I thought I would re-post this in a separate thread for future reference since there is some interest in getting rid of the torsion springs.
I welded a grade 8 bolt to the back of the channel bracket. I'm sure you can use something else but I went this route because I can still remove the retaining nut without having to take off the fender in the future. A shoulder bolt will work better which I bought today. shoulder bolt View attachment 1714927618
Excuse the weld again. Still need more practice at this. View attachment 1714927621
I ended up drilling two holes because **(*)I did not realize that the original pinned/pressed bolt was a smaller diameter before I ground it off the donor hinge. The top hole and fastener will be welded to so it looks like original button View attachment 1714927624
Here are the donor hinges from a 73 Duster View attachment 1714927627
The fastener pictured next to the button after grinding it off View attachment 1714927630
Should look like this when finished so that this parts still appears stock. View attachment 1714927633
Not too bad so far. I hope to finish the other side tomorrow and have the hood on to check clearances and any binding issues. I have other detailed pics if anyone is interested. I got this particular idea from another member (sweattybetty) and really liked the idea of not having torsion hood springs in the engine bay.
Well I finished mocking everything up today. This modification works like a dream. There are a couple of things I need to mention to make things smoother for those of you that are going to do this modification. Here goes part II. :toothy1:
Back side of shoulder bolt. I used a 1/2" X 3/8" shoulder bolt which gives just barely enough room for the hinge to pivot on. I would definitely get the 1/2" x 1/2 shoulder bolt (which is what I'm going to do) View attachment 1714927646
It is very important to have the hinges in the hood up position when calculating where to place the spring mounting bracket. I wanted about a 3/8" gap (finger tip) between the hinge and the cowl. After doing the 1st side I measured the distance from the top of the cowl to the top of the mounting bracket. My measurement was 8 1/8" inches which I used for the opposite side. View attachment 1714927648
I drilled a hole through the inner fender to access the shoulder bolt with an Allen drive socket. I think not welding this piece is best for future removal of the hood springs or maintenance. View attachment 1714927651
You can see where the spring stop bolt hits the mounting bracket in this picture. Important to have the 1/2 x 1/2 shoulder bolt instead, plus a flat washer between the spring assembly and the face of the mounting bracket. View attachment 1714927660
This is why I am using the original flat fastener from the donor car. It should look like this after it is welded to the backside of the hood hinge. You could massage this part as well to get the needed clearance. View attachment 1714927663 View attachment 1714927666
The moment of truth VIDEO OF THE HOOD OPENING AND CLOSING :fart:
It creaks a little which is in part due to what I stated above about the clearance between the spring hinge and the mounting bracket. One thick washer will do ya. I even though about nylon washers too.
Click here for video
Update on how things turned out on the convertible. Sorry I didnt take better pics. These are from a few years ago. Car is in storage currently.
