are going to behave on re assembly. That will be determined as to how I handle them. I think a small amount of RTV on the portion of the puck that goes in the indents in the spring. That should hold them in place till the spring is restacked and the bolt re inserted and tightened!
Thanks for the info, guys!!

 

[HenrysT]

Front springs aren't bad, it's the rear springs that can fly apart when being unbolted.