Gas Strut simulation

Hi, I am trying to simulate opening and closing a hatch fitted on a frame with hinges and a Gas Strut/Gas Spring.

I would like to know how can i render the gas strut so that when a force is applied, it expands and contracts and the hatch rotate about the hinge.

Should it be a Body with parts or a composite with bodies like Outer Body, Piston Rod, Top Bracket, Bottom Bracket.... Making it a stack would not work since the piston rotates about the point where you chain them together. The piston needs to be restricted to only move linearly within the outer body.

I did create a body with parts for the strut, but i cannot apply a force to compress the piston inside the body. It simply flies away out of the world despite adding a timescale (delta) in the beforeUpdate event.

Appreciate the help!