Piston Slap: (Internal) Teeth Gnashing About Lock Washers - Hagerty Media

Oct 26, 2024

Carrol writes:

I replaced a bad driver’s side telescoping sun visor on a 1982 Corvette. The problem I had was that the little retainer clip that fits over the spring keeps breaking (I’ve gone thru 2-3 clips) as I tried to install it. It appears that the replacement clips are thin aluminum and break easily while the old one, which I was able to resurrect, is steel. I need to replace the sunvisor again, but I need good retainer clips. Any suggestions?

Sajeev answers:

I’m gonna go out on a limb and suggest a workable replacement could be available at a hardware store, an industrial supply company (like Grainger), or one of thousands of online retailers on eBay or Amazon. All you need are some measurements from the old washer and a handy chart like this one from McMaster-Carr.

What you are looking for is called an “internal toothed lock washer” made of stainless steel, not aluminum. Stainless steel is significantly stronger, so it should hold that little spring nicely, and make your sun visor stay in its happy place against the windscreen.

So choose your hardware vendor, measure your current lock washer carefully, but feel free to buy a few different sizes if you have concerns about the accuracy of your measurements. The big concern is getting the correct outer diameter to fit into the C3’s windshield frame. The inner diameter likely won’t matter as much, because it gets crushed around the rod that holds the sun visor. Just get as close to the factory part and you should be good to go.

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