We live in an age of mass
production, although I prefer to think of it as an age of mass
assembly. Goods are made from a series of mass-produced
'outsourced' components, the difference often being that the
durability of some components is less than the expected working life
of the whole. As is frequently the case one component malfunction
renders the product useless which is why so much stuff ends up as
landfill.
This is our Peugeot 405 break and apart from being a great little workhorse, we've just returned from our visit to family in Scotland and seen much younger cars defeated by the seasonal deluge. Mechanically very sound, it was the 'little' annoying things that started to fail just a few years after we purchased it second-hand.
What I wish to share is a
simple solution to a less serious component malfunction but one which
occurs often in ageing motor vehicles, the failing of a tailgate gas
strut. Often tailgates are supported by two of these struts but I
have found the need to just make the change to one side only. I must just add that this is not just a fault that happens with old cars, I recently saw a new car with the same problem!
Method
With the failure of the
gas struts I had originally held the tailgate open with a pallet wood
plank which was not perfect in that it was very easy to dislodge
whilst loading, resulting in hurried grasps to prevent concussion.
I
finally realised that by jamming a block between the top of the gas
strut cylinder and the piston mounting, the weight of the tailgate
would hold the block in place and could not fall.
To ensure a snug, secure
fit, I made the block with a groove to fit around the piston.
Type 1
This (pictured above) is the simplest one to make as all you need is: a saw, drill and drill bit, screwdriver and screws, wood.
The block is made of
three pieces of wood cut to the same length. I used pallet wood (of
course)
I selected one piece that was slightly thicker than the gas
strut piston, this would act as the 'spacer' between the other two
pieces. This middle piece was an offcut and was only about 15mm wide
but it would be possible to obtain a narrow piece like this simply by
splitting down a pallet plank.
The narrower spacer piece
was placed on top of one of the broader pieces and two screw
clearance holes were drilled through them both. The third piece was
placed on top so as to form the 'U' channel and fixed with screws.
You could use a waterproof wood glue prior to screwing the block
together.
After checking the block for fit on the strut, I drilled
another hole through the block and attached a cord so that I
wouldn't lose it.
Type 2
In one way this block is
less complicated in that it only uses one piece of wood, but it
requires the use of a router
I selected a piece of
timber about 28mm by 30mm (11/8" x 1¼” approx) and used the
router to cut a lengthways slot along the central axis of the
narrower side to a depth of about 15mm (5/8"). The block was then
cut to the desired length.
I've used this system for
over three years now and have never considered buying new gas struts
as this works really well. Even Bob gave it his seal of approval. I've also furnished a farmer friend of
ours with an extra long block to supplement his failed gas strut on
the rear window of his tractor cab.
It is also possible to
make the slot in the block using a circular saw, I merely set the
cutting depth and made several lengthways passes moving the cutting
guide by a blade's width at every pass. The result has been
satisfactory but overall I have found that the one cut with the
router to be the easiest to make.
Now, if you'd like to, sit back and watch the film.
If you've enjoyed this article and found it useful please feel free to share it or to comment and/or make observations. All the very best and until next time,
Andy
© Andy Colley 2014
