> ------------------------------
>
> Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2007 13:26:15 -0400
> From: "John Klingman" <jklingman@stny.rr.com>
> Subject: seat belts
>
> We have a '68 2000 with stock 3 point seat belts. I would like to
> replace them
> with a 5 pt harness, John is more in favor of a 4 pt harness. Years
> ago I lost
> friends in different roadster accidents where them were thrown out
> of the car,
> they were dead and the cars were able to be driven away. I know it
> is best not
> to have an accident, but I wish to put the odds in my favor. I did
> a lot of
> dirt track running yrs ago and that 5 pt did it's job.
> Gloria and John Klingman
> Sidney, NY '68 2000
>
> ------------------------------
I'm with Bob on the lap belts, the stock mounting holes are fine.
They're a little far back, but probably stronger than a hole through
the floor/tunnel. You do want plate the belt is threaded on to to
rotate rather than being stuck at some funny angle. You want the belt
to be able to pull straight against the slot. It was a tight fit for
the 3" hardware. And keep the hardware right up against the head of
the bolt.
For the shoulders, SCCA prescribes an angle not greater than 20
degrees from the harness mounting points to the top of your shoulder
(much more will compress the spine as the you go forward and the
belts straighten out) They have full specs in their GCR online at
http://www.scca.com/_FileLibrary/File/GCR2007.pdf on page 1644 (90
of 580) are some diagrams. Explanatory text is on prev pages I
think. The seat will not stop the belt from flattening in event of
an impact.
You want to keep the belts as short as possible as they do stretch on
impact, the longer the belt, the more material to stretch further,
putting your already close body closer to stuff. The sub belt should
be mounted close to directly below the latch location. Backing plates
(generally about 4x4x1/8 steel) and either eyebolts/clip-ons or other
mounting pieces can be gotten online readily, or at a local
circle-track shop, or make your own. I think they spec grade 5 as it
is not as brittle as grade 8 and will actually stretch and bend a
bit so it holds better than grade 8. (I have not tested that hard...
yet)
I just got my car that had been raced, and the PO had mounted the
harnesses on the harness bar on the roll cage, trouble is the belt
angle was in the 60 deg range, and he would have been about 5 inches
shorter had he crashed hard. First thing I did was add a harness bar
at the correct height.
Good luck!
Steve
Steve's Racing web site
www.NoNameRacing.com
Elkhart Lake Racing & Sipping Society home
www.elrss.com
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