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Small Custom & Stock Springs
Small springs include helical coil springs – denoted by their distinctive helical wire configurations – with compact dimensions engineered to tight tolerances. While "small" terminology is descriptive and non-quantitative, small springs generally fit within a certain wire and outer diameter specification.
Small springs are available in the three primary helical coil spring subtypes – tension, compression (including conical, tapered/barrel, die springs, etc.), or torsion springs. All small springs are designed and manufactured to precise dimensional tolerances to function reliably within small assemblies.
Depending on the spring type, the envelope that makes a spring “small” varies, and there is some variability and fluidity between the spring types and classes. However, small extension and compression springs generally have outer diameters less than 0.50 in, while small torsion springs have outer diameters smaller than 0.135 in.
Your design application determines the loads and environmental resistance your spring needs and guides your selection accordingly. Small springs of all types and materials are found in machine components in every industry, including aerospace, medical, automotive, and consumer products.
Explore Our Small Springs Range
The following chart should help you navigate small and micro springs, where micro springs are a class of springs with even more compact dimensions. The table uses the Outer Diameter (OD) and the Wire Diameter (WD) to differentiate the sizes.
Spring Type | Dim. | Micro Springs | Small Springs |
| Extension Springs | OD | 0.063” to 0.100” | 0.101” to 0.500” |
| WD | 0.004” to 0.012” | 0.013” to 0.035” | |
| Torsion Springs | OD | 0.078” to 0.150” | 0.151” to 0.350” |
| WD | 0.012” to 0.015” | 0.016” to 0.035” | |
| Compression Springs | OD | 0.036” to 0.100” | 0.101” to 0.500” |
| WD | 0.004” to 0.012” | 0.013” to 0.035” |
Century Spring is proud to offer thousands of stock small and micro springs for sale in a wide selection of materials and sizes, available to ship today. You can browse by diameter, spring rate, material, and more. Place your order now to take advantage of same-day shipping.
Download the spring CAD before purchasing to see how your spring will fit your application!
Browse Small Springs by Spring Type
Shop Extension SpringsShop Compression SpringsShop Torsion Springs
Custom Small Springs
If you can’t find the small spring you need in our expansive catalog, we offer custom small spring solutions with many configurable options.
We bring decades of design and manufacturing expertise to your custom spring projects, providing thousands of custom small spring options to fit the most demanding applications and industries.
You can browse our selection of stock small springs to understand the customization options available for custom development projects.
Custom Small Spring Manufacturing Capabilities
We proudly offer state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment to deliver high volumes of custom small springs. We have cutting-edge CNC compression self-monitoring and coiling machinery to manufacture custom sizes and styles to fit any design envelope. We also provide complete prototyping and tooling assistance services.
We are ready to partner with you in all stages of development, from initial concept to procurement, to help you develop small springs engineered for high performance in compact and high-precision applications, even in the most demanding environments.
Don’t waste another minute; reach out to our experts today!
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Small Spring Information & Resources
Where Small Springs Are Used
Small and micro springs are excellent for applications with limited design space envelopes requiring precision and performance.
For example, small springs are used in many automotive components, the most notable being those used within engine valve components.
They can also be found in many aerospace assemblies, including safety-critical electronic switches and relay systems.
Finally, small springs are integral in properly functioning medical devices such as syringes and drug delivery mechanisms such as auto-injectors.
How to Select a Small Spring
Small springs are defined by the same helical coil geometric properties, such as Free Length, Wire Diameter, Outer diameter (OD), and Spring Rate.
Specifically, small compression springs are defined by design characteristics such as Spring Pitch, Total Number of Coils, and Solid Spring Length. Furthermore, small extension springs are defined by design characteristics as the spring's Maximum Deflection. Finally, small torsion springs are defined by additional parameters, such as the angle between the legs, the torsion spring’s Inner Diameter (ID), and the Leg Length.
After determining the working load your small spring must withstand, you can shop for small springs by Spring Rate. Use this value to calculate the spring displacement in your application, which will help you determine how the spring will operate under load in your compact machine design.
The small spring properties will allow you to determine the fit and function of your small spring in your application.
How to Measure a Small Spring
Using calipers to measure the following locations, you can obtain relevant dimensional properties of your small spring.
- Hold the spring on the outer surfaces between your fingers and use calipers to measure the outside of the coil to measure the spring's Outside Diameter (OD).
- Use your calipers to measure the Wire Diameter, which is the wire size that forms the spring coils.
- Place the entire length of the uncompressed spring between your calipers to measure the Free Length of the spring.
- Place the spring flat on its side and count the total Number of Coils. Be sure to include fractions of coils in your total count.
- To measure a small extension spring’s Length inside Hooks (LIH), place the outer jaws of your calipers on the exterior of the extension spring’s hooks on each end so that the calipers envelop the entire spring. Record this value and then subtract two times the wire diameter measured previously. This measurement will determine whether a given spring fits your application.
- Count the total number of torsion spring coils to determine the spring’s Leg Configuration, which is the angle between the legs at the ends of the spring where the load is applied. It is defined by the number of coils on the spring, so you can determine the leg configuration by counting the coils on your torsion spring. For example, a spring with five coils is a zero-degree spring, a spring with 5.25 coils is a 90-degree spring, and one with 5.75 coils is a 170-degree spring.
Explore More Dimensional Measurement Guides
How to Measure Extension SpringsHow to Measure Compression SpringsHow to Measure Torsion Springs
FAQs About Small Springs
What are the most common types of small springs?
The most common type of small spring is helical coil wire-form springs. Helical coil springs represent a broad spring class encompassing three main spring subtypes, differentiated by the direction of the loads they are designed to accommodate. These subtypes are extension, compression (including conical, tapered/barrel, die springs, etc.), and torsion springs.
Do I need a custom small spring?
Standard small springs are readily available in various sizes and specifications. However, if you determine that you need a custom-designed small 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 is best for my small spring application?
In short, consider your application's mechanical loads, corrosion resistance, and temperature requirements. For example, consider a high-strength alloy if your application sees high loads or deformations. At the same time, you may want a stainless steel spring if corrosion resistance is paramount. Additionally, advanced Nickel-based alloys may be appropriate for use in applications that experience very high temperatures.
What tolerances can I expect on my small spring?
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 springs commonly employed in the Aerospace and Defense industries. However, these calculations can be very involved, so we have integrated them 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 small 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.
Our Manufacturing Services include prototyping and tooling assistance. 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 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 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 through all our available secondary operations for each spring type and material.
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 secondary operations and determine whether a custom spring design better suits your application.
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.