That tool you describe is very similar to one of the Renault tools (probably inspired by it). There are also many generic versions of it available on the market.
The other one is a saddle that goes around the bottom spring perch without interfering with the shock, and has two extension arms with a hole and a threaded rod on the side used as I explained above. The extension arms pivot around a bolt inserted through a hole in the shock tower about half way down. It is there from manufacture exactly for this purpose, I guess. As you wind the top nut on the threaded rod the tool is going to mimic the movement of the top suspension arm and compress the spring lifting the bottom spring perch off the shock body rest and leaving the shock alone. If you only want to replace the shock, you don't even need to compress the spring any more after it has lifted off the bottom rest a bit. It is the best tool for compressing these springs, and not exactly hard to make. Now that you have a welder, you can make one.
Here's one version and this one doesn't even need any welding
https://i.servimg.com/u/f12/09/02/29/15/sus50511.jpg
The other one is a saddle that goes around the bottom spring perch without interfering with the shock, and has two extension arms with a hole and a threaded rod on the side used as I explained above. The extension arms pivot around a bolt inserted through a hole in the shock tower about half way down. It is there from manufacture exactly for this purpose, I guess. As you wind the top nut on the threaded rod the tool is going to mimic the movement of the top suspension arm and compress the spring lifting the bottom spring perch off the shock body rest and leaving the shock alone. If you only want to replace the shock, you don't even need to compress the spring any more after it has lifted off the bottom rest a bit. It is the best tool for compressing these springs, and not exactly hard to make. Now that you have a welder, you can make one.
Here's one version and this one doesn't even need any welding
https://i.servimg.com/u/f12/09/02/29/15/sus50511.jpg
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