Spider Springs.. when to replace?

[Jon Pike <jhpike@xxxxxxx>]

Hello all..

As I prepare to put my Spider front end back together,  I'm wondering 
how one can judge when springs need replacement?  I did some Archive 
searching,  but haven't found anything pertaing to this.

I've been away from Alfa's for awhile,  can't quite judge if the car was 
lower than "normal"..  and I've had her up on jackstands so long I 
couldn't tell you how high or low she was..

There's been no obvious problems,  or uneven look to the car,  the only 
thing is I do have, is a moderate amount of surface rust on the fronts.  
How much rust is worrysome?

I've heard that springs can weaken with age,  and I've heard that that 
is a myth.

So,  I'm scratching my head on whether to derust and paint the springs,  
just toss them back in,  or just toss them and buy a new set.   The 
amount of work it took to derust and repaint just my spring pans is 
giving me pause on the springs..  ;-)

It might be a good thing for some Spring Pundit (tm)  out there to give 
us a dissertation on the subject, for future enlightenment..

Jon
77 Spider
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