Gas struts, no brainer to install ?

simonfraser said:
Fitting one on each side of a heavy lid.
Just make sure they dont foul & extend fully.
Can let some air our to sort the load they carry.
Any tips ??
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Yes. Always expect one to fail. Twice I have had a heavy lid fall on my back with no warning due to failure of a gas strut - once the tailgate of my Golf, once the engine cover in a Bav 30. The Golf was quite gentle because there are two struts; the Bav engine cover did cause injury.
 
Getting the geometry right can be a bit of a challenge. If you have not had struts in place before then measure 3 or 4 times before drilling for brackets and fitting. Make sure thet the struts you buy have the travel required.

did I mention measure again before drilling.
 
Troubadour said:
Yes. Always expect one to fail. Twice I have had a heavy lid fall on my back with no warning due to failure of a gas strut - once the tailgate of my Golf, once the engine cover in a Bav 30. The Golf was quite gentle because there are two struts; the Bav engine cover did cause injury.
Click to expand...

I have a hook and strap to secure it in place once opened,I've seen the result of a hatch dropping onto someones foot
 
simonfraser said:
Fitting one on each side of a heavy lid.
Just make sure they dont foul & extend fully.
Can let some air our to sort the load they carry.
Any tips ??
Click to expand...

Good idea fitting a 2nd. I had one fail on the Laz hatch last year. No warning, closed it the night before operating normally, went to open it the next morning and it weighed about 1/2 ton! complete failure, no signs or warning. I now use a pole to lock it up when I'm under it, but a 2nd strut would be better and less hassle.
 
If the material(s) to which each end of the strut are mounted are fibreglass or some sort of plastic, you need to be careful about "creep" over a period of time. Ideally, the tension in the strut needs to act pretty much along a straight line on the components in question, when closed, so that it puts a fibreglass skin into (as close as possible) pure tension. If it's acting at (say) 90 degrees to the lid when closed, you might find the lid develops a slight bow over a period of time.
 
nimbusgb said:
Getting the geometry right can be a bit of a challenge. If you have not had struts in place before then measure 3 or 4 times before drilling for brackets and fitting. Make sure thet the struts you buy have the travel required.

did I mention measure again before drilling.
Click to expand...

+1

Fitted some to friend's campervan baggage hold a couple of weeks ago. He got some from the scrappy and we tried. The geometry for the length of strut couldn't be sorted out. I drew it out full size on a table and used bits of lath to work it out. Then sent him back to the scrappy for longer ones, which worked.
DW
The loads on the brackets were quite high, a constant 20kg when closed.

To add: They work better if the lid is horizontal and opens to the vertical. Max help. As opposed to our situation, were the lid came up to horizontal when the struts were weakest. And. Letting air out? I don't think you can. Warning signs on struts not to mess with them..

Another forumite locked himself in the cockpit locker when the lid dropped and the catch caught. Had some tools and managed to dismantle the engine side panel and get out past it.
 
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You can buy adjustable struts. You can only let the gas OUT of them though - too much and you're stuffed! Also the lower the gas pressure, the less likely they are to hold their gas for a long time, as they rely on the gas pressure to energise their seals. If you get the choice, the body of the gas strut should be higher than the ram most of the time. That allows the small amount of oil in them to work as a damper for the last few millimetres of travel, and keeps the seal lubricated.
 
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