I haven’t finished yet, but this leaf spring refurbishment job is taking a very very long time. One spring is more or less done - pending a good coat of Hammerite. Split the other one apart tonight, though it will take at least another week to get it finished. Then there’s the front ones to worry about!

Here are some photos. Taken over a period of many days they document a long and drawn out labour of love!

The first spring, split apart. Every nut and bolt needed replacing and the surfaces were covered with surface rust. There are also patches of underseal on the outer edges, which ruin sandpaper, making it quite challenging to get them cleaned up. The two spring hangers. One cleaned up, one not.

Sanded and painted the mounting plates. They look quite nice now they’re done. They took three coats of Hammerite each!

Bunging the first spring back together. Earlier tonight I greased the leaves with Lith-Moly grease (which chemically bonds to the metal, thus resisting displacement by water) and bolted it all back together. The centre bolt is temporary, pending the arrival of the real thing. I used 100mm M8 bolts for the bindings as they are much cheaper than the real deal.

Painting could be hard work! The spring before tightening. Before and after. I’d be proud of my work, but now I have to do it all again!

Finally, just before dark, I bunged a light coat of paint on the outer surfaces. Not sure it’ll stick because everything’s covered in a thin layer grease, but I wiped it and gave it a try anyway!