Hood hinge repair or replacement

I'm fitting the hood to the fenders to set the gap and I notice when I start to close the hood, the hinges deflect sideways, not a good thing. So here is the set-up; the car is in white metal and the hinges have been removed from the body and are in place on there pins, but the retaining clips are not installed. Could it be the lack of clips is causing the deflection?

Ideally I'd like to use gas springs instead of the wound springs so it looks like I'll have to make the modified hinges myself.

Any help or thoughts would be appreciated.