Car Seat Springs

[Seano]

We get a lot of old campervan seats to repair springs in before another division of the company I work for re upholsters them, now I usually get the job of trying to repair the broken seat springs, now no matter how many times I tell them you can't weld these things they keep coming back, has anybody got any ideas on this, even at 20 amps the tig just blows them away......and then the gaps just get bigger...and bigger and harder to work with,

 

[Engineer1964]

We get a lot of old campervan seats to repair springs in before another division of the company I work for re upholsters them, now I usually get the job of trying to repair the broken seat springs, now no matter how many times I tell them you can't weld these things they keep coming back, has anybody got any ideas on this, even at 20 amps the tig just blows them away......and then the gaps just get bigger...and bigger and harder to work with,

Its a nightmare to weld i can imagine, Would it not be possible to see if you can get some replacements made?? Failing that, get some old seats from the scrappy and pull the springs from them

 

[john224]

What do the springs look like?

 

[Engineer1964]

What do the springs look like?

Like in thge picture above

Actually a campervan seat springs look like this

So should be pretty easy to replace as opposed to repair

 

[cumbriasteve]

Standard 'zig zag' springs, loads on Ebay, got some last year... only about a quid each

 

[chunkolini]

Duplicated myself
myself

 

[chunkolini]

Should be able to mig weld that size of steel.
My Butters Mig goes down to about 30amps I think and I spent whole days butt welding 3m welding rods together. Joining them end to end is a bit of a laugh though.
I have made a clamp for butt welding small bars that is easy and quick to use.
One of these View attachment 24969 see image above,
With a plate welded across the two top jaws, and a piece of copper brazed on top of that, then use them upside down with the jaws clamping the bar onto the plate.
Make a small spot weld on each end of the bar then weld the two together. Sounds fiddly, takes a few seconds but a lot of practice. Make sure you get plenty of penetration.

Why does everybody have to Tig weld everything? Sometimes Mig does the better and quicker.

One thing though will it be softer/weaker where it is welded.

Hope that helps.
Chunko'.

 

[Windy Miller]

You can say that again Chunko!

 

[FranV8]

Chunko - how about because I've only got straight argon gas - last time I tried that I just made non-structural caterpillars with my old SIP MIG!

 

[hotrodder]

They're also known as sinuous springs fwiw. I'd tell the needlepoint boys and girls to buy new ones... spring steel ain't the most weldable material, especially if you want it to use it as a spring again.

 

[the snooper]

ive welded them before with mig, i made 2 ford capri seats narrower to fit in a reliant robin as someone wanted a bit more comfort the the originals

 

[gordon stephenson]

I'm sure they are available quite cheaply from an upholsterers,they keep them in stock to do repairs.

 

[keith19]

I've tried migging these together again occasionally in the past, on classic cars, but they have never lasted long in use.

Obviously the weld is inert and brittle compared with the spring steel, so eventually the edges of the weld break again. The position is critical too; if the repair is in the middle of a spring - where it is subject to bending forces at both ends of the weld - they break more quickly. If the repair is towards the end, where the pull is more gradual and in one direction, they tend to last longer.

One quick repair that never came back was when we line-clamped the two ends together, bolted tightly. That held, but it was on a straight section, so easy to do. Not so easy on a curve. Make sure there's enough padding over the top, if you do this!

Anyway, it's only cheapskates that would try to repair one of these, unless it's a get you home thing. Much easier to replace with another one.

 

[Seano]

Thanks for all the replies chaps...I don't know what the real deal is but we get these seats in for recovering, and for some reason the client won't or does not know they can buy replacements...makes it sound even more silly given my job....mobility technician...I work on all kinds of wheelchairs, try to marry that lot up and see where it makes sense....

 

[keithski122]

I think the company I work for may be one of the camper places that bring you seats.Normally their brought back to us for welding, usually I just mig them up.
Boss is to tight to buy new springs!

 

[Seano]

where are you based keithski...?

 

[keithski122]

I'm in exeter, the company I work for are in kenford.
Got to be the same place as you're a motability business that does vw camper seats and we're a vw place that takes our seats to a motability company!!
You do a nice job with the triming.

 

[Seano]

I'm in exeter, the company I work for are in kenford.
Got to be the same place as you're a motability business that does vw camper seats and we're a vw place that takes our seats to a motability company!!
You do a nice job with the triming.

Ha... small world, yeah but a crap job with the springs..LoL all our welding gear is too big for this kind of stuff, even on their lowest settings the migs just blow it away, was using an old esab tig at 30 amps on this one...just kept running away...and whats more I've been told we do the springs FOC....

 

[stuvy]

Thats top business sense there, FOC. on the springs compared to your labour rate and materials electric lol