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Conical Compression Springs: Overview, Types & Applications
Conical springs are most commonly compression springs that differ in shape slightly from the straight, helical coil of compression springs. In simplest terms, conical springs have helical coils that decrease in diameter from one end to the other in a consistent gradient, giving conical compression springs their distinctive cone shape.
Both custom and stock conical springs are used in applications with limited space envelopes because conical springs feature a lower compressed height than traditional helical coil compression springs. This is possible because the tapered cone shape allows the conical compression spring coils to telescope down to a thickness of one wire size during compression. Typical conical compression spring types have non-linear spring rates that increase as the spring is displaced nearer to the larger helical coils. The non-linear spring rate and low-compressed profiles are desirable features in applications with significant vibrations because these features dampen loads during deformation.
Both stock and custom conical compression springs are used in applications that require additional stability and resistance to buckling under load. Their large base provides excellent stability during spring compression and relaxation, making them an excellent choice for commercial and industrial applications where such stability is required.
Explore Our Selection of Stock Conical Compression Springs
Century Spring is proud to offer thousands of in-stock conical compression springs in regular and constant spring rate varieties in a wide selection of materials and sizes available to ship today. You can browse by Large or Small Outer Diameter, Free Length, Spring Rate, Material, and more. Download the spring CAD before purchasing to see how your spring will fit your application!
Place your order now to take advantage of same-day shipping.
Custom Conical Compression Springs
If you can’t find the conical compression spring you’re looking for in our expansive catalog, we offer custom conical compression spring solutions (including constant spring rate springs) with many configurable options.
We bring decades of design and manufacturing expertise to your custom spring projects, providing thousands of custom conical compression spring options to fit the most demanding applications and industries.
You can browse our selection of stock springs to understand the customization options available for custom development projects.
Custom Conical Spring Manufacturing Capabilities
If you can’t find the exact conical compression spring you need in our expansive catalog, we offer custom conical spring solutions with many additional configurable options for conical springs. We bring decades of design and manufacturing expertise to your project, providing thousands of custom conical spring solution options for use in the most demanding applications and industries.
We partner with you in all stages of development, from initial concept to procurement, to help you develop conical compression springs engineered for high performance in compact, high-precision applications, even in the most demanding environments. We also offer optional prototyping and tooling assistance services for any custom spring project.
You can browse our selection of in-stock standard conical springs to understand the customization options available for custom development projects.
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Custom and Stock Spring Information & Resources
Where Conical Compression Springs Are Used
Conical springs are designed to have a low profile during compression and a high degree of stability, and their variable spring rates make them excellent choices for variable, dynamic vibration loading applications across numerous industries and product categories.
We offer a wide range of stock and custom conical compression springs, as well as many custom options and solutions for all industries and applications.
For example, our stainless steel conical compression springs are commonly integrated into push-button components of medical devices, such as those used in surgical instrumentation and syringe injectors. Similar conical compression springs are commonly used within the button and switch relay equipment on industrial automation machines and consumer electronics.
For more information on application-specific springs and secondary operations, check out our industry pages:
How to Select a Conical Spring
You should understand some essential characteristics of conical springs, which possess many of the same geometric properties as traditional helical coil compression springs.
For example, a conical spring is defined by key geometric properties such as the Large Outer Diameter (Large OD) and Small Outer Diameter (Small OD), which are the largest and smallest circumferences of the helical coil as measured at each of the ends of the conical compression springs. Because of this size difference, during compression, each active coil of the conical compression spring coils fit at the small OD fit within the adjacent spring coils in a telescoping manner. The size difference between the Large OD and Small OD also determines the taper or cone shape of the spring. The larger the difference, the wider and falter the spring shape, which impacts the spring stiffness and load-carrying capacity.
Furthermore, the conical spring’s Spring Rate is the property of a spring that measures the resistance of the conical spring to forces. The spring rate is a function of the Wire Diameter, which measures the thickness of the metal used to form the helical coils. Conical springs (except constant-rate conical springs) have a non-linear spring rate, which increases as the spring is compressed nearer to the larger helical coils. This is desirable in applications with large vibration loads because the conical spring can further dampen loads as it deforms. You can still use the spring rate and the geometry to calculate the deflection under design loading conditions; you should note that the conical compression spring’s spring rate is specified as an average value.
The Free Length dimension is the vertical height of the conical spring measured from the top and bottom surfaces of the spring when it is uncompressed. Finally, the Total Spring Coil Count tells you something about the flexibility and stiffness of the spring. Generally, a conical compression spring with many total coils will have much greater flexibility and travel under a given load than one with fewer coils, which will be stiffer. When fully compressed, the total spring coil count also determines the spring's solid height. More total coils mean a taller spring when fully compressed.
