Gas Spring Information

Gas springs are sometimes referred to as “Gas struts” or “Gas Shocks” and they provide an output force by using a compressed nitrogen inside the tube. In a standard gas spring the shaft is fully extended and it takes force to push the shaft into the tube, when you release the shaft it will extend to its maximum length. This force can be varied by changing the gas pressure inside the tube, the size of the shaft and the size of the tube. We measure gas springs force output 5mm from fully extended and it is often referred to as P1 or F1. A typical force vs stroke graph is shown below, in this case the gas spring has a force of 156N, 5 mm from fully extended and a stroke of 140 mm.

You will note that the force goes up as the shaft is pushed inside the tube, this is because the shaft takes up volume inside the tube and compresses the gas, the further the shaft is pushed inside the tube, the greater the gas is compressed and the more force it takes.

Gas springs are mainly used to lift or counter balance objects like – lids, covers, doors, trunks, hoods, tail gates, tonneau covers, windows, etc. Liftmatic offers a full range of gas springs including locking and stainless steel.