Hmmm, there's the potential for entertainment value here! Let's if I have
the mental image straight . . .

On my 4 year old Cobra, the stock springs are already so strong that I get
light in my tennies a hangin' on trying to close the lid. If they were much
stronger, I'd lose, get launched, or both. (g)

bumper

wrote in message
oups.com...
One more factor: in my experience, gas springs tend to deteriorate over
time to about half their original force and then plateau (although
that's a generalization based on a relatively few measurements). I
assume that's because the high gas pressures leak down only to a
certain extent, not to atmospheric pressure/zero. In that case, springs
that are overdesigned (i.e., higher-than-necessary pressures and/or
larger cylinder bores) might still be adequate for the job even after
degrading substantially.

I wouldn't necessarily advocate replacing a weak cylinder with one that
is substantially stronger than the OEM's spec. The mounting points may
not be designed for those loads. And it might not be desireable, for
example, if the hood of your automobile sprang up and hit you in the
face when you released it. But the gas spring manufacturers sell
just about any combination of compressed length, extended length,
mounting type, diameter, force, etc., so it's possible.

Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"