Smalley Blog

January 8, 2018	FAQ: Rings 1. Do Spirolox rings fit stamped ring groves? Yes, Spirolox rings are designed to fit into groves for stamped or Truarc style snap rings without the downside of protruding “ears”. Smalley has a published interchange listing, or let us know the ring number you are using and we’re happy to help spec the appropriate ring for your application. 2. How do you assemble and remove rings? Spiral wound... Read More>>
December 19, 2017	Why You Should Use a Wave Spring 1. Compared with a helical coil spring with the same deflection, can the load be the same level or higher? Yes, we can increase spring rate with various modifications such as the number of waves, material thickness, and number of turns. Crest-to-Crest springs can function similarly to helical springs in a variety of applications. Smalleys engineers are able to help identify the correct wave... Read More>>
December 12, 2017	Smalley FAQ 1. What industries are your parts used in? Smalley has thousands of customers all over the world. We manufacture parts for a wide variety of environments and applications. While our products are specified in almost every industry, we have expertise in the Aerospace, Automotive, Off-Highway, Oil and Gas, and Medical industries. You can also find Smalley parts in many other general industrial... Read More>>
June 20, 2017	Ask the Expert - How do I Measure the Free Height of a Wave Spring? It’s important to know to how to properly measure a wave spring’s free height in order to verify that you are using the correct part for your application. When done correctly, it can also save valuable inspection time. To Measure the Free Height of a Wave Spring: Ensure the spring is sitting on a flat surface between two parallel plates Lower the top measuring surface until it touches the... Read More>>
March 16, 2017	Did You Know? Smalley’s Online Resources Smalley has become The Engineer’s Choice® in Retaining Rings and Wave springs not just because we were the originators of the technology, but because our engineers work directly with you to ensure we have the right solution for your application. Smalley’s engineers have answered your questions submitted through our Ask the Expert portal for years. We have used these questions to help us build our... Read More>>
January 19, 2017	Ask the Expert - Linear Springs and Laminar Seal Rings Requirements We are back with another Ask the Expert Blog entry. This week, our retaining ring, spring and snap ring experts answer a couple questions about Linear Springs and Laminar Seal Rings. If you have your own question please submit them on our Ask the Expert page! My application requires a linear spring with a high spring rate and won't fatigue over time. Would this need to be a custom Linear Spring... Read More>>
December 20, 2016	Ask the Expert - Snap Ring and Spiral Retaining Ring Installation Welcome back to the Smalley Ask the Expert Blog, where our engineers answer commonly asked retaining ring and wave spring questions. This week, our engineers answer questions about snap ring and spiral retaining ring installation. I'm currently using snap rings in my assembly, and am having over-stretch issues during the installation process. Could your Spirolox® retaining rings be a good... Read More>>
November 16, 2016	Ask the Expert - Wave Spring Design Modifications We are back this week with another Ask the Expert Blog, where Smalley engineering experts answer difficult questions about retaining ring, snap ring and wave spring design. This week, our engineering experts answer some questions about wave spring design modifications. Are you able to develop a wave spring that goes through an arc of about 250 degrees instead of a full circle? Yes. Because our... Read More>>
September 29, 2016	Custom Fasteners made STRONGER If you have never heard of edgewound fasteners or are not familiar with the edgewinding process, you might want to keep reading. This little known but very interesting process is not even a topic included in the five million+ articles on Wikipedia. Over the past few decades, innovations in fastener manufacturing processes and technologies have helped shape this industry and the end products they... Read More>>
September 23, 2016	Ask the Expert - Corrosion Resistant Plating and Titanium Products Welcome back to the Smalley Ask the Expert Blog. This week, our engineers answer questions about corrosion resistant plating and titanium retaining rings and wave springs. Can you provide your carbon steel rings with a corrosion resistant plating (i.e Zinc dichromate)? Yes. Any coating like black oxide or zinc phosphate, or plating like zinc, cadmium or nickel that can be applied to steel can... Read More>>