How to replace the spring in an old cupboard hinge

Factual Questions
1

Our kitchen has cupboards that I suppose date back to the 1970s. The hinges are spring-loaded so that they snap shut. I opened one of the cupboards the other day and the spring in the hinge flew out. I retrieved it from the floor but can’t figure out how to replace it in the hinge. I looked up some hinge repair videos on YouTube, but all I found were tutorials for modern hinges that look a lot different than ours, and in any case none of the tutorials show how to replace a spring.

Here’s a photo of one of the hinges in question. (I assume this one still has its spring; I didn’t photograph the springless one as it’s not as well lit.) Can anyone advise on how/where to replace the spring?

I suppose I could always remove the hinge completely and replace it with a new one, but maybe I can save myself a trip to the hardware store if I can simply replace the spring on this one.

2

If the spring escaped, either it or the hinge is broken.
Best bet would be to find equivalent hinges.

Something like this might work:

3

I’d suggest removing the affected door by removing the two screws attaching the hinges to the frame, then removing the busted hinge from the door. It appears that the two halves of the hinge are held together by two pins, so next I’d disassemble the hinge. As @beowulff says, it’s possible that the hinge or spring are broken, if it’s the hinge it may be that some of the metal has worn away so that there’s not enough to hold the spring in place, which won’t be easy to fix. If you can figure out where the spring came from, and it doesn’t look broken, then you can try to reassemble the hinge.

It may be that the hinge is toast, in which case you should be able to find a replacement. It might be worth replacing all of the hinges on the affected door.

4

I would replace the hinge with a similar one with an antique brass finish.

5

Is there another cabinet door in your kitchen of lesser use and importance that you can swap the hinges with?

6

Thanks, everyone, for the advice. I removed the hinge from the cabinet and door but still see no way to reinsert the spring, and it looks like the whole thing may be damaged beyond repair anyway. (There’s a plastic part in the other hinges that’s missing in this one, and some of the metal looks bent or worn away.) So I spent some time browsing the online catalogues of Amazon and hardware stores, starting with the item @beowulff linked to, until I found some that seem to match the size, colour, shape, and screw-hole configuration of the one I have. They’re available locally, so I’ll take the broken hinge with me to the store and see if it matches.

7

We have the same problem in our kitchen. The hinge springs are held in by 1981 vintage plastic that’s dried up, so several springs have been popping out these past 7-8 years. We have a few doors that close pitifully, and one that doesn’t stay closed at all. We happen to have two different neighbours who changed their 1981 kitchen cabinets recently; I know one of them kept the hinges, so I’ll try to bring one over to see if he’s got usable spares. Oak cabinets are really, really out of fashion where we live, so there are several in the classifieds as well.

8

As an alternative:

Back when I was in the States, I lived in a pretty old house by American standards (construction date 1908). A lot had been remodeled and renovated over the years, but there was still some vintage hardware here and there (doorknobs, faucet handles, that kind of thing). Whenever I needed to replace one of these, I didn’t start with the modern suppliers and retailers, because they would almost never have something that fit, and I’d need to swap out a lot more than the individual piece (say, replacing an entire vintage toilet because a modern replacement handle couldn’t be installed).

Instead, I knew of a “recover and recycle” type shop, where they’d collect the bits and bobs from demolition work, salvaging still-usable hardware from house teardowns, and offer everything for sale. They had boxes and boxes of knobs and hinges and light switch covers and all kinds of stuff which was long out of production and irreplaceable in their original forms. Plus, because this was a warehouse in the industrial district and not a big-box store in a suburban mall, all the hardware was super cheap. I could get the 1910s-era hardware for an interior door for half the price of the new stuff (not to mention, I wouldn’t have to also replace the door).

If you have something like this in your town, it might be a better place to begin your browsing. And you’re supporting a local business besides.