Seatbelt Improvement

[ew1usnr]

My Falcon did not have seatbelts when I bought it and one of the first things I did was to add lap-belts plus a shoulder harness set-up:
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But, the bench seat folds forward and did not have any locking mechanism. That sort of limited the usefulness of the shoulder restraints.

I bought two “3M Black Nylon Cargo Tie down Luggage Lash Belt Strap with Metal Cam Buckle” off e-bay for $3.21 each with free postage from ShenZhen, China. “Tie down straps with metal cam buckle. 100% brand new and high quality. Quick automatic release. Material: Nylon, metal. Size: 2.5 cm x 300 cm = one-inch wide, ten feet long. Color: Black. Working load 268 lbs, breaking capacity 550 lbs. How to use: Wrap the strap around the load and push though the cam buckle, pull tight. The grip teeth on the buckle stop the strap from loosening.”
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I also ordered two RRP100 steel seat belt anchors for $4.49 each off e-bay from Race Ready Parts in Orlando. $8.98+$.58 tax+$6.55 postage = $16.11.
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I threaded the cargo strap through the floor anchor, wrapped it around the seat hinge and then through the cam buckle. It works! The seatback is held in place and will not move. I left enough slack on the strap so that if I want access to the back seat I just press the cam release button and I can fold the seat forward. When I want to lock it back, I just press the cam button and pull the strap back tight.
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[ew1usnr]

I upgraded my seat-back restraint system and replaced the 550 lb break point cargo straps (left) with 1500 lb break point cinch straps (right).

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Here is what they look like installed.

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Parts information: Two black cinch straps with a webbing break strength of 4,500 lbs and a cam break strength of 1,500 lbs from www.customtiedowns.com (http://www.customtiedowns.com/), Hubbard, Oregon, for $10.78 + $5.55 postage = $16.33. Product #2490, Model: 2490-K3, 1.5 Inch Cinch-Strap Endless Loop Tie Down, CS15-1M Zinc Die-cast Cam Buckle, Endless Loop (No Hooks), Total Strap Length 3 Ft (36 Inches), CW15-K4PE Black Polyester Tie-down Webbing, Assembled in the USA. I received the cinch straps in three days.

[pbrown]

It looks as if you have your shoulder belts mounted to the floor. You should reconsider. That setup can cause spinal compression in an accident. The mount points should be level or slightly above the heights of your shoulder.

[ew1usnr]

It looks as if you have your shoulder belts mounted to the floor. You should reconsider. That setup can cause spinal compression in an accident. The mount points should be level or slightly above the heights of your shoulder.

Thanks, Pat.

I am always willing to reconsider. Here is an alternate method that is applicable to my hardtop body style. "Option 3" refers specifically to Falcons. I have a bench seat and this looks like it is designed for a bucket seat, but maybe it wouldn't matter. The in-board strap would mount to the floor and come up under the back rest the same as my lap belt does now. The biggest difficulty is that the installation would require removing the headliner. That is a problem.

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See: http://www.wescoperformance.com/retrofit-seat-belts-shoul-mt-no-door.html

Here is a grim but interesting article written in 1970 about injuries caused by seatbelts.
See: http://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2393&context=mulr (http://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2393&context=mulr)