Fitting the struts is easy Shaun, the difficult part is making and fitting the mountings There have been lots of previous posts on this, John did a very good job of it and Mr Itch has done his usual exhaustive research
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dandy folding camper gas struts
jake001- Posts : 340
Join date : 2012-03-10
Age : 77
Location : Warrington
- Post n°26
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
ShaunJUK- Posts : 590
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 44
Location : Grimsby
- Post n°27
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
jake001 wrote:Fitting the struts is easy Shaun, the difficult part is making and fitting the mountings There have been lots of previous posts on this, John did a very good job of it and Mr Itch has done his usual exhaustive research
I know a few fabricators, what kind of thing are we looking at?
Tow Itch- Dandy Expert
- Posts : 3186
Join date : 2011-06-20
Location : Leigh Gtr Manchester
- Post n°28
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
Shaun have you seen the original Yahoo group thread on struts? If not go to that, then read [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and lose the will to live.
The original Yahoo thread had steel angle welded to nuts to form the end brackets. OK I can weld but at the time I was looking towards a mass gas strut fit to get a good price on struts. If between all related Dandy groups I only found 15 people wanting to fit (remember this is after reviewing everyones fitting procedures and giving direct instructions to fit brackets at X thus making the process idiot proof) I'd have to make up 60 brackets.
If you look a John's picture you will see he used brackets sold by the strut suppliers.
I got a good offer on prices for struts but while the brackets for the body were OK the ones that I would have had to use on the bed were useless. If you look at John's pictures he needed a shim to space the bed bracket. My idea was just to use the threaded ball type end for the bed. It would be joined using half inch square aluminium bar. Cut at about an inch. it would then need drilling x 2 for through bolts to affix it to the bed also it would need drilling and tapping for the threaded ball.
Unfortunately at that point things went a bit wrong. I was deeply stressed about something to the point I managed to write off my car. About that point all the wind was lost from my sails and I dropped the ball.
I do need to revive this project as I put some time in it and it would be of use to several of you and I need to attend to it for my own purposes. I put up and take down alone quite a bit and all my stomach muscles are shot so I actually cause myself pain at times erecting the Dandy.
I can't do CAD on my computer but if you give it a day or two I'll do a brief sketch and scan it.
The bed bracket on Jake's bed looks interesting. You don't want to unhook one of the struts to get some pictures of that do you Jake? I think the answer may end in off. I suppose a threaded ball end running through a nut either side of the bed would work, but for how long? I dont like the idea of relatively large torsional forces going through a thin piece of alloy without the loads being spread.
I want the simplest and cheapest solution. It's no point phoning everyone and their ugly neighbour for strut prices only to see 4 individually made brackets wipe out the saving.
Shaun. Can't remember if it's in the thread on struts, if not see also John's piece on clips to address any upward force on the beds when unfolded.
Jake. I'd be quite happy that the struts needed a little compression. If not when the bed approached vertical you would have had a point of "backlash" where the struts were loaded then unloaded then loaded making things jerky.
The original Yahoo thread had steel angle welded to nuts to form the end brackets. OK I can weld but at the time I was looking towards a mass gas strut fit to get a good price on struts. If between all related Dandy groups I only found 15 people wanting to fit (remember this is after reviewing everyones fitting procedures and giving direct instructions to fit brackets at X thus making the process idiot proof) I'd have to make up 60 brackets.
If you look a John's picture you will see he used brackets sold by the strut suppliers.
I got a good offer on prices for struts but while the brackets for the body were OK the ones that I would have had to use on the bed were useless. If you look at John's pictures he needed a shim to space the bed bracket. My idea was just to use the threaded ball type end for the bed. It would be joined using half inch square aluminium bar. Cut at about an inch. it would then need drilling x 2 for through bolts to affix it to the bed also it would need drilling and tapping for the threaded ball.
Unfortunately at that point things went a bit wrong. I was deeply stressed about something to the point I managed to write off my car. About that point all the wind was lost from my sails and I dropped the ball.