If you have further questions about conical springs, we have compiled three standalone spring selection guides featuring detailed design and selection information on our stock compression, extension, and torsion springs. These guides feature all the critical design and sizing information you need to select a conical spring.
How to Select a Torsion SpringHow to Select a Compression SpringHow to Select an Extension SpringHow to Select a Disc SpringHow to Select a Die SpringHow to Select a Tapered Spring
How to Measure a Conical Spring
You can obtain all of the relevant dimensional properties of your conical spring by using calipers to measure at the following locations:
- To measure the Large End Outer Diameter (Large OD), place the calipers' large outside jaws on the outer surface of the largest part of the conical spring.
- Place the large outside jaws of the calipers on the outer surface of the smallest part of the conical spring to measure the conical spring’s Small End Outer Diameter (Small OD).
- Place the conical spring's large OD on the caliper's large outside jaws and contact the top of the spring at the Small OD with the other outside caliper jaws to measure and record the Free Length dimension. Take care to read this measurement without compressing the spring.
- Hold the spring vertically and place the large outside jaws on the wire coil thickness to measure the Wire Diameter dimension. Record measurements at a few radial locations around the spring for accuracy.
- Place your spring on its side horizontally on a flat surface. Carefully count each visible coil, starting at the Large OD end of the spring and counting towards the Small OD end. This represents the spring’s Total Spring Coil Count.
Explore More Dimensional Measurement Guides
How to Measure Extension SpringsHow to Measure Compression SpringsHow to Measure Torsion Springs
FAQs About Conical Compression Springs
How do Conical Compression Springs differ from standard Helical Coil Compression Springs?
Both conical compression springs and standard helical coil compression springs function similarly by absorbing compressive loads. However, compared to a standard helical coil compression spring, a conical compression spring's two end diameters are different sizes. This gives it a tapered cone shape that allows it to compress to a smaller height.
Do I need a custom design?
Standard springs are readily available in various sizes and specifications. However, if you determine that you need a custom-designed spring that we do not carry in stock, call us today at 800-237-5225 or fill out our Custom Quotation Form today!
What material should I choose?
Common conical spring materials include music wire, stainless steel, and other metallic alloys. Considering the corrosion resistance and your application's temperature and loading requirements, this is a great place to start when selecting the material.
What typical tolerances can I expect on Conical Compression Springs?
Spring tolerances depend heavily on the exact spring type and geometry. As such, we have performed extensive empirical studies, which we have used to develop tolerance equations for different manufacturing techniques. We have combined these with the best industry standards to create general tolerance ranges for conical springs. However, these calculations can be very involved, as they are integrated into our design and manufacturing automation software.
However, if you contact our design team today, we will gladly walk you through these calculations to provide general tolerance values for your spring type and geometry!
Why Choose Century Spring
Our Commitment to Quality and Service
Century Spring is a quality-first, ISO 9001 and AS9100D certified, industry-leading spring supplier specializing in stock and custom springs. We are the most trusted name in spring manufacturing, offering products and expertise to serve every corner of the conical spring markets.
Our dedicated custom spring development and customer support teams help you navigate critical design criteria such as size, material, surface finish, and end type to find your application's optimal spring solution.
Our experienced product engineers, knowledgeable product quality team, and skilled manufacturing personnel always deliver the highest quality products to you faster than our domestic and international competitors. Our springs are always made in the USA.
We offer rapid delivery on over 40,000+ in-stock designs available to ship today. We are committed to getting products to you as quickly as possible because we understand your design scheduling constraints.
Visit us today to discover how our commitment to quality and customer satisfaction vastly improves your product design process.
Innovation and Customization in Spring Manufacturing
We bring extensive design for manufacturability (DFM) expertise to your project. We also have dedicated, high-speed machines that can quickly scale high-quality spring production processes to large part volumes.
We also have cutting-edge computational equipment simulation and testing techniques, such as CNC compression self-monitoring and coiling machinery. These capabilities enable us to deliver durable, reliable products across many custom sizes and styles. Our manufacturing services also include complete prototyping and tooling assistance.
Our team will work directly with you to create, refine, and optimize spring designs to fit specific tolerance, performance, and use case conditions. We are ready to partner with you to solve your most pressing design challenges.
Get In Touch
Contact Information
Contact us directly today, and let our experts resolve all your technical and sales questions. We can also guide you to one of our in-stock conical springs that will fit your application and load profile.
If you need immediate assistance, you can always reach us at our dedicated phone line to speak directly with our team: 800-237-5225.
Request a Quote and Consultation
We can also help you evaluate custom conical springs and determine whether a custom design suits your application better.
Simply Request a Custom Quotation so we can partner with you to customize a spring design for your unique application.
Once we hear from you, our design team will follow up with a quote for a custom solution and be happy to answer any follow-up questions you may have.