Spring Failure?

[Mitch Kirchner]

I'm just curious have you guys ever had a spring break while squeezing a gripper. I have had them break on me but it was with those cheap wimpy store grippers. So it didn't cause no injury. If a spring broke a strong gripper like a #3. I think you would have an injury. As this happen to any of you or have you seen it happen?

[Soilworker]

Never happened to me. I have closed my Trainer literally about a few thousand times. Of course those junk grippers broke; you get what you pay for.

[Wayne]

i came across an old thread once when i was searching for something and Richard Sorin was talking about this super hard #3 that only a few men closed or something, had a name for it but i forget. anyway if i remember correctly he said when he closed it the spring shattered and a shard slashed his other hand real good. maybe someone else knows the specifics...

[Michael86]

My double filed HG150 snapped in my hand.Lesson learned dont file HGs.

[Mitch Kirchner]

My double filed HG150 snapped in my hand.Lesson learned dont file HGs.

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Well I'm sorry to say but it probably broke because HG's are made in China. CoC are American made so they are built better. I don't think a filed CoC would shatter that easy. My Trainer and #1 are filed and they have never broke. Thats just my personal opinion but I think it true. American made is better!

[Wes]

I'm just curious have you guys ever had a spring break while squeezing a gripper. I have had them break on me but it was with those cheap wimpy store grippers. So it didn't cause no injury. If a spring broke a strong gripper like a #3. I think you would have an injury.   As this happen to any of you or have you seen it happen?

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Being spring steel, I wouldn't think the springs would break, but if they are not tempered correctly... I'd hate to see what would happen if a #4 exploded...

[Revtor]

My double filed 1 broke. It was 5 or so years old at the time, and had been filed for a few months. Using torsion springs in grippers is already using springs beyond their engineering standard specifications and filing them allows us to tweak them even further beyond their normal range. Filed grippers are a great training tool, but I recommend being careful with one especially anything harder than a trainer becasue a decent sized shard flew across the room. my eye would have been no match. The force stored in those springs is considerable. A shard coming out of a 2 or 3 would have some serious capacity to harm a person.

SO keep them aimed down, dont stare at it, and keep your grippers well maintained.. Do yourself a favor, retire that 5 year old workhorse to your personal grip museum and get yourself a new one for future reps.

crush on,

~Steve

Edited November 20, 2005 by Revtor

[stew2]

I work in the overhead door business which works with torsion springs every day. A torsion spring is garunteed to break sometime but it is gauged by how many cycles it can take. So depending on the material a manufacturer use yes it could break but the chance of hitting the max cycles is pretty rare unless you do some huge volume. A min. industry standard on torsion springs is 15000 cycles and that has a 3/1 safety so it would take alot even with very cheap underrated material.

[Revtor]

ok, 15000 cycles is a springs rating. BUT we are using these beyond their engineered range of motion, especially with a filed gripper. This reduces the life of steel drastically. And our springs are thick and short. A garage door torsion spring is loooong. Two different beasts.

Im just saying be careful, because I could have gotten f'd up by the shrapnel that flew across my room!!

~Steve

[Sybersnott]

... i was searching for something and Richard Sorin was talking about this super hard #3 that only a few men closed or something, had a name for it but i forget.

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Steel has it's limits and yes, it has happened to Kevin Fulton and I think even Wannagrip.

I think that the story Richard relayed was about an old Jubinville gripper he was trying out - it was very old and it popped on him; he said he would never again try another gripper like that, it was just too dangerous. Maybe Richard can get on this thread and tell the story better than I can.

[Revtor]

Its not really the age of the spring, its the reps (cycles) that have been done on the spring and how far those reps actually are, and general spring condition. My filing job was pretty severe so the spring was closing waay down. Plus mine was rusty, and where it has broken you can see the wear and tear on the metal spring. Metal fractures at stress risers they are called and this includes any scrapes, scratches, or any surface imperfection. Rust will start these micro stress points, so keep your springs in good shape.

Every material has a fatigue limit and the # of cycles that this point is at is determined by the material and its condition, the shape of the section, and the deformation range (how far you bend it).

if a spring is 100 years old, but not rusty or worn, and doesnt have any cracks or scratches. Then theoretically its as good as new. . unless it has been cycled many, many times, it might be right at its fatigue limit, you cant tell by looking.

just use your filed grippers with a little more safety in mind thats all. And keep em oiled. Dry rusty coils rubbing against eachother create wear, and these wearpoints concentrate stresses and decrease fatigue life drastically.

not an expert by any means... still have both eyes luckily

~Steve

[StalwartSentinel]

Be careful chest crushing the grippers close to your neck and throat. Drape a hand towel over your gripper spring and clenched hands (like a ghost!).

[Sean Dockery]

I had a #1 break on me. I have no clue how many reps were done on it before it broke.

The only injury I'd expect would be from spring shrapnel. So, you've got a choice....suit up in safety gear, or take your chances...

Like some have said, there is no way to tell if the spring is getting ready to break.

[stew2]

ok, 15000 cycles is a springs rating.  BUT we are using these beyond their engineered range of motion, especially with a filed gripper.  This reduces the life of steel drastically.  And our springs are thick and short.  A garage door torsion spring is loooong.  Two different beasts. 

Im just saying be careful, because I could have gotten f'd up by the shrapnel that flew across my room!!

~Steve

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No actually your not they are designed to be compressed and extended that is what a torsion spring is for.When I make a spring for a door I can make it from 1" long to 80" long depending on the force you want it to apply so we are not doing anything any different than the designed use.But still be careful because when one breaks its real bad. I've had what they call a duplex break while I was winding it.Thats a 6" dia spring with a3 3/4" inside it the spring itself weighed around 275#'s made to pull 800#'s at it setting wind it up more (if you can) and its unreal it blew a hole in a steel I beam.

[Wayne]

Snott, it was the jubinville gripper. i found the thread.

http://www.gripboard.com/index.php?showtop...6&hl=jubinville

[MIKE HALEY RILEY CLOE]

I actually wear safety glasses on the heavier grippers. Mike

[Left Side]

I wouldn't sweat it, the odds of a spring breaking on you are very low, and the odds you'll get seriously injured by it are even lower.

[bencrush]

I've had a few COCs break in my hand. Trainer and a #1. But it's been a while. I think it's because the manufacturing standards are better now than they were a few years back. Nothing spectatular happened when they broke either. Just a loud POP and the spring was broken.

[Fissure]

Same with my original #2. A fairly loud pop - but no flying shards or anything like that.

[apttdwler]

quite a few years ago, i broke one of the original siver spring 1s. it had noticable wear on the spring. I think it rubbed when i closed it. It was very wide and i think to close it i sort of twisted it somewhat. anyway no injury and i don't really recall about noise. i miss the gripper as it was about, i'd say a 1.7 by todays standards.