Opening a big coil of spring steel without getting killed?

Jason Magruder

Jason Magruder

Joined
Mar 27, 2004
Messages
570
I found a 40 foot piece of 1/8" x 1 1/4" spring tempered 1075 in a 2 foot diameter coil at the scrapyard the other day. It looks almost brand new with the label from the mill still on it. Got the whole thing for $16:D


I'm not sure how to uncoil it without it springing out and destroying everything around. I managed to slide one of the bands off the end and the last two feet straightened right out. There is a LOT of energy stored in this thing!

Any suggestions?
 
WOW WHAT SCORE! Put a couple of threaded U-bolts on it that you can loosen, slide back and re-tighten as you unwind it? Throw the whole coil in a [big] forge and normalize it? Send it to me to deal with so you don't get hurt? :D
 
That's an awesome idea Phil! Thanks! I tried doing that with the bands on it already but I could only move one of them, the other two are freaking tight.
 
Mike you're thinking !!!
Subcritical anneal at 1100-1200 F. No need to normalize.You'll need to do that anyway to straighten the steel.
 
Nice score. Personally, I'd pay someone I don't like to cut the bands. Watever you do. Pics or it dodn't happen.
 
At work we have a roll like that as well.
They put new loops next to the original ones, but slightly looser so they can be slided.
Then they cut the originals.
 
Use c clamps as many as needed find your self some chain and wrap around the coil as a safety device thats how we used to do it on 2,000 lb + coils at work
 
Put it in a bucket, then cut the straps. problem solved.
 
I used to have one like that what I did was place the spool in the middle of my work table and put two bolts in the
Middle one across from the other to keep the spool centered. Then put another bolt next to the part that's being unrolled. Grab the end and give er a tug it will unspool like a big paper towel roll. that allowed me to leave the spool rolled up and unravel however much I needed at the time.
 
Here's a site I stumbled upon the other day. It seems to have a lot of good information.

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

there is a section on the page part way down called "handling wire".

Here's a one of the tips on uncoiling large spring wire:

If heavy wire gets away from you and starts to come undone all by itself, the very best thing to do is

Run like hell, and
Pray it doesn't hit you.



Ric
 
Get 50' of rope, tie a slipknot tightly around the coil, cut the straps, stand over 40' away and pull out the slip knot. If all goes well the coil didn't unravel towards you and hit you.

I love the site about coil handling and running like hell praying.
 
If you have a cement driveway, stand on your garage roof and drop the coil straight down and dive backward toward the roof, the impact will break the strapping.... don't watch it hit...... maybe set up a camera.

Infact set up a camera with whichever method you choose to take..... this needs to be documented.


I like the bucket idea. Make sure it just fits inside the rim of the bucket.... then burry it to the rim and camoflage it with leaves. After while, you'll forget about it and WHAMMY!
 
The bucket or even a box would work well. cut a small slit in the bucket first, so you can pull it out as you need more.
.......or shoot it! :eek:
 
Why would somebody manufacture something so precarious? Just to watch people scratch their heads at it?
 
I have 50' and 100' sewer cables that are rolled up. They are essentially long springs.
I snip the bands and stand I the middle of the coiled up cable....
I'd use the c clamp method.
If not that, put it in an old tire. Stick the end out then cut the bands.
 
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