BN1 seat belts

[rustynuts]

I'm going to install some and was wondering which are better , 2 or 3 point, and where the 3 point attachment locations are?

 

[rustynuts]

so I take it , since there is no reply, nobody here uses seat belts?

 

[Dave Russell]

Hi Dennis,
I only have two point belts in my BN2. They are mounted through the floor pan with large washers next to the frame members. I don't know where I would put the third point. Maybe high on the wheel well. It would definitely get tangled up with the folded down top though. Not any "good" place, that's why I've got two point belts.
D

 

[Exotexs]

this is not my regular forum but I'll give my $49.99 worth because I've been installing 3-point belts in my 1965 Jaguar S type.

what's a BN1??

2-point seat belts are "Lap Belts". That's what cars came with in the early 1960's. 3-point seat belts are lap belts plus shoulder belts in one continuous loop. Those started being used around 1968. Obviously mi amigo the 3-point belt is better.

The three-point belt attachments are the two normal floor attachments (one on each side of the seat), and the third attachment or "pivot" is at the B post at about ear's height when you're sitting if your car has a hardtop. If your car was made 1965 or later, it should have a threaded hole for a B post bolt, usually they blanked them out with a chrome or plastic plug if the car did not come with belts from the factory. If your car is a roadster or convertible, then you're looking at expensive belts because the third attachment point will be way behind the seat somewhere, requiring a much longer belt.

I've seen a number of 3-point variations in after-market belts. Most 3-point belts loop the shoulder section along with the belt section through the floor bracket, 1 big long section which then attaches to the B post at the pivot point. Some have a FOURTH attachment point (on the side of the seat or at the bottom of the B post), which eliminates the loop but for which you might have to get an adapter, usually a bolt and a bracket.

Then you have the 1960's style of spring-bracket called "Sister-Hook" which attaches to a floor-mounted eye-bolt, same as in aircraft today, in fact that was how belts were invented. Both American and European cars used that style in the 1960's. In the mid 1970's they all went to bolt-through-the-floor permanent attachments. I like the spring brackets because they are quickly removable if needed, but will not fail in an accident.

You can get the proper 3-point belts in many places. the company Andover has many styles of brackets and belt accesories for classic cars, although I don't like that they charge for webbing color samples, but experience since my first car in 1969 has shown me that Seat Belts should be Black regardless of the interior color. If you plan to use them, best if they are Black, that way they don't get stained or show the wear of use. If they are there just for show, then by all means get them in Red, Green, or Ivory color!
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/iagree.gif

 

[Dave Russell]

[ QUOTE ]
this is not my regular forum but I'll give my $49.99 worth because I've been installing 3-point belts in my 1965 Jaguar S type.

what's a BN1??

[/ QUOTE ]
A BN1 is an Austin-Healey that is a year older than the BN2 in my sig pic. Attached is a pic of my interior with the soft top removed. When folded, the soft top pretty much fills the space behind the seats.
D

 

[roscoe]

Hey Dennis,
We are kind of hosed when it comes to shoulder harnesses in the Healeys. Ideally we want to have the anchor point to be within 30 degrees (higher) than horizontal at shoulder height. As we know, there is no structure for this type of installation. If we had ridgid, non-folding seats that could withstand high G loading we could attach the belt to the floor directly behind and at the base of the seat. As we know our seats are anything but capable of high G loading and the back doesn't even lock in place. It seems to me that if you fastened a shoulder harness anywhere on the floor you would risk high compressive loads in a frontal crash. My only solution would be to have a roll bar , preferably with a head rest pad and a good solid attach point for the shoulder harness. This all leads to what we all know. A bad accident in any big Healey is not going to be pretty. I almost hate to ask, but does anyone have any experience, or know of any accidents that were more than fender benders? I am installing vintage style military seatbelts in mine (they are from a UH-1 helicopter, and they have been quite comfortable when I've used them), and I've come upith no other way to utilize the shoulder harness that goes with the belts. I've yet to go the roll bar route. I think I'm going to have to make my own and I'm going to do my best to make it look like it belongs (when I get to it). In general all I expect from my belts is to keep me from being ejected (which might actually be preferable to that long solid steering column).
On to more pleasant driving images....

 

[zblu]

Put simpson belts in mine with quick release for the shoulder belts for when the tops down

 

[Editor_Reid]

[ QUOTE ]
so I take it , since there is no reply, nobody here uses seat belts?

[/ QUOTE ]

At the risk of getting beat up over it, I confess that neither of my 1956 BN2 series cars have seat belts. Oregon doesn't require them on cars manufactured without them. I carry a copy of the applicable Oregon Revised Statutes in the cars to prove it to over-ambitious law enforcement officials, if need be.

That said, I probably will soon install belts in the one of those two that I actually drive very much. The other is mostly a show car, and I really hate the thought of drilling holes and tearing up that perfect interior.

(OK, I'm spraying lecture-repellent all over the room here now...) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif

 

[Exotexs]

I don't like to drive any car without seat belts in today's traffic conditions.

I understand what a BN1 is now. thanks, I am not familiar with these 1950's Healeys so pardon my ignorance. Yes those are fabulous cars.

My first car was a 1969 MG-B Roadster or "MK-II" as the brochure said. It came with 3-point seat belts. The third attachment point, (the shoulder strap end bracket), extended behind the seats and attached to the rear body horizontal panel right in front of the convertible top or toneau cover "snaps", or whatever you call them, those little chrome "towers" onto which the bottom of the top snaps onto?? The belt's end bracket was attached by a very large, nicely rounded chromed bolt, probably 19mm socket, which sandwiched the belt's bracket between the body and some other chrome spacers. Maybe copying that 1969 MG-B mounting would be a way to upgrade your car and have 3-point belts assuming the Healey has any space in front of the top's rear. But even if not, nothing is impossible. There are special brackets and hardware available to achieve any impossible installation in any car. Like the song said: "Do what you like..." Attached is a pic of the "sister hook" brackets used in cars from 1965 through 1975, which were adapted from aircraft belts.

 

[zblu]

Look the same as what I have exotexs, got mine from simpson racing in the usa, were not costly

 

[pan]

I also am wanting to install "lap/sash" seat belts in my BN1.
The problem is mainly how to clear the folded hood (soft top). I like zblu's suggestion about a quick release at the shoulder. Where can I get these?

 

[Bugeye58]

Any of the belt companies sell them, such as Simpson, Impact, Sparco, as well as places like Summit or Racer Wholesale.
Jeff

 

[zblu]

i use the simpsons f/x set up pan, can delete the shoulder setup when required and all still works.
another reason is legality pan, if i install a road approved set of belts then i think i am legally required to use them whether they were original equipment or not, as they are race only they are not aproved for road use therefore you cant get fined for not using them! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif