What is the easiest way to replace the hood springs on a 59 Chevy pickup? Is a special tool need to spread the new springs?
No Easy way I know of. Best to remove the hinge & put it in the vice. Things needed vicegrips, prybar , Adult beverages & make sure no yungins are around to Here the new words You come up with. . Best of Luck . Bob
If they are the old original springs than you can use vise grips. Put the spring on the hinge first, then from the front of the truck pull and hook it on the bracket on the inner fender. If its a new spring you can loosen the hinge bolts, the one on the inner fender and loosen the bolts on the firewall as far as you can. This gets the spring a little closer to where it needs to be. The new springs are a bugger! Be carefull, Chris
spring on the firewall side hook a loop of rope on the open end of the spring pull toward the radiator and giude it over the hinge hook.
I made a hood spring removal tool by splitting a piece of exhaust pipe lengthwise. I think it is about 1 3/4" diameter by about 10" long and welded a washer that just fit the I.D. at each end. I close the hood till I can just reach my arm under to slip the tool between the coils at each end of the spring. When I open the hood all the way (further than the springs normally do) the spring and tool will just fall off since it's holding the spring in the stretched position. Slip a hose clamp around the tool and the spring so the spring doesn't pop out and you can re-install them just as easy by reversing the process. Since I haven't used them (I made two) in a long time they are in the hiding place where special parts are placed "so they won't get lossed" but I can probably dig them up if you need the measurements I used.
