Tailgate regulator

[JoshHefnerX]

Has anyone tried to 'wind' the large clock spring in the rear regulator to give it more tension? I pulled mine and it doesn't seem to have a ton of tension in or at least less than I expected. I believe that's causing my window to roll up much slower than down, and that's on a new motor.

Also, the rollers in there are riveted. If I were to replace those, what method is used to mushroom them?

 

[FAB454]

There is a special tool for the rivets that hold the rollers. I can't rember if it was ridiculously expensive or not redaly available(maybe both). I used a die(6mm I think?) to make threads on the small end of the rivets and then used a (same size/pitch) nut to hold everything together. Still good after ....8 years of regular use.

 

[JoshHefnerX]

Was thinking about something like that, wasn't sure.

 

[JoshHefnerX]

Well I went out and looked at that spring, and it looks like it could be spun around another turn, except that I think it would bind the spring up, so time for replacement.

 

[Keitha]

Your best bet is to look at any internal friction between the spring coils. Take the spring off and clean and lube between the coild. Get any rust out from between the coils. The rust really binds the spings when lowering the windows - that is why sometimes they go down very slow and get stuck but come up OK. Get some grease inbetween the coils then reassemble. The regulators really need to be cleaned and freed up. Clean out all the old gunky grease between the gears and hinges, flush out the rollers with WD40, then add motor oil to keep them moving free. Take the springs out and the motor off and cycle the hinges by hand to find any sticky areas. It all adds up to help the windows roll up and down better.

 

[JoshHefnerX]

I've cleaned up the regulator and spring. It's definitely not from dirty, that spring is weak. I can roll it up or down on the bench w/ a small screwdriver. Rolls down fine and fast in the truck. It's the up that's the problem.