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Hot Rods Seat belts in hot rods, do you have em?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Roothawg, Jun 9, 2015.

  1. In both my DD's ,I have and use seatbelts ( actually NC has a very strict seatbelt law..."Click-it or Ticket" )....but, in my roadster ,I don't have them... When the DMV put on my assigned VIN sticker ,the inspector said they weren't req'd ,since a '26 had no seatbelts
    But, I feel weird driving without them.. after 4 yrs , it's starting to really bug me...
    Do I want to be belted inside , without a top or rollbar ??
    Or do I really want to be thrown out in case of an accident??
    Damn if I know what to do...
     

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  2. Zandoz
    Joined: Jan 23, 2012
    Posts: 305

    Zandoz
    Member

    I'll have lap belts in the bobtail T. Setting the strapped in or thrown out debate aside, I don't want to be sliding around if I happen to need or want to do a bit of spirited driving
     
  3. ROADSTER1927
    Joined: Feb 14, 2009
    Posts: 3,127

    ROADSTER1927
    Member

    My roadster has 5 point racing harnesses and a single roll bar. We normally use just the lap belt. My wife and her girl friend were encouraged to drive my 60 chevy sedan when I had it the first summer, they wouldn't because it did not have belts. I put them in every thing I build. Gary:)
     
    Gary Reynolds likes this.
  4. chessterd5
    Joined: May 26, 2013
    Posts: 902

    chessterd5
    Member
    from u.s.a.

    Yes! I'll take my chances with them rather than without. I have lap belts from a 66 Chrysler imperial station wagon. Chrome with the flip up handle.
     
    loudbang and Gary Reynolds like this.
  5. Lap belts in my 51. Make me feel secure in the seat. The 30 will get three pointers.
     
    Gary Reynolds likes this.
  6. 1great40
    Joined: Jan 1, 2008
    Posts: 485

    1great40
    Member
    from Walpole MA

    My 40 has a glass cab but I really wanted the 3 point belts so I utilized the 3rd seat out of a Yukon. The 3 point belts are integral to the seat and the seat bolts to the truck on the same bolts that the cab mounts use so the seat its bolted in essence to the frame. Admittedly, there's no roll cage or side intrusion bars but I feel safer than with just lap belts.
     
    Gary Reynolds likes this.
  7. Never leave home without them.
     
  8. JeffreyJames
    Joined: Jun 13, 2007
    Posts: 16,628

    JeffreyJames
    Member
    from SUGAR CITY

    I don't have any in my '35 except some race type achor points to mount a child seat for when my kids are riding. I have seatbelts....I just haven't got around to installing.

    I'm sure that there may be pros and cons for having them as @HOTRODPRIMER stated however even the smallest of accidents might be a lot better off if you don't go thru the windshield. Roadsters I sometime have different thoughts....like maybe you're better off to be ejected? I pray to God I never have to learn that lesson.
     
  9. Frank Carey
    Joined: Oct 15, 2009
    Posts: 574

    Frank Carey
    Member

    I've been using seatbelts since 1957. They were hard to find. I used to order them from J. C. Whitney and the only color was black.
     
    loudbang and Gary Reynolds like this.
  10. rusty rocket
    Joined: Oct 30, 2011
    Posts: 5,053

    rusty rocket
    Member

    So what brand is everyone using? I would like to put 3 points in the 32 sedan before it goes for interior.
     
  11. DDDenny
    Joined: Feb 6, 2015
    Posts: 19,144

    DDDenny
    Member
    from oregon

    Affirmative---Simpson
    DSCN1618.JPG
     
  12. Gastrap
    Joined: Apr 8, 2012
    Posts: 113

    Gastrap
    Member
    from Tama, Iowa

    3 point retractable Juliano's in my AD truck.
     
  13. flux capacitor
    Joined: Sep 18, 2014
    Posts: 696

    flux capacitor
    Member

    We've lap belts in every pre 64 rig we got, save the one, it's not finished yet. Now weither I wear them or not , I will admit is a toss up, in our open air stuff I don't , mostly due to a local car buff s son rolling a mid 60's vette roadster & ejecting his boy & a passenger out "threw the boys clear" which most , including myself likely believe saved their lives. It's a hard choice but in the cars with roofs I do require them worn by my kids n wife. I've raced 20 plus years in open class dirt cars & modifieds for enough years with sone nice rollcages & that's got me being a cinch the belts up tight kinda guy & make sure they're replaced every few years not relying on decades old stitching. Good thread. My vote ...... Roof = belts / Open Air = no belts. Flux
     
    Last edited: Jun 9, 2015
  14. I made a frame of medium wall 3/4" or 1"(?) rectangular tubing that fit fairly tight to the inside of the back of the body and bolted to the back and the B pillar, making the mounting points solid and attached to cab not frame. Painted body color, the frame disappears against the boxy body stampings.
     
