Help - hood hinge springs!!

[Stumper]

Anyone have suggestions for putting the OEM springs back on the hinges of a 62' B body??? Preferably without destroying the paint on the hinges
I had my hinges painted sometime back and was just getting ready to put the springs on them to remount my OEM steel hood and woah!!! Those are some strong springs. I lack about 3/4" of getting them connected but for the life of me I can pull the spring apart - at all by hand. :icon_hang:

 

[Dodge 330]

Simple.

Pull them apart on the workbench and insert some type of spacers like washers, plastic of some sort or darned near anything you can dream up until you get them spaced out where they'll drop back on the hinges. Then remove the material between the coils.

 

[Stumper]

Now that sounds like a real possibility!!! I like that idea, thanks!!!

 

[Meep-Meep]

The spacer trick is clever, but what I do is mount the hinge to the car then sit on the fender facing the hinge with one foot braced on the firewall. Use a BIG screw driver as a T handle on the end of the spring closest to you and hook the other end on the rear of the hinge where it's supposed to go. Then just pull with both hands and hook it in place. One word of caution. It may be necessary to tilt the screw driver to clear the hinge arm so make sure the handle is "down hill" and hook the spring against the flange part of the handle. That will keep the spring from sliding into your hand should it happen to slide on the screw driver shaft. Works every time.

 

[welder47]

I just did that, not easy. Fold the hinge as if the hood is up, lay on your wooden workbench, drive a screw into the hinge mounting hole. hook spring and pull the other end with a hook tool of some sort. I used my snowmobile exhaust spring removal tool. I pulled so hard the screw bent but got it on using one arm to pull and the other to hold it steady. If you just painted the springs make sure you bend them first to break the paint seal on the springs lol.

 

[74sundance]

This is easy if you do it rite.
Have the hood and hinge on the car, put the rear of the spring on the hinge first then get some rope and loop it and hook it onto the front of the spring (Where the hook end is) then cut off about 1 foot of an old broom handle and wrap the free end of the rope around the center of the 1 foot long handle and pull the spring forward past the spring perch (about 1 inch) and slowly return the spring backwards and onto it's perch.

 

[Stumper]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm gonna give the spacer trick a try first this morning. If that don't get it I'll have to resort to force. I really don't want to attempt anything with these installed on the car. Luck as not been with me lately and I can see some disaster happening if I try it while onthe car. I'm just not sure about pulling these springs. I'd have to size them up against some later model springs but these suckers are big. They could probably double as suspension springs for a Toyota

 

[Stumper]

Simple.

Pull them apart on the workbench and insert some type of spacers like washers, plastic of some sort or darned near anything you can dream up until you get them spaced out where they'll drop back on the hinges. Then remove the material between the coils.

I really appreciate this idea - it worked great for me this morning!!!! The biggest problem I ran into was getting the hinges closed up enough to get the washers to fall out as I did it with the hinges off the car. I had to bolt the hinges to my bench and pull them closed a bit with a ratchet strap. Those are really strong springs in these old cars!!
Thanks to all for the feedback - and especially to Dodge 330 for the spacer idea! Now to get the hood on and adjusted.... ccasion14:

 

[Dodge 330]

No problemo.

I don't like scratches either!