Shock absorber

Claim 1

A SHOCK ABSORBER, COMPRISING A TUBULAR COMPRESSION SPRING OF ELASTOMERIC MATERIAL, SAID SPRING HAVING TWO ANNULAR END SURFACES AND END PORTIONS ADJACENT TO SAID END FACES, SAID END PORTIONS BEING BOUNDED BY EXTERNAL SURFACES WHOSE DIAMETERS FIRST INCREASE IN DIRECTIONS AWAY FROM THE RESPECTIVE END FACES TO PROVIDE RESPECTIVE SECTIONS OF MAXIMUM EXTERNAL DIAMETER; AND THEN DECREASE TO PROVIDE AT LEAST ONE SECTION OF AN EXTERNAL DIAMETER LESS THAN SAID MAXIMUM EXTERNAL DIAMETER; AND A PAIR OF SUBSTANTIALLY CUP-SHAPED RIGID STRESS TRANSMITTING MEMBERS EACH HAVING A BOTTOM WALL ADJACENT TO ONE OF SAID END FACES AND A MANTLE DIVERGING OUTWARDLY FROM THE RESPECTIVE BOTTOM WALL AND SURROUNDING WITH CLEARANCE THE CORRESPONDING EXTERNAL SURFACE TO DEFINE THEREWITH AN ANNULAR GAP OF PREDETERMINED DEPTH AND OF A WIDTH WHICH INCREASES IN A DIRECTION AWAY FROM THE RESPECTIVE END FACE IN UNCOMPRESSED CONDITION OF SAID SPRING, SAID MANTLES EXTENDING AT LEAST TO AND SURROUNDING THE MAXIMUMDIAMETER SECTIONS OF THE RESPECTIVE EXTERNAL SURFACES AND SAID MEMBERS BEING MOVABLE TOWARD EACH OTHER TO COMPRESS THE SPRING WHEREBY SAID END PORTIONS EXPAND RADIALLY TO REDUCE THE WIDTH AND THE DEPTH OF SAID GAPS AND TO MOVE THEIR EXTERNAL SURFACES INTO INCREASING FACE-TOFACE ABUTMENT WITH THE CORRESPONDING MANTLES.