Projects seatbelts

55 mercury montclair, i cant seem to find much online about seatbelts. id like them as original as possible in appearance, however i do want the backseat to have shoulder straps for my kids. can anyone point me in the right direction? websites that tailor to this, or am i going to have to find my closest classic apolstrey shop or something

 

Did they have belts back then? For the vintage look I like the crome "latch" type belts not the center push button type.

 

Here are a few options:
http://wescoperformance.stores.yahoo.net/nonresebe.html
http://www.seatbeltstore.com/
http://www.seatbeltsolutions.com/3-point-seat-belts-.html

 

@46international wikipedia says they were an option.

 

Seatbelts WERE NOT put into cars, by manufacturers as standard equipment, until about 1963 or '64...so I doubt you'll find any "original" belts for it...the government hadn't intervened about safety until then...!!!

From Wikipedia: "Nash offered optional seat belts in some models by 1949, and in all models the following year. Ford followed suit in 1955, but it was the Swedish company Saab who introduced seat belts as standard equipment, in the Saab GT 750 shown at the 1958 New York Motor Show."


R-

 

Well wouldnt be the first time wiki was wrong. Thanks @K13 those are some great options!

 

definitley going with the metal clip ones. i might just go with lap belt all around, kids are in carseats anyways. So do you have to weld some metal clips on the frame or something to attach to?

 

Thanks! I'm looking for 3-point belts for my Ford, one of these should be perfect.

 

I'm going through this as we speak. Some cars are harder than others. Lap belts work fine while the kids are in car seats but when they grow out you'll need shoulder belts for their booster seats. I know people still put them in boosters with lap belts but they are not intended to be used that way. Something to think about if your keeping the car around for a while.

 

probably right @k5hart

 

Don't mount seatbelts to the frame mount them to the body. It is an unlikely scenario but if the body was ever to be shifted or pulled off the frame in an accident the belt then becomes a shear if it is attached to the frame and not the body of the car.

 

Nope. Wikipedia is incorrect (yes, it happens). Every Muntz Jet came with factory-installed seatbelts as standard equipment, beginning in 1950.

 

@K13 apologies meant body. so is that typically what is needed to attach them to the body, some metal loops or clips welded in?

 

Wesco has some pretty good instructions:

http://www.wescoperformance.com/seat-belt-install-3-point-retract.html#top

 

thanks, those instructions are for replacement with existing anchorpoints, but it appears the anchor points are just holes, and you bolt a bracket on. So drill some holes in the floor to make your own anchor point, and bolt on a bracket looks like it might do the trick.

 

You should also put a large washer or other piece of metal under the floor to spread out the the forces the bolt would apply so it does not rip through the floor.

 

Ford offered seatbelts as an option in '56 (not '55) as part of their 'safety' marketing, along with a optional padded dash and sunvisors and their new standard-equipment 'deepdish' steering wheel. These early belts were rather crude, and the attachment points were simple holes drilled in the floor pan with a large washer for reinforcement. I seriously doubt that they would meet current specs if you did manage to find a set in good shape.

 

biggest, fattest washers you could find might work. And of course you would need to have a good solid floor (which i do).

 

don't just want to get big washers, you need something like these from Juliano's Hot rod parts.

 

49 ratfink has the right idea.

 

those ones fink showed are the proper style mounts as they will deform the floor trying to spread the pull from the impact and not rip the metal out or pull thru like a fender washer will , crawl under a modern car and you will see the same shape cups , we used to cut them off the cars and reuse them

 

I put a three point setup from Julianos in my 52 Chevy Panel truck and they were great.

 

Fantastic, thanks guys you got me on the right track

 

All seat belts down here MUST be DOT approved and installed to meet strict guidelines, I thought about Juliano's and others but no one had DOT approval so I ended up purchasing new local belts ($$$) that are colour coded and match the OEM trim. As a side issue bomber seats and similar belts won't pass TECH inspection down here either.

 

I make my own from 1/4" steel and put a big radius in the corners. Sharp corners act like a can opener if the belts get yanked hard enough.

 

Juliano's belts all meet or exceed SAE and FMVSS regulations. I don't know why you would think otherwise, as their web site clearly shows this.

 

Lots of good info here, the HAMB rocks! I'll be installing seat belts in my DeLuxe soon, subscribed for more info.


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Try Andover restraint. Good quality DOT belts at a good price and excellent service.

 

the smooth cup shape ( 1/8 radius ) they bend into the restraints will prevent the plate from shearing the sheet metal , so when you make yours you should bend the edges up also as it will still try to shear the sheetmetal . instead it pulls and allows it to stretch over a larger area and has a larger force absorbing area like bending sheetmetal in a pipe brake . as for Belts sold here most are DOT / FMVSS approved for sale , but I have seen some without the Labels , I only buy from reptuable sources or reuse a OEm belts . 3 way belts there are rules you have to follow ( SAE has the listing on the rules ) when you put them in as you can make them more dangerous than if they were not equipped if placed in the wrong spot or anchored wrong . most problems are pull out of the mechanism or belt placement across the upper torso .

 

Nothing untraditional about not wanting to be seriously injured in an accident. Seat belts save lives, it's a fact. And the chrome latch type look good, too