Chapter 29. Springs
Mechanical springs may be defined as elastic bodies the primary function of which is to deform under a load and return to their original shape when the load is removed. In practice, the vast majority of springs are made of metal, and of these the greatest proportion are of plain-carbon steel.
Plain-carbon steels
These steels have a carbon-content ranging from about 0.5% to 1.1%. In general it may be taken that, the higher the carbon-content, the better the spring properties that may be obtained.
In the manufacture of flat springs and the heavier coil springs, it is usual to form the spring from annealed material and subsequently to heat-treat it. However, it is sometimes possible to manufacture flat springs from material ...