Bordfunker Posted November 25, 2017 Report Share Posted November 25, 2017 As part of my prepping the Herald for its MoT I went to fit the newly refurbished passenger side seat belt, and having removed the inertia reel belt, which doesn’t seem to work worth a damn, noticed that there was corrosion around the lower mounting point. Having cut out the metal around the mounting, including the reinforcing plate behind the panel itself, I am trying to work out if the reinforcing plate is welded to the panel, or is it simply held in place by the seat belt bolt? Welding isn’t an issue, but I’ll need to weld the reinforcing panel to the repair section before I weld that as it’s all hidden behind the side rail, which will mean waiting another week while the reinforcing plates turn up and I get an opportunity to weld. Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougbgt6 Posted November 25, 2017 Report Share Posted November 25, 2017 to Karl, The inertia reels I fitted to my GT came with a backing plate for the inertia reel assembly. The instructions said no welding required. The original static belt anchor point is welded and still used in the GT6 inertia system. I guess your car wouldn't originally have had inertia reels, so this is an update same as mine? If you're inertia reels don't work, they should be replaced, I got mine from the club shop, they work very well. There is a particular problem with the Gt6 in that if you have a static belt on, you can't lean forward enough to reach the ignition, bit of a panic if you stall, so inertias are a must! Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 Apart from wear and tear most reels have to be mounted with pendlum or whatever in a vertical stance , most have an rotational arrow To change the incline to suit its instalation , Worth having a look if the reel free wheels or locks erratically or to quick Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gully Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 The inertia reel belts in my GT6 were dangerous - too much drag in the system and would never lock when given a short, sharp tug. I replaced them with statics and feel considerably safer! Not a problem to shrug the belt off my shoulder if I need to reach the ignition key, but I do remember to start the car before putting my seat belt on! Gully Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 Not all belt designs respond to a sharp pull as a test depends on how the inertia is linked to locking the reel Lucky we dont have pretensioners or some would .....shorten the car Ha !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordfunker Posted November 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 Thanks for the comments guys. At the moment I am unsure whether the reinforcing plate I removed yesterday was a factory fit, or a new addition when the inertia’s were fitted. I did find this lurking in the driver’s side sill a while back, which looks like it may be the original reinforcing plate for the statics on that side. If so it looks like they weren’t welded in. Unfortunately my WSM predates the fitting of seatbelts so isn’t a reliable reference point, so I can’t tell whether I can just weld up the hole in the flor today, and then fit the new reinforcing plate next week without having to break out the welder again. With regard the inertia’s fitted when I got the car, their operation also seemed very hit and miss, despite much tinkering, so I decided to refit the original passenger side static on the driver’s side, and get the frayed driver’s belt rebuilt by Quickfit in North London. I must admit I much prefer the look of the statics over modern inertia reel belts. Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68vitesse Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 (edited) Securon make a model where the retractor has adjusters so it can be fitted at any angle within reason. I have a pair fitted to my Vitesse convertible with the retractor on the rear wheel arch. Regards Paul Edited December 3, 2017 by 68vitesse Spell checker took over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 dont think there is much wrong with just adding the plate like the one you found , thats whats supplied in most retro fit kits just looked in a kit and nothing says you need to weld them in place , in My Vit6 i always had to tug the belts to loose pressure on the shoulders as the bucket ride of these cars kept retightening i had contemplated changing to fixed but sold the hairy old girl for the 2000 Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougbgt6 Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 Blimey! Nearly choked on my builder's tea. I thought you wrote you'd sold the Vit for 2000! I'd have given you £2005, but then I realise it's Triumph 2000, not pounds 2000! Don't understand why anybody would prefer statics to inertia. Statics are uncomfortable when they're on and untidy when they're off. But, maybe I'm the wrong shape for statics! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 i cant comment on your shape i put inertia in the rear of the 2000 but they foul the headling and the pendlum mech rattles around and took them out for fixed. these hang out the dorrs get wrapped round legs and dont realy work what ever your shape the fronts are smaller and would work but dont have the vertical/ horizontal adjusts so a swap around was off the cards . Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougbgt6 Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 31 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said: i cant comment on your shape Come on! You know you want to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Lewis Posted November 26, 2017 Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 £$$%%^^&&*(( /\ ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordfunker Posted November 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2017 Pete, thanks for confirming that. That means I can crack on with welding in the repair section that I made up last night. I’m inclined to order some new reinforcing plates, but will see what I can do with the old plate and the spare that fell out of the sill. Doug, you are right, the statics are more comfortable, but I think they look ugly compared to the period statics I’ve got. Time to break out the MIG! Karl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahebron Posted December 3, 2017 Report Share Posted December 3, 2017 That reinforcing plate looks like a Vitesse/Herald body mount plate with the nut removed. I could be wrong of course. Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted December 5, 2017 Report Share Posted December 5, 2017 The MSA Yearbook, Section K (see https://www.msauk.org/assets/bluebook2017completevlow-res.pdf ) has to be a good source of advice, as it's unbiased, except in favour of safety. It recommends that backing plates should be at least 3mm thick in steel, but does not mention welding on. How big? Again no mention. but counterplates for seat anchors should each be at least 40cm^2. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 5, 2017 Report Share Posted December 5, 2017 Hello John. Can I confirm the 40cm^2 measurement, please. Thanks. Richard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD Posted December 5, 2017 Report Share Posted December 5, 2017 That's what I wrote, and that's what I meant. What's the problem? It's a plate 6.5cms square, or equivalent. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 6, 2017 Report Share Posted December 6, 2017 Ease up Tiger !! There's no problem, I just wanted to confirm the dimensions that's all and the fact you have mentioned the 6.5cm sq is exactly what I wished to confirm. Thank you for your generous and erudite response. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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