Seatbelts

[Mr.T]

Having just got my Herald after a number of years thinking about it I am at last ready to tinker with it in my garage at the weekend. First thing I would like to do is upgrade the front static seatbelts which are a pain when you stop to look at junctions etc. I have seen a number of articles on fitting to a convertible but my little Herald is a saloon. I don't want to go through the trim panel and fit to the rear arch if I can help it. The cars existing belt fits just behind the front seat. This however is not perpendicular above the floor mount so unsure if the inertia belt would work. I would be very grateful from the forum for advice on this.

 

Hopefully have posted this correctly as it's the 1st of many questions I have

 

Many Thanks 

 

Martin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Pete Lewis]

inertia reel can be very self tightening due to the choppy ride of the car  so staic have some advantages 

you really need to try a car with them fitted before you jump I contemplated reverting mine but sold her .

some belt reels have adjustable pendulum position to aid the vertical alignment 

not all do that 

yes its much easier to get at the ignition switch but the shoulder might suffer from the ongoing re tentioning action

you can get strap clamps to restrict the reeling in which can help 

there will be a lot of answers on this subject with lots of preferences 

good luck  

Pete

 

[NonMember]

15 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said:

inertia reel can be very self tightening due to the choppy ride of the car 

Yes, indeed, and this has always been a big problem on my GT6, which is why the Spitfire and Vitesse still have static belts.

15 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said:

yes its much easier to get at the ignition switch

No, it makes it impossible because the belt has tightened and locked you into your seat - see above.

[Clive]

1 hour ago, Mr.T said:

Having just got my Herald after a number of years thinking about it I am at last ready to tinker with it in my garage at the weekend. First thing I would like to do is upgrade the front static seatbelts which are a pain when you stop to look at junctions etc. I have seen a number of articles on fitting to a convertible but my little Herald is a saloon. I don't want to go through the trim panel and fit to the rear arch if I can help it. The cars existing belt fits just behind the front seat. This however is not perpendicular above the floor mount so unsure if the inertia belt would work. I would be very grateful from the forum for advice on this.

 

Hopefully have posted this correctly as it's the 1st of many questions I have

 

Many Thanks 

 

Martin

Welcome. And please avoid putting in that huge amount of blank space under your post, I thought the page had crashed or something. Did your cat sit on the "enter" key?

Anyway, I think, but check, there is space to put an inertial reel at the bottom of the B post, making sure the metal is sound and use reinforcing plates. Then a guide where your existing belt is fitted. 

I have inertia belts in my spitfire, and very rarely have an issue with them locking. Beware buying belts with teh "wire" attachment for the receiver, they get in the way, the ones with a short bit of metal are much better and stay in one place. 

[dougbgt6]

Martin, Welcome!

I had static belts on my GT6, you can't reach the ignition switch with it on, doubly embarrassing if you stall. I replaced them with inertia reel and I've never had the locking problems outlined above. How "not perpendicular" are they?

Doug

[Gully]

I removed the inertia reel belts from my GT6 and replaced them with statics - as per original fitment. Never had a problem with the ignition switch - just slip the belt off your shoulder!

I found the inertia reel belts tightened and locked as others have outlined above, but were actually quite difficult to get to lock with a sudden tug (MOT test / accident scenario) owing to the drag in the system. All round, I've never regretted the reversion to statics.

Gully

[Colin Lindsay]

My most recent Herald being a late 13/60 would have had inertia reel belts fitted to the wheelarches and threaded through the oval holes in the side panels on either side of the rear seat, but the PO has instead fitted inertia reels vertically to the flat panel under the rear seat - see photo. These are reinforced in behind with fairly sturdy metal plates. The weak point is the fitting at the top of the b-post; here they're fitted to the front face and any force will probably rip them out, despite his adding strengthening in behind. Originally on the Herald convertible they used a two-point fixing behind the b-post so that any pull was sideways, not directly forward, and I'll revert to this once I get the correct brackets. Saloons had the static point on the inner rail of the rear wing, below the window.

QuickfitSBS are the best I've dealt with for belts, and can supply the original brackets in a variety of finishes.

 

[Pete Lewis]

the tug test is not going to work as the inertia pendulum has to move to lock the reel   pulling the belt on many wont prove anything  .

Pete

[PeteH]

Have a look Here,:- https://forum.tssc.org.uk/topic/7037-vitesse-16006-convertable-seat-belts/page/3/ Down the 3rd page is how I evetually fitted them on my 13/60.

Pete