I do need to revive this project as I put some time in it and it would be of use to several of you and I need to attend to it for my own purposes. I put up and take down alone quite a bit and all my stomach muscles are shot so I actually cause myself pain at times erecting the Dandy.
I can't do CAD on my computer but if you give it a day or two I'll do a brief sketch and scan it.
The bed bracket on Jake's bed looks interesting. You don't want to unhook one of the struts to get some pictures of that do you Jake? I think the answer may end in off. I suppose a threaded ball end running through a nut either side of the bed would work, but for how long? I dont like the idea of relatively large torsional forces going through a thin piece of alloy without the loads being spread.
I want the simplest and cheapest solution. It's no point phoning everyone and their ugly neighbour for strut prices only to see 4 individually made brackets wipe out the saving.
Shaun. Can't remember if it's in the thread on struts, if not see also John's piece on clips to address any upward force on the beds when unfolded.
Jake. I'd be quite happy that the struts needed a little compression. If not when the bed approached vertical you would have had a point of "backlash" where the struts were loaded then unloaded then loaded making things jerky.
jake001- Posts : 340
Join date : 2012-03-10
Age : 77
Location : Warrington
- Post n°29
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
I'll try and get some better pictures of the actual mounting points tomorrow. Basically the top one is a threaded ball stud with very big washers to act as spacers and spread the load area on the bed frame with a nut and washer on the inside. The lower one is a nut welded to the bracket with the ball screwed in.
Tow Itch- Dandy Expert
- Posts : 3186
Join date : 2011-06-20
Location : Leigh Gtr Manchester
- Post n°30
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
jake001 wrote:I'll try and get some better pictures of the actual mounting points tomorrow. Basically the top one is a threaded ball stud with very big washers to act as spacers and spread the load area on the bed frame with a nut and washer on the inside. The lower one is a nut welded to the bracket with the ball screwed in.
Absolutely magic. If you have had that on for a good while it obviously doesn't deform.
The cheapest solution works, not the most decorative but but hey ho no point spending ££££'s on a bracket that won't be seen anyway.
Bugger. Had a mental image of how to adapt my initial idea to be a catch for the anti lift clip a la John. Need to have another look at that but that will be minutes of thought.
Thanks Jake so fortunate that you had the strut mounted that way I would never have felt comfortable about that sort of arrangement otherwise. As you had the joy of upside down struts do you have any idea of who fitted them originally?
Did the people who you bought the struts off give you any idea of what was their minimum angle to mount at to stay lubricated? I gather this varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.
Not a name of strut I knew (like I know the names of strut manufacturers) link to suppliers please.
jake001- Posts : 340
Join date : 2012-03-10
Age : 77
Location : Warrington
- Post n°31
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
Here are pictures of the mountings of of one of the other struts on the "settee"
end, note it is body down
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
I can't imagine the purpose of the "floating" washer on the lower one, maybe it was spare The inside of the bed frame has a washer just like the ones on the outside and a nyloc nut.
the struts were fitted when I bought it, but to the best of my knowledge they were fitted by DandyRich in Stoke.
My new struts were purchased in your favourite marketplace Kevin, the link is in my earlier post
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
end, note it is body down
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
I can't imagine the purpose of the "floating" washer on the lower one, maybe it was spare The inside of the bed frame has a washer just like the ones on the outside and a nyloc nut.
the struts were fitted when I bought it, but to the best of my knowledge they were fitted by DandyRich in Stoke.
My new struts were purchased in your favourite marketplace Kevin, the link is in my earlier post
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Last edited by jake001 on Mon 22 Oct 2012, 2:35 pm; edited 1 time in total (Reason for editing : link added)
Tow Itch- Dandy Expert
- Posts : 3186
Join date : 2011-06-20
Location : Leigh Gtr Manchester
- Post n°32
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
I'll have to review my quoted price. One wonders what the price variance of 10 or 20 pairs picked up from cheshire might be?
Sorry I missed or ignored your initial post on buying these.
Top marks Jake!
