Gas Strut

Hi all can anyone inform me how critical a gas strut needs to be set in relation to

column and dovetail head slide on my WM16 vertical milling machine.

Thank you Bernard Reilly Glasgow.

Hi Bernard

The most common mount for a gas strut is inside the vertical column of the mill. You will need to fabricate mounting brackets for the strut and drill a hole in the back of the column.

Eric

If you used a ball bearing threaded rod end (heim joint style) at one end of the strut, you could pass the threaded end through a piece of angle. The rod end could be moved up and down in the angle and locked with a nut above and one below the angle to give an adjustment to "dial in" the gas strut operation.

Note: Commercial gas springs/struts are warranted for 2000 cycles. They may last longer, but that is what the manufacturers warrant them for. The main factor is dirt contamination (even tiny amounts of house dust) on the rod which degrades the rod seal.

To put it in perspective, if you cycled the gas spring once per evening 5 evenings a week in a home shop, it would last about 7 years. If you cycled it once an hour for 40 hr / week in a factory setting, it would last about a year.

They work great for a while, just don't weld them on - make them easily removeable so if you have to change them, you can.

A major manufacturer is Hahn, link below.

http://www.hahn-gasfedern.de/en/products/gas-springs.html

Another manufacturer is Suspa, link below.

http://www.suspa.com/us/products/gas-springs/functionality/

Just my $0.02 - your mileage may vary.

Edited By Jeff Dayman on 05/03/2020 04:01:13