^sorry guy's you know what it's like, you say your going to do some thing and it takes a while to get it sorted. i think the new year is looking like the best time for me, also i need to get it done as i have a 2 1/2 year old.

i promise i will keep you posted.

take care all.

Hi,

I'm really sorry and don't want to be a kiljoy, nor put a downer on things, but I just thought I may add something to the safety discussion.

It's definately worth spending the extra money and fitting three point safety belts to your buses, rather than lap belts!

Whilst lap belts are by far cooler, they have also been shown to be a large cause of spinal fractures in car accidents. The forward momentum with you hips fixed is what causes the problems because they fix your lower half to the seat, but leave your spine un-restrained.

Sorry, but I've worked as a physiotherapy technician for 5 years, and qualify as a physiotherapist in July and thought I'd pass on what I've learnt.

flip

p.s. currently I haven't got any seatbelts at all in my van, so I'm not really one to talk, but when I am not a student, I'll definatley be fitting three point belts to my bus!

Those who have fitted seat belts in their splitties - where have you got them from. I see VW heriatage have a good selection of classic looking inertial reel belts but they are designed to be mounted upright. On a split the correct place to mount them is on the top of the arch panel which is horozontal just in front of the rear bulkhead. Any suggestions?

Seat belt suppliers can supply 90 degree brackets to allow the belts to be used horizontally.

And with regards to lap belts - I think I would prefer to ride in a bus with safaris without belts at all than use lap belts. If you stop suddenly your head will pivot forward onto the sliders - ouch!!!!

Any news on a cage for the front panel yet?? Anyone??

That's a serious lookin bit of kit, any details for us?

You can check it out at the Breeze

Hi Folks.

I'm about to fit 3 point belts in the front and rear of my '67 bus, and all of the links to how to articles on this thread no longer go anywhere (apart from the aussie one, which is still helpful). Are these articles still available somewhere?

I also seem to remember a how to in one of the mags (probably either the ssvc one or volksworld). Was that the case? I could always sit and go through the 4 years of mags I have here I suppose...

Cheers
Julian

Julian,

Here's a lionk to a thread I did about fitting 3 point belts in the front of a splitty, its just a copy of the article I did for the SSVC mag a while back. http://www.ssvc.ukshells.co.uk/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=7440&highlight=seatbelts

the only issue I had back then was securing the rear facing baby seat in the back as I've only fitted lap bels in the back (not see a great way of doing 3 pointers in the back yet, lots of people have mentioed it but I've never seen any pics). Anyway I have 2 daughters now and they are both in the bigger forward facing seats, and I have btittax ones that are designed for 3 point or lap belts so no problems anymore.

cheers
Alex

15 window wrote:Julian,

Here's a lionk to a thread I did about fitting 3 point belts in the front of a splitty, its just a copy of the article I did for the SSVC mag a while back. http://www.ssvc.ukshells.co.uk/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=7440&highlight=seatbelts

Brilliant, thats exactly what I was after - thanks very much.

Here's one for anyone working on a bus with a beam you don't know, (ie modified by a previous owner).

Watch out for beams that are cut and turned only on ONE beam. Luckily today I was in the open, as the beam was dropped out already, but was stripping it down for a mate, and when I knocked off the second spindle, one of the trailing arms flipped over 90 degrees when it was released.

Now that thing really had some force behind it, and fortunately, the spindle / brake assemble came off the one under tension so it was just the arm that moved, rather than throwing the whole assemble across the workshop. BUT imagine if that was still fitted to a van, and your head is in the wheel arch area as you drift out the link pins......

I've been doing some little jobs on our bus this week while I wait for the engine/wiring/tank and shocks to arrive...

My main worry all along has been how to get a decent 3 point belt in the back for my 4 yr old son who will have to sit next to the devon cooker. Initially I was going to bolt thebelt a bit further back on the lower luggage compartment panel but the geometry wasn't good. So I basically moved the belt reel around the rear (I've already bolted the buckle where I want it) and found that the best place was going to be just next to your left shoulder about a foot above the engine bay. On a late Devon this is where the flip top rear locker is and the gap in the door is just large enough for the belt to slip through. So I've drew out a pattern and had a local machine shop knock a chunky bracket out of 3mm plate (i.e. thicker than the mechanism of the belt itself).

It appears to work well.




I also had a chat with Paul Venners about roll cages. A very eye opening conversation to say the least... I'm going to try and get the bus down to him in July for a cage around the cab, the only issues is that the B pillar cage section will run straight through my new Devon wardrobe. Also this isn't a cheap thing to do but then again how expesive are a new pair of legs...

Hi Bob, like your rear belt set up, where did you get your belts from, and what mfr/model number are they?
Thanks in advance,
Gareth

The belts are supplied by VW Heritage as specific pre 71 (webbing on the aero style buckle to floor bit). They are a specific design for the T2 bus one for the front and one rear

See

http://www.vwheritage.com/vwh/_catalogues/download/T2/VWH%20T2%2005%20SeatBelts%20RubberMats%20Carpets%20Gauges.pdf

The bracket to hold the rear belt higher in the cupboard is made by one of my colleagues and costs £30 if you'd like one. (They require drilling and painting for final installation).