  15. okiedokie
    Joined: Jul 5, 2005
    Posts: 4,778

    okiedokie
    Member
    from Ok

    Three point in both my 40 and 53 F100
     
  16. junkyardjeff
    Joined: Jul 23, 2005
    Posts: 8,588

    junkyardjeff
    Member

    None in the 37 or 55,been in a accident where if I was wearing them I might have been decapitated when the hood came through the windshield so I really do not like them and only wear them in the daily drives because I have to or a ticket if caught.
     
  17. I think I may throw a set in my Roadster. 1st because when I corner hard with it I slide around a bit, and then theres the little episode last summer when I looped it in the rain that got me thinking:eek:
     
  18. mgtstumpy
    Joined: Jul 20, 2006
    Posts: 9,214

    mgtstumpy
    Member

    Laps in my phaeton & 3pt retractables in sedanette. Apart from being mandatory here, my safety and that of others in my cars is paramount irrespective of aesthetics or other issues.
     
  19. Don't leave home without 'em!

    [​IMG]
     
    kiwijeff and loudbang like this.
  20. Aircraft lap belts in my roadster... haven't figured out what I want to put in the '40 when I get it back on the road.
     
  21. On my '32 pickup I have 3 point retractable belts. The B pillar structure is hollow and I was able to insert a 1 1/4" wide X 6" long X 1/4" steel flat with a 1/2" nut welded onto it. The B pillar has several holes near the bottom and I was able to slip it inside and then pull it to the top and then insert the 1/2" bolt through the belt mount and then into the threaded nut welded to the steel flat. I'm confident it is strong as any new car set-up. The bottom mounts are mounted in the center of the bulkhead that goes across the back of the cab..

    I'm a firm believer in seat belts in old cars and wouldn't drive a '32 without them. I had lap belts in my last Deuce roadster and will try to put 3 points in my next one. In an old car like a Deuce you can die in a 30 mph crash due to a head injury when your head hits the top of the windshield opening, even with lap belts. It happened to a young mother who was riding in her dad's '32 roadster when a car turned in front of them in Reno, NV. In this case she and her dad were buckled up with lap belts and that wasn't enough to save her. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/another-roadster-crash.468622/

    Closer to home here in Arizona, Frank Pittenger's wife Karen was killed on a similar crash while wearing a lap belt last August. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/frank-pittenger-in-a-bad-wreck.940790/

    And as for being "thrown clear", you stand an equal chance of being crushed by the car. Seat belts do save lives, and they have to be 3 point belts.
     
    loudbang likes this.
  22. mrspeedyt
    Joined: Sep 26, 2009
    Posts: 989

    mrspeedyt
    Member

    I wear them if the car has them. but ihaven't installed any in many years. and as far as replacing them? never.
     
  23. maplefrm
    Joined: Aug 15, 2010
    Posts: 543

    maplefrm
    Member
    from Central IL

    We have 3 point belts in our 5 window. I like the feeling of being held in place and secure.
     
  24. I'm considering those for my Ford.
     
  25. Ned Ludd
    Joined: May 15, 2009
    Posts: 5,026

    Ned Ludd
    Member

    The Morris already had 3-point inertia-reels when I bought it. If it hadn't it'd have been the first thing I'd have put in.

    The '31 (if it happens before I die) will have some form of engineered inertia-reel 4-point set-up.

    Belts have saved my ass more than once. I'll have them and some sort of structural enclosure in any car of mine. As for airbags, the impracticality of deleting them is one of the many reasons I'll never have a car designed after 1975 unless I designed it myself.
     
  26. olcurmdgeon
    Joined: Dec 15, 2007
    Posts: 2,289

    olcurmdgeon
    Member

    We have lap belts in our '40. Just upgraded to new ones (from Julianos, got a perfect color match to upholstery) as the ones in the car were reel type lap belts with galvanized carabiners to hook them to floor brackets. Wacky install, was that way when I bought the car, and the reels didn't work worth crap. RustyRocket, I went with Juliano as their belts have cert tags on them and I thought prices were okay.
     
  27. OLDSMAN
    Joined: Jul 20, 2006
    Posts: 2,422

    OLDSMAN
    BANNED

    I have lapbelts in my convertible
     
    intheyear2000 likes this.
  28. blowby
    Joined: Dec 27, 2012
    Posts: 8,661

    blowby
    Member
    from Nicasio Ca

  29. Weezy1930
    Joined: Nov 21, 2013
    Posts: 117

    Weezy1930
    Member
    from OHIO

    My brother races cars and is a card-carrying member of the Upside Down Club and he won't get into a car without them. It's not the car guys like us that I worry about, but the other drivers out there. I put lap belts in my 64 Buick back in the 1980's and will put them in Weezy too. I've read about too many guys on here who got it from another careless driver. Be safe!
     
  30. Todd M.
    Joined: May 24, 2009
    Posts: 509

    Todd M.
    Member

    I always use them in my rods.[​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    OzyRodder and kiwijeff like this.

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