Though the washers are the same colour as the alloy sides I presume they are just galvanised steel?
Having looked at the depth of the bottom bracket (V deep) then at the top bracket. (Where John shimmed the bought bracket out) Are the struts acting through a plane parallel with the rear wall or are they angled inwards towards the bed? I wouldn't like that but should be easily cured with the proviso that the more we come out from the bed with the threaded ball the bigger the twisting force on the nuts bolts and washers.
Sorry I missed or ignored your initial post on buying these.
Top marks Jake!
Though the washers are the same colour as the alloy sides I presume they are just galvanised steel?
Having looked at the depth of the bottom bracket (V deep) then at the top bracket. (Where John shimmed the bought bracket out) Are the struts acting through a plane parallel with the rear wall or are they angled inwards towards the bed? I wouldn't like that but should be easily cured with the proviso that the more we come out from the bed with the threaded ball the bigger the twisting force on the nuts bolts and washers.
jake001- Posts : 340
Join date : 2012-03-10
Age : 77
Location : Warrington
- Post n°33
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
I think that there is a very small angle on the strut, but so small that any side load could be could be ignored, an extra washer would be enough to remove it but the ball mount is not long enough to then securely fit the nut on the inside
A longer stud or a different mount is required
A longer stud or a different mount is required
jake001- Posts : 340
Join date : 2012-03-10
Age : 77
Location : Warrington
- Post n°34
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
Just checked the struts on the tailgate of the car and they are not mounted with their longitudinal axis parallel to the plane of movement but sloping by about 10 degrees, so perhaps the angle is not so important. Perhaps the ball joint keeps the load along the strut axis.
Tow Itch- Dandy Expert
- Posts : 3186
Join date : 2011-06-20
Location : Leigh Gtr Manchester
- Post n°35
Re: dandy folding camper gas struts
I was possibly reading things too literally
From [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Possibly more about struts fitted with clevis pins.
Just an addition force, or force lost lifting the bed.
As the struts you got were fitted with strut ends. Are these 8mm or 10mm?
Tub bracket. What is the distance from the centre of the ball to the wall of the Dandy?
Bed bracket. What is the distance from centre of ball to beginning and end of thread?
For most gas struts we advise the use of ball joints to alleviate possible side load and uneven wearing of the piston rod / seals.
Generally fit with the piston rod down and preferable within 60 degrees to the vertical and avoid having the gas strut travelling through a large arc. Install with the rod down for optimum lubrication of the guide and sealing system at all times.
It is advisable to keep the strut in a single plane of movement to help prevent a reduced lifespan of the strut.
Ensure that the end fittings are perfectly in line and that they are screwed all the way home. If the end fittings need aligning the piston rod of the gas strut can rotate inside the body (cylinder). Place and hold the piston end fixing on a firm, flat service, then grip the cylinder and firmly twist it until the end fittings are aligned correctly.
From [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Possibly more about struts fitted with clevis pins.
Just an addition force, or force lost lifting the bed.
As the struts you got were fitted with strut ends. Are these 8mm or 10mm?
Tub bracket. What is the distance from the centre of the ball to the wall of the Dandy?
Bed bracket. What is the distance from centre of ball to beginning and end of thread?
Suffolk20- Posts : 45
Join date : 2012-09-27
- Post n°36
Sketches Dimensions etc
Did TowItch ever fit the struts and if so have any dimensions or specs for the struts and brackets.
Have followed this saga through and very interested to fit them to our Dart.
SGS looks like the place to get them and they have an amazing array of struts and brackets.
I guess the adjustable ones would be the ones to go for then they could be let down to just the right pressure required to do the business.
What Diameter are the rods normally used.
Hope someone out there can advise as I am going around in circles a bit now.
Have followed this saga through and very interested to fit them to our Dart.
SGS looks like the place to get them and they have an amazing array of struts and brackets.
I guess the adjustable ones would be the ones to go for then they could be let down to just the right pressure required to do the business.
What Diameter are the rods normally used.
Hope someone out there can advise as I am going around in circles a bit now.
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