A DC9-30 ON APCH HAD THE NOSE GEAR FAIL TO EXTEND NORMALLY AND REQUIRED MANUAL EXTENSION CAUSED BY A BUNGEE SPRING BINDING ON THE GEAR ACTUATING CYLINDER.

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ON LOWERING THE GEAR; THE FO AND I NOTICED THAT IT WAS NOT AS LOUD AS USUAL DURING GEAR EXTENSION. WE HAD NO GREEN LIGHTS ON THE NOSEWHEEL. FOLLOWING THE MISSED APCH; WE FOLLOWED COMPANY PROCS. ON ATTEMPTING TO CHANGE BULB; IT SHORTED AND ARCED. A MANUAL GEAR EXTENSION WAS ACCOMPLISHED. VISUALLY CHKED THE GEAR DOWN STRIPES; PLUS HAD A NOSEWHEEL DOWN AND LOCKED INDICATION. HAD THE FIRE TRUCKS STANDING BY; BUT DID NOT DECLARE AN EMER. THE INITIAL REASON FOR REQUESTING FIRE TRUCKS WAS I DIDN'T THINK IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE TO VISUALLY CHK THE NOSEWHEEL THROUGH THE VIEWER SINCE WE HAD DONE A DEICING EVENT AND I FIGURED IT WOULD BE CLUTTERED UP WITH DIRT; FLUIDS; ETC. HOWEVER; THE FO WAS ABLE TO SEE THE ALIGNMENT STRIPES. AFTER LNDG WE RELEASED THE FIRE TRUCKS AND HAD THE GEAR PINNED AFTER CLRING THE RWY. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THE RPTR STATED THE ACFT WAS JACKED BY MAINT AND THE GEAR CYCLED AND THE PROB WAS FOUND TO BE A BUNGEE SPRING BINDING ON THE NOSE GEAR ACTUATING CYLINDER.