Tapered & Barrel Springs
Both tapered springs and barrel springs are compression springs that differ in shape slightly from the standard straight helical coil of compression springs. Barrel springs are a class of barrel-shaped tapered springs with slightly larger helical coils in the center of the spring. Straight tapered or conical springs have helical coils that decrease in diameter from one end to the other in a consistent gradient.
Both barrel and tapered springs are used in applications with very limited space envelopes because their unique shape allows them to telescope down into a thickness of one wire size, offering a significantly decreased compressed height compared to traditional helical coil compression springs. Additionally, tapered springs are used in applications that require additional stability and resistance to buckling under load, as a larger base provides good stability during compression and relaxation of the spring. These features make tapered springs an excellent choice for a wide range of space-limited applications.
Browse More Tapered Springs
You can shop our spring catalog for thousands of in-stock tapered springs across constant and variable rate tapered springs. Place your order now to take advantage of same-day shipping. You can browse by diameter, spring rate, material, and more.
Download the spring CAD before purchasing to see how your spring will fit your application!
CUSTOM MANUFACTURING
The World's Largest Selection of Stock Springs, Plus Custom Build-to-Spec
Century Spring is proud to offer thousands of in-stock tapered springs in a wide selection of materials and sizes, including barrel and constant-rate tapered springs, that are available to ship today.
We have designed and manufactured thousands of custom tapered spring solutions for various applications across numerous industries.
Custom Tapered Spring Manufacturing Capabilities
If you can’t find the barrel or taper spring you need in our expansive catalog, we also offer custom tapered spring solutions, including closed and ground end types, high-performance materials such as phosphor bronze and Inconel, as well as additional surface finishes including zinc plating and black oxide.
We proudly offer state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment to deliver high volumes of custom tapered 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 custom tapered spring solutions engineered to withstand the most demanding environments.
Don’t waste another minute; reach out to our experts today!
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Tapered Spring Information & Resources
Tapered Springs Characteristics
Tapered and barrel springs possess many of the same geometric properties as traditional helical coil compression springs. However, there are a few critical distinguishing characteristics worth mentioning, such as tapered springs designed so that each active coil during compression fits within the previous coil in a telescoping manner. Additionally, tapered and barrel springs also have non-linear spring rates.
How to Select a Tapered Spring
You should understand some essential tapered spring characteristics before browsing our expansive selection.
Generally, a tapered 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. The tapered spring Wire Diameter is the thickness of the metal used to form the helical coils. Finally, the Free Length dimension is the vertical height of the tapered spring measured from the top and bottom surfaces of the spring when it is uncompressed.
The tapered spring’s Spring Rate is the property of a spring that measures the resistance of the tapered spring to compression forces. However, unlike the standard helical coil compression spring, tapered springs have a non-linear spring rate, which increases as the spring is compressed nearer to the larger helical coils. This is a desirable feature in applications with large vibration loads because the tapered spring can further dampen loads as it deforms.
You can still use the spring rate on a particular spring and the geometry to calculate the deflection under design loading conditions, but for tapered springs, not including constant rate tapered springs, the value is quoted as an average value across the spring’s compression.
Material Types and Benefits
Steel is the most commonly specified material for tapered springs because its elasticity, durability, and strength make them perfect candidates for mechanical springs. Carbon Steel springs are an economical choice for applications with moderate loading requirements, while Stainless Steel springs are commonly found in machine applications that require corrosion resistance.
Furthermore, high-carbon steel, commonly called music wire, is a specialty steel that can resist high loads. This allows music wire springs to be wound tightly and have a small profile. Chrome silicone is also available as a custom option to offer additional strength, while beryllium copper is a custom option that offers superior corrosion resistance and excellent electrical conductivity.
Dimensions Measurement Guide
You can obtain all of the relevant dimensional properties of your tapered spring by using calipers to measure at the following locations:
- Place the large outside jaws of the calipers on the outer surface of the largest part of the tapered spring to measure the tapered spring’s Large End Outer Diameter (Large OD).
- Place the large outside jaws of the calipers on the outer surface of the smallest part of the tapered spring to measure the tapered spring’s Small End Outer Diameter (Small OD).
- Place the Large OD of the tapered spring on the large outside jaws on the caliper and contact the top of the spring at the Small OD with the other outside caliper jaws to read the Free Length dimension. Take care to read the measurement of this dimension 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.
Explore More Dimensional Measurement Guides
How to Measure Extension SpringsHow to Measure Compression SpringsHow to Measure Torsion Springs
Applications and Industries
Where Tapered Springs Are Used
Tapered and barrel springs are versatile springs found in many applications across numerous industries and product categories. Thanks to their compact profile and high degree of stability, they are great choices in variable loading applications.
Tapered and barrel springs can be found in many automotive applications, such as engine components and suspension systems,
They can also be found in the landing gear components within many different aerospace assemblies.
You can find stainless steel tapered springs in push-button components of medical devices, such as those used in surgical instrumentation and syringe injectors.
They are also in a broad range of consumer electronics products, such as button and switch relays. Barrel springs are also very commonly employed in antenna relay mounting equipment.
Case Studies: Industry-Specific Applications
One of the most recognizable uses of tapered springs is found in nearly every single-use battery-powered consumer electronics device. Everyone who has ever opened up a battery compartment to replace a set of AA or AAA batteries has observed a tapered spring in action, as tapered compression springs serve as the primary electrical contact between the two ends of the battery and hold the batteries in place. Tapered springs are perfect for such an application because the wide base creates a stable, secure connection to the battery. Tapered springs allow battery-powered devices to operate reliably for the battery's life.
FAQs About Tapered Springs
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 tapered and barrel spring materials include music wire, stainless steel, and various 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 tapered and barrel 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 tapered 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 and offer products and expertise to serve every corner of the stainless steel spring market.
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 challenging stainless steel spring 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 tapered springs that will fit your application.
If you need immediate assistance, you can always reach us at our dedicated phone line to speak directly with our team: 800-237-5225.
We are ready to provide comprehensive engineering support from your earliest design stages to final product approval.
Request a Quote and Consultation
We can also help you evaluate custom tapered spring design options and determine whether a custom design would better suit your application.
Simply Request a Custom Quotation so we can partner with you to customize a tapered spring 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.
Need a Large Order?
We can design and manufacture a component for your specific application in any quantity. For quantities over 1,000, please request a quote.
